• Literary Twitter’s Best Responses to Jonathan Franzen’s Rules for Writing

    "He's won. Franzen's won."

    Yesterday, we published a lot of great pieces that probably not that many people read because they were too busy talking about this one on Twitter. (NB, the piece was originally published in The Guardian eight years ago, so at least give him a break for not anticipating the vitality of Google Docs.)

    Article continues after advertisement
    Remove Ads

    For many Twitter users, the first response was denial:

    But some people appreciated the throwback to a simpler Internet time.

    Article continues after advertisement
    Remove Ads

    And then there were the alternative rules:

    Which were pretty great, actually! Except for one thing: Look what you’ve done to Garrard Conley, you monsters.

    All in all, we all learned a little something. For me, it was: Don’t publish an article by Jonathan Franzen on the most hung-over day of the literary year. Now take it away, Celeste Ng:


    Jessie Gaynor
    Jessie Gaynor
    Jessie Gaynor is a senior editor at Lit Hub whose writing has appeared in McSweeney's, The New Yorker, The Paris Review, and elsewhere. Her debut novel, The Glow was published by Random House in 2023. You can buy it here.
    https://www.jessiegaynor.com/





    Read More

    On the Myth of Stockholm Syndrome and Women Guerrilla Fighters

     Nimmi was held captive once—by a Western man, named Dangerous Dan. * Earlier this year, I was in New York City at a panel...

    We Need Your Help:

    Become a Lit Hub Supporting Member

    Lit Hub has always brought you the best of the book world for free—no paywall. But our future relies on you. In return for your contribution, you'll get an ad-free site experience, editors' picks, and our Joan Didion tote bag. Most importantly, you'll keep independent book coverage alive and thriving.