Stolaroid Stories Fabio Cerpelloni

In 1997, Derek Sivers (accidentally) started CD Baby, the largest distributor of independent music in the world. Ten years later, he sold the company for $22 million.

What did he do with the money? Did he buy a Ferrari? A mansion? A private jet?

He gave it all to charity.

He then became a TED speaker and a writer. He's published 5 books:

- Anything You Want (2011) -- Best business book I've ever read.
- Your Music and People (2020) -- Best marketing book I've ever read.
- Hell Yeah or No (2020) -- Best book on productivity and decision-making I've ever read.
- How to Live (2021) -- Best book on life philosophies I've ever read.
- Useful Not True (2024) -- Best book on beliefs I've ever read.

Derek Sivers is the person I've watched, read, and listened to the most since I got an internet connection in 2000.

No joke!

I could’ve asked him questions about music, business, productivity, marketing, or public speaking, but many YouTubers and podcasters have done that before.

For 1.5 hours, we talked about one thing only: WRITING.

- What brought him into writing?
- Which writers inspire him?
- How did he write his books?
- Why succinct writing?- Why does he not use semicolons?
- What does he do to actively improve his writing?
- Does he have a sentence he's particularly attached to?

We discussed this and other nerdy stuff about writing.

Enjoy!

DEREK'S LINKS
His (succinct) website - https://sive.rs/

FABIO'S LINKS
Better Writers - https://fabiocerpelloni.com/private/

YOUTUBE LINK for this episode- https://youtu.be/jI3efiQ2u_M


CHAPTERS

00:00 Intro

03:30 Starting to write

11:30 The influence of bad writing

15:55 Reading reviews

19:00 Different reasons for writing

23:20 Writing "How to Live"

28:43 Writing one sentence per line

34:34 The influence of writing songs

39:06 Derek's best sentences

40:00 Imitating other writers

44:51 Reading old books

47:15 The work is the practice

53:25 Publishing daily?

01:04:00 Why succinct writing

01:05:30 Using stories to illustrate a point

01:07:05 Semicolons

01:07:45 Reading with a writer's mind

01:09:50 Academic writing

01:12:40 Writing for English as a second language speakers

01:15:00 Next book?

01:17:30 Being disciplined

01:19:28 Saying just enough

01:30:30 Conclusion

Behind any creation, there's the work of a mind. That mind is often fearful and insecure.

"They might not like this. They might not like ME."

You're an artist. You can't afford to let someone else's mind harm your own. But you're also an artist who wants to be liked and accepted.

Do you have the courage not to be?

I invited my friend, Bree Aesie, to talk about this.

Bree studied psychology and has been building on the internet since 2020. Consistently. She's the host of "Into the Story," a wonderful storytelling podcast for learners of English I wish had been around when I was a learner myself.

You'll learn more about the psychology of creativity, and hear about our fears, frustrations, and joys as creators.

Enjoy!

(You can watch us on YouTube too -- https://youtu.be/eSJQR-TuBq0)

BREE'S LINKS

Into the Story (Bree's show) - https://intothestorypodcast.com/


FABIO'S LINKS

Better Writers - https://fabiocerpelloni.com/private/



We mentioned...


- Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

- The Practice by Seth Godin

- Alan Watts (British writer)

- Laurie Skreslet (Canadian mountaineer)

- Sound School podcast with Ira Glass

- This American Life (podcast)


CHAPTERS
00:00 Intro

03:15 Bree + creating

09:10 The practice

15:55 Sincere vs serious

19:10 Move your body

26:00 The Lizard Brain pt.1

29:20 Creating is satisfying

37:35 Originality

41:30 AI for creativity

47:20 The Lizard Brain pt.2

54:40 Productivity and discipline

58:40 No.1 tips

01:02:10 Conclusion

Suggestions on how to cut the fluff in your writing (watch on YouTube - https://youtu.be/MTll-KJl0ps?si=Szxbcuu_radtBZGL)

Join Better Writers, my weekly newsletter for online writers who speak English as a second language. I share writing tips, insights, and resources to help you do one thing: become a better writer -- https://fabiocerpelloni.com/private/

My website -- https://fabiocerpelloni.com/

Henneke didn't see herself as a writer. She didn't even think she was creative. In school, English was her worst subject. The next was Dutch, her first language. Henneke never kept a journal, never wrote a poem, never published anything. Later in life, she realised there wasn't that much magic about writing, and discovered a passion that led her to some amazing achievements:

- Publishing “Blog to Win Business,” a book that was recommended as a must read for business writers by Inc.com and HuffingtonPost.

- Landing an interview with Inc.com and Forbes.com on the topic of seductive writing.

- Being named one of “50 Incredible Women in Marketing to Follow” by Search Engine Journal.

- Writing for Sally Hogshead, a Hall of Fame speaker.

Today Henneke describes herself as an "irreverent writer and educator on a mission to stamp out gobbledygook."

Her courses, books, and clean-looking blog -- Enchanting Marketing -- teach both first and second language English writers how to improve their writing skills.

What can we all learn about writing, blogging, and engaging storytelling from Henneke?

You're about to find out :)


(If you prefer watching, here's the link to the YouTube interview - https://youtu.be/_EYrp406itY)


HENNEKE'S LINKS

- Henneke's LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/in/hennekeduistermaat/

- Enchanting Marketing - https://www.enchantingmarketing.com/

MY LINKS

- Better Writers, my weekly newsletter for online writers who speak English as a second language. I share writing tips, insights, and resources to help you do one thing: become a better writer. -- https://fabiocerpelloni.com/private/

- My website -- https://fabiocerpelloni.com/

3 simple things I did to improve my written English grammar (watch on YouTube - https://youtu.be/RFYp-3Q3lws)

Join Better Writers, my weekly newsletter for online writers who speak English as a second language. I share writing tips, insights, and resources to help you do one thing: become a better writer. -- https://fabiocerpelloni.us6.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=47708257f1b95e40a2a89f367&id=40e2df9c6a


www.fabiocerpelloni.com

Watch the episode on YouTube -- https://youtu.be/xWr4AxlLgLE


Philip Charter is a short-fiction writer and an educator from the UK who's worked as a writing coach since 2018. He uses his expertise as a language teacher and as an author to help multilingual professional writers develop their skills and future-proof their careers. He also runs the world's best community for multilingual pro writers.

In this episode, we talked about:

- His passion for writing
- Finding writing ideas
- Online writing
- Creativity
- Helping multilingual writers

We hope this is helpful to you.

LINKS
- Phil's website - https://www.englishwritingcoach.uk/

- Better Writers (my private email list) - https://fabiocerpelloni.com/private/