Jason Boog
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jasonboog.bsky.social
Jason Boog
@jasonboog.bsky.social
Journalist & author of “The Deep End: The Literary Scene During the Great Depression and Today” and “ Born Reading: Bringing Up Bookworms in a Digital Age.” Editorial lead at Fable.
Join me in my quest to bring back the obsolete, but useful, Shandy Semicolon;—a punctuation mark, discovered through digression, that continues to delight me.

whyisthisinteresting.substack.com/p/the-digres...
The Digression Edition
On Montaigne, Tristram Shandy, the compound point, and WITI itself.
whyisthisinteresting.substack.com
December 4, 2025 at 10:56 PM
“Let each, then, bear the burden that his strength permits.”

I wrote about Augusto Monterroso and the art of the literary heteronym for the Why Is This Interesting? newsletter. whyisthisinteresting.substack.com/p/the-hetero...
The Heteronym Edition
On fake authors, Fernando Pessoa, and the (many) voices inside us.
whyisthisinteresting.substack.com
December 12, 2024 at 5:23 PM
Reposted by Jason Boog
Nikki Giovanni, the poet, activist, children’s book author and professor who wrote about race, politics, gender, sex and love, died on Monday at 81. She was prolific star of the Black Arts Movement that erupted during the civil rights era. nyti.ms/3BbzyPP
December 10, 2024 at 3:47 PM
Reposted by Jason Boog
Yeah, maybe, but my uncle's friend's cousin did a study on this and found the exact opposite effect, so who's to say
December 11, 2024 at 7:02 PM
Reposted by Jason Boog
Gil Scott-Heron - poet, author, singer, composer (influenced by The Last Poets). One of the most influential artists of our time. “His spoken word over driving beat, humor-laced, sharp critiques of politics, racism and mass media made him a global voice of protest for decades.” RIP.
December 1, 2024 at 9:37 AM
I started collecting records this year, and I’m starting to pair records and books at Fable.

I picked this 1975 jazz record to pair with Haruki Murakami’s new novel, “The City and Its Uncertain Gates.”
December 2, 2024 at 8:35 PM
Reposted by Jason Boog
After nearly nine years at Esquire, I’ve been laid off from my role as Books and Fiction Editor. I’m looking for a new full-time role where I can use my storytelling skills, in the book world or beyond it. If you know of anything, I’m at adriennewestenfeld@gmail.com. (🧵1/10)
November 25, 2024 at 2:25 PM
Reposted by Jason Boog
it's been over a decade since this set changed me as a person -- connected me to parts of myself that needed this music to bring them into the light. that sounds hyperbolic but listening now I'm reminded of its wonder - seek it out.

arkivmusic.com/products/scr...
Scriabin: Complete Opus Solo Piano Works / Lettber... - Capriccio: C49586 | Buy from ArkivMusic
Scriabin: Complete Opus Solo Piano Works / Lettber... _ on CD. Order from your preferred classical music and jazz store - ArkivMusic. Great prices. Best service. Fast delivery.
arkivmusic.com
November 24, 2024 at 11:42 PM
Reposted by Jason Boog
Found this 2010 article from Publishers Weekly talking about who was mastering Twitter in the book industry. I was a literary agent back then and had about 20k followers. I met some great people there and miss those early conversations.
www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/...
Who's Got Pull in the Publishing Twitterverse
Nearly a year ago, PW looked at a handful of indie presses and major imprints to gauge their use of Twitter. The piece showed most imprints had a few thousand followers, and that some savvy indies wer...
www.publishersweekly.com
November 20, 2024 at 6:15 AM
I made a Candide bot that argues, no matter what you say, that we live in the best of all possible worlds.
November 13, 2024 at 11:10 PM