Nate Federman
@natefederman.bsky.social
TV writer currently on Big City Greens / Second normal thing / Jamband apologist
My wife doesn’t like tomato-based pasta sauces, but a pink sauce is a compromise the whole family can get behind. This is from J Kenji Lopez Alt’s Food Lab cookbook. I substituted chicken sausage for the chicken, and when I make it again, I’ll add a bit more cream. Still very good.
#26RecipesIn26
#26RecipesIn26
January 19, 2026 at 4:12 AM
My wife doesn’t like tomato-based pasta sauces, but a pink sauce is a compromise the whole family can get behind. This is from J Kenji Lopez Alt’s Food Lab cookbook. I substituted chicken sausage for the chicken, and when I make it again, I’ll add a bit more cream. Still very good.
#26RecipesIn26
#26RecipesIn26
Tell me a bit about Bethel. I’ve heard it’s gorgeous there and it’s like 2.5 hours from my mom’s home, so I could combine with a trip to visit her. Is it only camping there?
January 18, 2026 at 5:31 PM
Tell me a bit about Bethel. I’ve heard it’s gorgeous there and it’s like 2.5 hours from my mom’s home, so I could combine with a trip to visit her. Is it only camping there?
If you found this helpful and/or think others might, feel free to boost it or give me a follow. I try to keep my political posts to a minimum, and focus on writing stuff and crap that won’t make you want to die. Although, admittedly my jamband takes have that effect on many.
🧵10/10
🧵10/10
January 17, 2026 at 2:46 PM
If you found this helpful and/or think others might, feel free to boost it or give me a follow. I try to keep my political posts to a minimum, and focus on writing stuff and crap that won’t make you want to die. Although, admittedly my jamband takes have that effect on many.
🧵10/10
🧵10/10
All of these tactics are about getting out of my own way. You know what doesn’t help me do that? Listening to the part of my brain that tells me I suck and rips apart all of my ideas before they’ve even formed. There’s a time to be analytical but it definitely ain’t when you’re stuck.
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🧵9
January 17, 2026 at 2:45 PM
All of these tactics are about getting out of my own way. You know what doesn’t help me do that? Listening to the part of my brain that tells me I suck and rips apart all of my ideas before they’ve even formed. There’s a time to be analytical but it definitely ain’t when you’re stuck.
🧵9
🧵9
7. Sleep - This is a late in the day tactic. Sometimes I don’t have it no matter what I do. When I hit an impasse late in the day, I call it quits and get a good night of sleep. Refreshed, I tackle the issue the next day. Plus, my brain seems to problem solve in my sleep and I wake up with ideas!
🧵8
🧵8
January 17, 2026 at 2:45 PM
7. Sleep - This is a late in the day tactic. Sometimes I don’t have it no matter what I do. When I hit an impasse late in the day, I call it quits and get a good night of sleep. Refreshed, I tackle the issue the next day. Plus, my brain seems to problem solve in my sleep and I wake up with ideas!
🧵8
🧵8
6. Work On Something Else - Sometimes the best way to solve one problem is to solve another. Shift to a different scene/story and make progress. Once I have some writing inertia and my brain is clicking, then I circle back to my original issue. Again, a writer in motion wants to stay in motion.
🧵7
🧵7
January 17, 2026 at 2:44 PM
6. Work On Something Else - Sometimes the best way to solve one problem is to solve another. Shift to a different scene/story and make progress. Once I have some writing inertia and my brain is clicking, then I circle back to my original issue. Again, a writer in motion wants to stay in motion.
🧵7
🧵7
5. Talk It Out - The act of pitching my idea to another person forces me to summarize it. And somehow this always shines a lot on the problem and often unlocks the solution as I pitch it out. Also, if the person I’m pitching to is clever, they can help me solve the problem.
🧵6
🧵6
January 17, 2026 at 2:44 PM
5. Talk It Out - The act of pitching my idea to another person forces me to summarize it. And somehow this always shines a lot on the problem and often unlocks the solution as I pitch it out. Also, if the person I’m pitching to is clever, they can help me solve the problem.
🧵6
🧵6
4. Make Idea Clouds - This is a free association exercise. I jot any and all ideas that pop into my head onto a pad and then draw a little cloud around each idea. Later, I look for connections. And somehow the clouds create a permission structure where I don’t over analyze my ideas prematurely.
🧵5
🧵5
January 17, 2026 at 2:43 PM
4. Make Idea Clouds - This is a free association exercise. I jot any and all ideas that pop into my head onto a pad and then draw a little cloud around each idea. Later, I look for connections. And somehow the clouds create a permission structure where I don’t over analyze my ideas prematurely.
🧵5
🧵5
3. Pomodoro Technique - A writer at rest wants to stay at rest, so I do 25 minute writing sprints where I force myself to focus on writing and nothing else. No email/texts/etc. After 25 minutes, I can take a break, but a lot of times I keep going. A writer in motions wants to stay in motion.
🧵4
🧵4
January 17, 2026 at 2:42 PM
3. Pomodoro Technique - A writer at rest wants to stay at rest, so I do 25 minute writing sprints where I force myself to focus on writing and nothing else. No email/texts/etc. After 25 minutes, I can take a break, but a lot of times I keep going. A writer in motions wants to stay in motion.
🧵4
🧵4
2. Change It Up - If I’m typing, I switch to pen and paper. If I’m sitting, I stand up. Sometimes I go from right hand to left. The idea is that by switching what you’re doing with your hands/body, different neurons in your brain fire which helps unlock new ideas.
🧵3
🧵3
January 17, 2026 at 2:42 PM
2. Change It Up - If I’m typing, I switch to pen and paper. If I’m sitting, I stand up. Sometimes I go from right hand to left. The idea is that by switching what you’re doing with your hands/body, different neurons in your brain fire which helps unlock new ideas.
🧵3
🧵3
1. Physical activity - Not to be ableist, but the 1st thing I do when my brain is stuck is walk. I don’t focus my thoughts on the writing, but I also don’t do music/podcasts. The movement seems to unstick my brain and ideas pop into my head. I jot them down in a notes file and keep walking.
🧵2
🧵2
January 17, 2026 at 2:41 PM
1. Physical activity - Not to be ableist, but the 1st thing I do when my brain is stuck is walk. I don’t focus my thoughts on the writing, but I also don’t do music/podcasts. The movement seems to unstick my brain and ideas pop into my head. I jot them down in a notes file and keep walking.
🧵2
🧵2
Saw them open for The Decemberists in 2024. I had never heard them before but thought they were pretty good.
January 16, 2026 at 3:27 PM
Saw them open for The Decemberists in 2024. I had never heard them before but thought they were pretty good.
I also appreciate that - for a variety of practical reasons - it was less than a year for the new season to start airing. It’s prestige TV but with something like a network tv production model.
January 14, 2026 at 2:05 AM
I also appreciate that - for a variety of practical reasons - it was less than a year for the new season to start airing. It’s prestige TV but with something like a network tv production model.
“Roasting caravan” is a confusing phrase to my American ears.
Wits/strength/will are things any characters would need to overcome this situation. What do your highly specific characters have to do that is especially challenging for them? What action is specifically antithetical to the characters?
Wits/strength/will are things any characters would need to overcome this situation. What do your highly specific characters have to do that is especially challenging for them? What action is specifically antithetical to the characters?
January 13, 2026 at 6:43 PM
“Roasting caravan” is a confusing phrase to my American ears.
Wits/strength/will are things any characters would need to overcome this situation. What do your highly specific characters have to do that is especially challenging for them? What action is specifically antithetical to the characters?
Wits/strength/will are things any characters would need to overcome this situation. What do your highly specific characters have to do that is especially challenging for them? What action is specifically antithetical to the characters?
His missed tackle at the end was the best part other than the realization that will hopefully be his final play.
January 13, 2026 at 4:14 AM
His missed tackle at the end was the best part other than the realization that will hopefully be his final play.
I talked about my experience on the Stub Me Down podcast. I think I got choked up talking about it. I’m a little teary eyed thinking about it. 25 years of seeing Bob Weir in different iterations. He and his music left such a big imprint on my life.
pca.st/episode/a359...
pca.st/episode/a359...
Stub Me Down Season 6 Episode 07: Dead Forever
pca.st
January 11, 2026 at 12:19 AM
I talked about my experience on the Stub Me Down podcast. I think I got choked up talking about it. I’m a little teary eyed thinking about it. 25 years of seeing Bob Weir in different iterations. He and his music left such a big imprint on my life.
pca.st/episode/a359...
pca.st/episode/a359...
And if you tell me, “I’ll work for free and happily mop the floors just to get in the room,” that screams desperate, not hungry. Like you don’t value yourself. And if you don’t value yourself, no one else will. So by all means, be hungry. But not so hungry that you repel other people.
🧵5
🧵5
January 10, 2026 at 3:11 PM
And if you tell me, “I’ll work for free and happily mop the floors just to get in the room,” that screams desperate, not hungry. Like you don’t value yourself. And if you don’t value yourself, no one else will. So by all means, be hungry. But not so hungry that you repel other people.
🧵5
🧵5