Unlimited choice is paralyzing. The Internet has made this form of paralysis due to option overload a standard feature of comfortable modern life. Susan Orlean More Quotes by Susan Orlean More Quotes From Susan Orlean I had never considered using a hashtag anywhere other than on Twitter, but now I'm inspired. Text messages have always seemed a little flat to me, so the murmuring Greek chorus of a hashtag might be a perfect way to liven them up and give them a bit of dimension. Susan Orlean greek perfect giving A snow day literally and figuratively falls from the sky, unbidden, and seems like a thing of wonder. Susan Orlean sky snow fall Writers like to write, and writing in different forms - short, long, bite-sized, done on the fly, done with painstaking attention - all interest me. Susan Orlean done writing long Now we're e-mailing and tweeting and texting so much, a phone call comes as a fresh surprise. I get text messages on my cell phone all day long, and it warbles to alert me that someone has sent me a message on Facebook or a reply or direct message on Twitter, but it rarely ever rings. Susan Orlean phones cells long An ordinary life examined closely reveals itself to be exquisite and complicated and exceptional, somehow managing to be both heroic and plain. Susan Orlean heroic complicated ordinary Oversized houses, like oversized cars, seem to be a particularly American fixation. Susan Orlean fixation car house On the very same day that I ordered an iPad 2, I went shopping to buy myself a letter opener. I like to cover all my bases. Susan Orlean ipads shopping letters I am dismayed to realize that much of the advice I used to parcel out to aspiring writers has passed its sell-by date. Susan Orlean realizing used advice Writing about unknown people means I spend a lot of time arguing to the reader about why it's worth knowing about them. That's challenging, but then the piece is pure discovery. Susan Orlean writing discovery mean Every single one of my books had its title changed almost as we were going to press, for all sorts of different reasons. Susan Orlean titles different book I had forgotten how thrilling a snow day is until my son started school, and as much as he loves it, he swoons at the idea of a free day arriving unexpectedly, laid out like a gift. Susan Orlean ideas school son I've used Twitter now and again to try to figure something out; it's an amazing resource. But I think you have to use it judiciously: it's a self-selected group, so it's important not to start thinking of it as the whole world. Susan Orlean important self thinking The one thing I've discovered about social media is that people love answering questions. In fact, it sometimes feels like at any given moment, millions of people are online who have been waiting for exactly the question you fire off. Susan Orlean media fire people Election Day outside of big cities is different. For one thing, there are so few people in my town that each individual vote really does matter, and several local races have been decided by as many votes as you can count on one hand. Susan Orlean cities race hands There's a marvelous sense of mastery that comes with writing a sentence that sounds exactly as you want it to. It's like trying to write a song, making tiny tweaks, reading it out loud, shifting things to make it sound a certain way... Sometimes it feels like digging out of a hole, but sometimes it feels like flying. When it's working and the rhythm's there, it does feel like magic to me. Susan Orlean reading writing song I approach stories as a private educational enterprise: I want to learn about something. I teach myself through research, reporting, and thinking, and then, when I feel like I know the story, I tell it to readers. Susan Orlean educational stories thinking 'Brave' is one of those words that has been bleached of most of its meaning these days, thanks to far too many appearances in the glaring light of ad slogans and corporate public relations. I never thought about anything as brave anymore; it just seemed like a flabby, glib cliche. Susan Orlean thanks light brave There's a marvelous sense of mastery that comes with writing a sentence that sounds exactly as you want it to. Susan Orlean mastery sound writing I don't like hiking with convicts carrying machetes. Susan Orlean machetes convicts hiking Writing about fashion forces you to overcome the nagging feeling that fashion doesn't "matter", that it's trivial or fleeting. I just look at it anthropologically, which is different from the way I'd write about art. Susan Orlean fashion writing art
