Roland Allen, author of 'The Notebook: a History'
@zibaldoni.bsky.social
山人. 'The Notebook: a History of Thinking on Paper' is available everywhere. 'Book of the Year' pick by Waterstones, New Yorker, New Statesman, Spectator, Toronto Globe, Engelsberg Ideas, Lit Hub, Austin Kleon, Ryan Holiday, Stephen L. Carter...
Pinned
I’d not be doing social media at all if it wasn’t part of the ‘being a conscientious author’ job description. By which I mean, an author who wants to help their publisher get their book read by as many people as possible. But what’s my book about, and where did it come from?
Reposted by Roland Allen, author of 'The Notebook: a History'
Left: Mike Johnson, Speaker of the House, talking about liberty and freedom in the US in the UK parliament
Right: ICE agents attacking a dancing fox
Right: ICE agents attacking a dancing fox
January 20, 2026 at 10:48 AM
Left: Mike Johnson, Speaker of the House, talking about liberty and freedom in the US in the UK parliament
Right: ICE agents attacking a dancing fox
Right: ICE agents attacking a dancing fox
Reposted by Roland Allen, author of 'The Notebook: a History'
Ten years on: "For Britain, voting to leave will be a galvanising, liberating, empowering moment of patriotic renewal". Michael Gove.
January 19, 2026 at 10:59 AM
Ten years on: "For Britain, voting to leave will be a galvanising, liberating, empowering moment of patriotic renewal". Michael Gove.
Terrific thread...
Had an intriguing editorial discussion recently: how did people in the past talk about 'minutes' when they didn't have watches or standardised times? How does that affect your thinking?
Come down an Elizabethan/Jacobean rabbit hole with me.
1/
Come down an Elizabethan/Jacobean rabbit hole with me.
1/
January 17, 2026 at 7:29 PM
Terrific thread...
Finding it impossible to put down AND THE BAND PLAYED ON by Randy Shilts, an incredible account of the early (76–85) years of AIDS. Purely from a technical point of view, it's incredible non-fiction writing.
January 17, 2026 at 10:59 AM
Finding it impossible to put down AND THE BAND PLAYED ON by Randy Shilts, an incredible account of the early (76–85) years of AIDS. Purely from a technical point of view, it's incredible non-fiction writing.
Reposted by Roland Allen, author of 'The Notebook: a History'
Amazon is helping fund a $300 million build of a ballroom for the White House.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
October 30, 2025 at 4:01 PM
Amazon is helping fund a $300 million build of a ballroom for the White House.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
Reposted by Roland Allen, author of 'The Notebook: a History'
Common Sense, published 250 years ago today.
January 10, 2026 at 9:09 PM
Common Sense, published 250 years ago today.
BOOK HISTORY QUESTION Does anyone know the earliest usage (in any language!) of 'galley' to mean
a. A tray of type, picked but not yet fit into a forme
b. A proof made from such a tray of type (presumably, roughly by hand)
When? Where? Which language? Who?
THANK YOU
#bookhistory #skystorian
a. A tray of type, picked but not yet fit into a forme
b. A proof made from such a tray of type (presumably, roughly by hand)
When? Where? Which language? Who?
THANK YOU
#bookhistory #skystorian
January 10, 2026 at 11:33 AM
BOOK HISTORY QUESTION Does anyone know the earliest usage (in any language!) of 'galley' to mean
a. A tray of type, picked but not yet fit into a forme
b. A proof made from such a tray of type (presumably, roughly by hand)
When? Where? Which language? Who?
THANK YOU
#bookhistory #skystorian
a. A tray of type, picked but not yet fit into a forme
b. A proof made from such a tray of type (presumably, roughly by hand)
When? Where? Which language? Who?
THANK YOU
#bookhistory #skystorian
SOMEONE SHOULD WRITE A BOOK ABOUT THI–
oh.
oh.
Do you know what a commonplace book is? Well, among other things keeping one is the subject of this micro-course on close reading! A commonplace book is a fun, easy, low-stakes way to deepen your relationship to reading. Here we go...
January 9, 2026 at 4:11 PM
SOMEONE SHOULD WRITE A BOOK ABOUT THI–
oh.
oh.
I'm 11 days and 6 chapters into this, and thank-you-God enjoying what I wrote, and looking forward to delivering it to editors — once I've done the next 3 chapters. #writing #writingISediting
About to embark on the first pass of the first half of the current book. Wish me luck! This is on the desk to remind me what really matters...
January 8, 2026 at 1:06 PM
I'm 11 days and 6 chapters into this, and thank-you-God enjoying what I wrote, and looking forward to delivering it to editors — once I've done the next 3 chapters. #writing #writingISediting
Reposted by Roland Allen, author of 'The Notebook: a History'
"Yeah, lads, just drop this at midnight while WW3 is unfolding, and with any luck, Minneapolis will be on fire, or Greenland will have been invaded by the morning, and no one will ever know about the story about why our police force is infested with rapists."
Failure to properly vet officers resulted in serial rapists within Met ranks, review finds
Abandoning checks on staff and officers was ‘a dereliction of the Met’s duty to keep London safe’, says home secretary
www.theguardian.com
January 8, 2026 at 1:00 AM
"Yeah, lads, just drop this at midnight while WW3 is unfolding, and with any luck, Minneapolis will be on fire, or Greenland will have been invaded by the morning, and no one will ever know about the story about why our police force is infested with rapists."
When you ask AI to pick out an outfit that definitely doesn't make you look like a Bond villain, right? No Bond villain vibes. Great. Thanks.
January 8, 2026 at 12:21 PM
When you ask AI to pick out an outfit that definitely doesn't make you look like a Bond villain, right? No Bond villain vibes. Great. Thanks.
Reposted by Roland Allen, author of 'The Notebook: a History'
A baffling-to-me quirk of the UK's best-seller lists (as created by Nielsen BookData) is that the number one 'non-fiction' title is... a fictional story. This categorisation is down to the publisher (Ebury within PRH).
January 6, 2026 at 10:06 AM
A baffling-to-me quirk of the UK's best-seller lists (as created by Nielsen BookData) is that the number one 'non-fiction' title is... a fictional story. This categorisation is down to the publisher (Ebury within PRH).
Ok so if Firefox goes to ai slop I need another browser too...
January 5, 2026 at 9:33 PM
Ok so if Firefox goes to ai slop I need another browser too...
About to embark on the first pass of the first half of the current book. Wish me luck! This is on the desk to remind me what really matters...
December 28, 2025 at 11:14 AM
About to embark on the first pass of the first half of the current book. Wish me luck! This is on the desk to remind me what really matters...
The Brighton i360 was a failure on every level apart from, more's the pity, structural engineering. Pointless, ugly, expensive, uncommercial. It went bust costing our council millions, and the people behind it should never be let near public money again.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
London Eye architect proposes 14-mile tidal power station off Somerset coast
West Somerset Lagoon would harness renewable energy for UK’s AI boom – and create ‘iconic’ arc around Bristol Channel
www.theguardian.com
December 27, 2025 at 4:01 PM
The Brighton i360 was a failure on every level apart from, more's the pity, structural engineering. Pointless, ugly, expensive, uncommercial. It went bust costing our council millions, and the people behind it should never be let near public money again.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
End-of-year repost of my authorial origin story🧵. Features: furious resentment, notebooks.
I’d not be doing social media at all if it wasn’t part of the ‘being a conscientious author’ job description. By which I mean, an author who wants to help their publisher get their book read by as many people as possible. But what’s my book about, and where did it come from?
December 27, 2025 at 9:54 AM
End-of-year repost of my authorial origin story🧵. Features: furious resentment, notebooks.
Reposted by Roland Allen, author of 'The Notebook: a History'
On 🎄, finished "The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper" by @zibaldoni.bsky.social . As one who still uses notebooks, I enjoyed the history, and uses of, this seemingly simple tool, especially the psychological aspects. For fellow Moleskine (or your preferred vendor) nerds, 10/10 recommend.
December 26, 2025 at 2:00 PM
On 🎄, finished "The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper" by @zibaldoni.bsky.social . As one who still uses notebooks, I enjoyed the history, and uses of, this seemingly simple tool, especially the psychological aspects. For fellow Moleskine (or your preferred vendor) nerds, 10/10 recommend.
Reposted by Roland Allen, author of 'The Notebook: a History'
Look, I'm sure that Nolan's adaptation of "The Odyssey" will be fun, but I highly doubt it will be as good as the original.
December 25, 2025 at 2:14 PM
Look, I'm sure that Nolan's adaptation of "The Odyssey" will be fun, but I highly doubt it will be as good as the original.
Reposted by Roland Allen, author of 'The Notebook: a History'
Clean your kitchen. Make the tiger less agitated
November 25, 2024 at 11:25 PM
Clean your kitchen. Make the tiger less agitated
Absolute banger of a thread...
Absolutely nobody asked for this BUT
English Anglican cathedrals that have burned down, fallen over, and sank into the swamp: a thread.
English Anglican cathedrals that have burned down, fallen over, and sank into the swamp: a thread.
December 18, 2025 at 10:26 PM
Absolute banger of a thread...
Reposted by Roland Allen, author of 'The Notebook: a History'
Behold: the first-ever list of news outlets that have banned generative AI in their reporting. As of today, this is literally information that you cannot find on Google.
My goal is to fill the starter pack, so please send over suggestions with supporting evidence!
go.bsky.app/8cn1XfT
My goal is to fill the starter pack, so please send over suggestions with supporting evidence!
go.bsky.app/8cn1XfT
December 17, 2025 at 7:18 PM
Behold: the first-ever list of news outlets that have banned generative AI in their reporting. As of today, this is literally information that you cannot find on Google.
My goal is to fill the starter pack, so please send over suggestions with supporting evidence!
go.bsky.app/8cn1XfT
My goal is to fill the starter pack, so please send over suggestions with supporting evidence!
go.bsky.app/8cn1XfT
Reposted by Roland Allen, author of 'The Notebook: a History'
Recent editorial exchanges remind me to broadcast: I maintain a small freelance editing practice, and will have some space free for new clients in the new year. I help writers both scholarly and otherwise, as well as institutional clients. A short description here: benwurgaft.org/editing/
December 17, 2025 at 8:19 PM
Recent editorial exchanges remind me to broadcast: I maintain a small freelance editing practice, and will have some space free for new clients in the new year. I help writers both scholarly and otherwise, as well as institutional clients. A short description here: benwurgaft.org/editing/
When a huge sector of your export economy puts this much time and effort into telling you what they need... Government should listen... @lizkendallmp.bsky.social
December 16, 2025 at 9:17 PM
When a huge sector of your export economy puts this much time and effort into telling you what they need... Government should listen... @lizkendallmp.bsky.social
Reposted by Roland Allen, author of 'The Notebook: a History'
December 14, 2025 at 2:52 AM