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Writing Slowly

@writingslowly.bsky.social

150 followers 530 following 280 posts

My name's Richard and I live on Bidjigal land, Sydney. I’m the author of Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters (https://writingslowly.com/shuhari-book/). Find me at Writingslowly.com though one day I may speed up.

writingslowly.com

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Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Aug 3

I've written a book and here are the details!: https://writingslowly.com/2025/08/03/ive-written-a-book-and.html

The front and back cover of 'Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters', with a white and red design,. The back cover introduces the Japanese concept and its application to learning and teaching. It's authored by Richard Griffiths.

A rustic bamboo gate opens to a lush, tranquil Japanese-style garden path surrounded by trees and shrubs.

A book cover titled Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters by Richard Griffiths features Japanese kanji and a red circle design.

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Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 1d

A clear and accessible introduction to Japanese philosophy, in a podcast with Takeshi Morisato.

Philosophy Bites episode 388

I’m the author of Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters, available now.

#Japanf="/hashtag/JapanesePhilosophy" class="hover:underline text-blue-600 dark:text-sky-400 no-card-link">#JapanesePhilosophy #Podcast #ShuHaRi #Japan #Learning #TakeshiMorisato

Takeshi Morisato on Japanese Philosophy - Philosophy Bites

Most Western philosophers are deeply ignorant of Japanese philosophy. Takeshi Morisato who was brought up in Japan, and who has studied both continental and analytic Western traditions provides and introduction to some of the key strands in Japanese philosophy.

philosophybites.com

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 1d

AI is not helping the learning process

"“When teachers rely on commonly used artificial intelligence chatbots to devise lesson plans, it does not result in more engaging, immersive or effective learning experiences compared with exi... https://writingslowly.com/2025/11/03/ai-is-not-helping-the.html

A person holds a book in front of their face while standing against a brick wall.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 1d

What’s your most valuable note?

@[email protected] asked:

"“Any examples where a tiny note became unexpectedly valuable?”"

Here’s my reply.

"In 2018 I wrote a note describing how I’d like to visit Japan and learn mo... https://writingslowly.com/2025/11/03/whats-your-most-valuable-note.html

A screenshot of a Mastodon post about a useful note

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 2d

To truly understand, you must take things apart and build them back up. My cousin did it with cars, I do it with ideas in my #Zettelkasten and I did it with the concept of #ShuHaRi in my book.

Create your own mental models: i... https://writingslowly.com/2025/11/02/to-truly-understand-you-must.html

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 2d

Create your own mental models: https://writingslowly.com/2025/11/02/create-your-own-mental-models.html

A vintage car is driving along a former railway line near Trawsfynydd, Wales, through a rural landscape with rolling hills in the background.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 2d

Maybe it was Borges who said he published to forget.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 4d

"Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving."

— Terry Pratchett
Nick https://thisness.one/2025/10/30/coming-back-to-where-you.html

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 6d

📷 Outside Matsumoto Castle it was raining gently.

My book, Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters, is out now. Please check it out.

#MatsumotoCastle #Photography #JapanCulture #ShuHaRi #Learning #MartialArts #Nonfiction #JapanTravel

The traditional Japanese castle at Matsumoto stands in the background as people with umbrellas walk through a garden in the foreground on a rainy day.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 12d

🎵 You’ve got to have a dream. #RetroTech #VinylVibes

A billboard advertisement showcases the orange iPhone 17 Pro with a stylized design resembling a turntable. AI, obviously.

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Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 24d

Provocative words about learning, teaching, AI, and the timely value of history: https://writingslowly.com/2025/10/11/provocative-words-about-learning-teaching.html

Five freshly harvested radishes with leaves and soil are arranged on a wooden surface.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 25d

Publishing means no more hiding: https://writingslowly.com/2025/10/09/publishing-means-no-more-hiding.html

Colourful koi fish swim gracefully in a pond, surrounded by a few scattered leaves.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Oct 1

I fell down a rabbit hole writing about Hypercuriosity! 🤯 Inspired by Anne-Laure Le Cunff’s work.

Read how being curious about everything defines my process: https://writingslowly.com/2025/09/30/curious-about-hypercuriosity.html

#Hypercuriosity #Curiosity #ADHD #Writingslowly

Curious about Hypercuriosity

writingslowly.com

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 30

Having written about the need to create your own writing environment, I found this post showing the writing spaces of 12 Booker Prize nominees quite illuminating. Each one seems like a small but mighty theatre stage (HT: kottke.org).

#WritingCommunity #AmWriting #WritersLife #WritingTips

Make your notes a creative working environment

writingslowly.com

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Reposted by Writing Slowly

David M. Perry @lollardfish.bsky.social · Sep 30

COVER REVEAL AND PREORDER: The Public Scholar - A Practical Handbook.

"Perry focuses on the practical details of how to approach public scholarship. How do you pitch a piece to an editor? When should you follow or ignore the rules of the genre? And what happens once your piece is out in the world?"

The Public Scholar

A Practical Handbook

www.press.jhu.edu

29 150 400

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 30

Curious about Hypercuriosity: https://writingslowly.com/2025/09/30/curious-about-hypercuriosity.html

A cat with striking blue eyes is peeking out from inside a paper bag.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 29

Author Craig Mod seems to be following me. I saw his picture in Kyoto Station. Now he’s doing a 200km walk in the Kiso valley, where I walked just a few days ago. Follow his latest pop-up newsletter Between Two Mountains for a unique view of Japan.

#KisoValley #Japan #Walking #Travel #SlowTravel

A small, rustic Japanese train station building stands against a backdrop of mountains under a cloudy sky.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 28

I’m reliably informed it’s a noisy miner, not a mynah. Always forgetting that

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 28

Western learning aims for ‘completion,’ ‘graduation’ - an end-point. But Shu Ha Ri is cyclical. True mastery means returning to the basics (Shu) with new depth. It’s a lifelong process of refining and understanding anew. Never stop being a beginner.

#LifelongLearning #ShuHaRi #SkillAcquisition

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 28

📚Tsundoku emergency temporarily averted.

A collection of various books is neatly arranged on a white surface with a plant in the background.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 28

Keeping a diary is a way of living: https://writingslowly.com/2025/09/28/keeping-a-diary-is-a.html

A handwritten index card features a circular flow diagram with the concepts Journal, Zettelkasten, Writing, Publishing, and Life, accompanied by notes and timestamps.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 27

Magpie swooping season has been busy. But on this morning’s bike ride the magpies I saw were busy chasing a noisy mynah. Then just when I thought I’d escaped, I was swooped - by a mob of ebullient rainbow lorikeets, high on their supply of bottlebrush nectar.

#birdlife #bikelife #swoopingseason

the red flowers of a bottlebrush tree against a blue sky

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 26

I’ve been deep into writing about learning and the art of taking notes. That’s why I love it that Steven Johnson keeps returning to the same theme: The Blank Page Revolution. How paper changed the way we think.

#zettelkasten #note-taking #PKM #WritingLife #ThinkingOnPaper #HistoryOfIdeas

The Blank Page Revolution

How paper changed the way we think.

adjacentpossible.substack.com

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 25

My uncle and both my grandfathers were dedicated anti-fascists. That’s why I get to be here today, reminding you that they won.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 23

Zettelkasten podcast episodes: https://writingslowly.com/2025/09/24/zettelkasten-podcast-episodes.html

199. Zettelkasten "Super" Notes: with Dr Sönke Ahrens

Podcast Episode · Exam Study Expert: ace your exams with the science of learning · 09/14/2025 · 44m

podcasts.apple.com

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 22

If AI can’t do simple anagrams, how is it meant to fix the economy and make our jobs obsolete? (Admittedly, my job doesn’t involve solving anagrams - I’m not that senior - but still).

#anagrams #AIhref="/hashtag/AIfail" class="hover:underline text-blue-600 dark:text-sky-400 no-card-link">#AIfail #AI

The Gemini chatbot is asked to come up with an anagram for the name Nimrod Workman. It replies, "Nimrod Workman is an anagram of 'Mormon Dorkin'."