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Writing Slowly

@writingslowly.bsky.social

150 followers 530 following 270 posts

My name's Richard and I live on Bidjigal land, Sydney. I’m the author of Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters (https://writingslowly.com/shuhari-book/). Find me at Writingslowly.com though one day I may speed up.

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Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Aug 3

I've written a book and here are the details!: https://writingslowly.com/2025/08/03/ive-written-a-book-and.html

The front and back cover of 'Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters', with a white and red design,. The back cover introduces the Japanese concept and its application to learning and teaching. It's authored by Richard Griffiths.

A rustic bamboo gate opens to a lush, tranquil Japanese-style garden path surrounded by trees and shrubs.

A book cover titled Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters by Richard Griffiths features Japanese kanji and a red circle design.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 3d

🎵 You’ve got to have a dream. #RetroTech #VinylVibes

A billboard advertisement showcases the orange iPhone 17 Pro with a stylized design resembling a turntable. AI, obviously.

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Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 14d

Provocative words about learning, teaching, AI, and the timely value of history: https://writingslowly.com/2025/10/11/provocative-words-about-learning-teaching.html

Five freshly harvested radishes with leaves and soil are arranged on a wooden surface.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 15d

Publishing means no more hiding: https://writingslowly.com/2025/10/09/publishing-means-no-more-hiding.html

Colourful koi fish swim gracefully in a pond, surrounded by a few scattered leaves.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 23d

I fell down a rabbit hole writing about Hypercuriosity! 🤯 Inspired by Anne-Laure Le Cunff’s work.

Read how being curious about everything defines my process: https://writingslowly.com/2025/09/30/curious-about-hypercuriosity.html

#Hypercuriosity #Curiosity #ADHD #Writingslowly

Curious about Hypercuriosity

writingslowly.com

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 24d

Having written about the need to create your own writing environment, I found this post showing the writing spaces of 12 Booker Prize nominees quite illuminating. Each one seems like a small but mighty theatre stage (HT: kottke.org).

#WritingCommunity #AmWriting #WritersLife #WritingTips

Make your notes a creative working environment

writingslowly.com

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Reposted by Writing Slowly

David M. Perry @lollardfish.bsky.social · 24d

COVER REVEAL AND PREORDER: The Public Scholar - A Practical Handbook.

"Perry focuses on the practical details of how to approach public scholarship. How do you pitch a piece to an editor? When should you follow or ignore the rules of the genre? And what happens once your piece is out in the world?"

The Public Scholar

A Practical Handbook

www.press.jhu.edu

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Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 24d

Curious about Hypercuriosity: https://writingslowly.com/2025/09/30/curious-about-hypercuriosity.html

A cat with striking blue eyes is peeking out from inside a paper bag.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 25d

Author Craig Mod seems to be following me. I saw his picture in Kyoto Station. Now he’s doing a 200km walk in the Kiso valley, where I walked just a few days ago. Follow his latest pop-up newsletter Between Two Mountains for a unique view of Japan.

#KisoValley #Japan #Walking #Travel #SlowTravel

A small, rustic Japanese train station building stands against a backdrop of mountains under a cloudy sky.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 26d

I’m reliably informed it’s a noisy miner, not a mynah. Always forgetting that

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 26d

Western learning aims for ‘completion,’ ‘graduation’ - an end-point. But Shu Ha Ri is cyclical. True mastery means returning to the basics (Shu) with new depth. It’s a lifelong process of refining and understanding anew. Never stop being a beginner.

#LifelongLearning #ShuHaRi #SkillAcquisition

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 26d

📚Tsundoku emergency temporarily averted.

A collection of various books is neatly arranged on a white surface with a plant in the background.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 27d

Keeping a diary is a way of living: https://writingslowly.com/2025/09/28/keeping-a-diary-is-a.html

A handwritten index card features a circular flow diagram with the concepts Journal, Zettelkasten, Writing, Publishing, and Life, accompanied by notes and timestamps.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 28d

Magpie swooping season has been busy. But on this morning’s bike ride the magpies I saw were busy chasing a noisy mynah. Then just when I thought I’d escaped, I was swooped - by a mob of ebullient rainbow lorikeets, high on their supply of bottlebrush nectar.

#birdlife #bikelife #swoopingseason

the red flowers of a bottlebrush tree against a blue sky

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · 28d

I’ve been deep into writing about learning and the art of taking notes. That’s why I love it that Steven Johnson keeps returning to the same theme: The Blank Page Revolution. How paper changed the way we think.

#zettelkasten #note-taking #PKM #WritingLife #ThinkingOnPaper #HistoryOfIdeas

The Blank Page Revolution

How paper changed the way we think.

adjacentpossible.substack.com

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 25

My uncle and both my grandfathers were dedicated anti-fascists. That’s why I get to be here today, reminding you that they won.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 23

Zettelkasten podcast episodes: https://writingslowly.com/2025/09/24/zettelkasten-podcast-episodes.html

199. Zettelkasten "Super" Notes: with Dr Sönke Ahrens

Podcast Episode · Exam Study Expert: ace your exams with the science of learning · 09/14/2025 · 44m

podcasts.apple.com

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 22

If AI can’t do simple anagrams, how is it meant to fix the economy and make our jobs obsolete? (Admittedly, my job doesn’t involve solving anagrams - I’m not that senior - but still).

#anagrams #AIhref="/hashtag/AIfail" class="hover:underline text-blue-600 dark:text-sky-400 no-card-link">#AIfail #AI

The Gemini chatbot is asked to come up with an anagram for the name Nimrod Workman. It replies, "Nimrod Workman is an anagram of 'Mormon Dorkin'."

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 21

Yeah. Me neither. I'm just relying on hearsay.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 21

What about footy teams? Aren't people obsessed with all that? And it's deeply about place. State of Origin etc. For example, one big reason for distrusting Morrison was that his support for the Sharks was somehow bogus. www.hellosport.com.au/2021/09/10/i...

Is Scott Morrison a Turncoat? An Investigation Into the PM's Footy Teams - Hello Sport

www.hellosport.com.au

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 21

Some books I read before visiting Japan.

#reading #Japantravel #shuhari

Fifteen books about Japan, spines upright on a white surface next to a leafy house plant.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 21

Western learning is linear; mastery is cyclical. A new article will show exactly why the Japanese concept of Shu Ha Ri offers a more effective path to true expertise than conventional Western methods. Is it time to unlearn how we learn?

#ShuHaRi #Learning #Mastery

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 20

Next stop: ‘More than just a townhome!’

Reposted by Writing Slowly

Ruben Cadonau @dogmathink.com · Sep 17

The only consistent thing about my Zettelkasten is its inconsistency. I call it: a tribute to post-structuralism.

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Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 16

Conform: more catchy than the Reservatives ever were.

Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Sep 16

An atomic note isn’t just about ideas; it’s about time. Start smaller, stop sooner, and your notes become easier to reuse and connect. ✍️
Post here: The shortest writing session that could possibly work.

#NoteTaking #KnowledgeWork #zettelkasten #writingtips

A cat is lying next to an hourglass filled with blue sand on a table.