Why you should come to Ignite Seattle 17 (Sunday August 19th)
Once again Seattle Ignite is venturing outside for a special family friendly event. If you’ve never been before, this…
Latest Blog Posts
Why I hate Prezi
One of the many jokes about Powerpoint is how much time people who use it spend picking transitions between…
The culture of the scapegoat
How do we choose who we blame? And why? In our own experience we know there are complicated reasons…
Commutapult: the great commute of the future
I’m often baffled by which things online are popular, as it has little to do with what’s good. The…
Jonah Lehrer and the facts
Recently Jonah Lehrer, a rising star science writer, resigned his post at the New Yorker. A journalist named Michael…
The hard way is the easy way
Sometimes the hard way to do something is the easy way. I am a bad guitar player. But I’m…
Does dedicated innovation time work?
I wrote a popular post awhile ago with an analysis on the Google’s 20% time concept. Howard Baldwin from Computerworld…
The tyranny of category
Most of the world is curved. Other than some man made things, everything bends. Rivers, streams, trees, and coastlines…
How To Be Creative – The Short Honest Truth
After a decade studying how creatives do what they do the answer is simple: they work. No one wants…
Best posts of the month
You might be surprised to learn I send out a monthly newsletter covering any big news, tour dates, new magic…
The future of outsourcing
Dave Rodenbaugh, from How to buy a website, was one of my kickstarter supporters for my latest book Mindfire, a…
Trinity: a graphic history of the Atomic bomb (review)
I’m a fan of graphic novels on non-fiction topics. By putting techniques from comics and illustration at the forefront…
Top Gun in Hecklevision: review
Weeks ago I saw the movie Johnny Mnemonic in a clever format called Hecklevision. In Hecklevision anyone in the…
Listen to my interview with NPR on innovation
The fine folks at WGBH posted the entire interview. Topics covered include: language abuse and hype consumer culture Top…
I’ll be on NPR Tuesday 6/19, 1pm EST (WGBH – Boston)
I’ll be on WGBH Boston talking about innovation tomorrow, Tuesday, at 1pm EST. You should be able to listen…
Quote of the month
I begin my novels knowing what happens. I write endings first. I write last sentences, sometimes last paragraphs first.…
News: I’m independent again
A few weeks ago I let Matt, my boss, know I was stepping down from my role at WordPress.com.…
The three piles of life
Here’s an oversimplified theory to play with for today: there are only three piles in life. Things that are…
Johnny Mnemonic in Hecklevision: review
Last night I finally made it to Hecklevision at Central Cinema in Seattle. They show bad movies and allow…
Prometheus review
It is a beautiful looking film. There is some intrigue and mystery about sci-fi ideas. Many stupid things are…