Paul Graham essays
One of the joys of this past weekend that I didn't write about (because I was enjoying it too much to type) was a session by Paul Graham about writing essays. I came into the room as he was urging people to have the courage to delete large chunks of text, and I stayed.
Someone asked, “You always get slashdotted. What's up with that?” Graham had a graceful response, but he could also have said, “Well, I write well-crafted essays full of new ideas. And my essays aren't too long.”
He talked a good deal about controversial subjects that he doesn't want to write about, many of which are gender-related. His style in the room was relaxed and conversational, and there were people leaning up against the walls all around him. It was a great session, and I'm looking forward to reading Hackers and Painters.