Blog
How to Get to #1 on Amazon (Or at Least How I Did It Twice)
The second edition of A Lesser Photographer [https://amzn.to/2WL9brx], my book on minimalism for photographers, went to #1 in the pro photography genre sometime this month. I wasn’t expecting it, so I wanted to figure out why it happened. It’s my second time at #1 in
Review: Ted Templeman: A Platinum Producer’s Life in Music
Ted Templeman: A Platinum Producer’s Life in Music [https://amzn.to/2Lfskwu] by Greg Renoff is the rare, all-encompassing autobiography that never drags. Ted explains what it was like to work with Van Halen, Aerosmith, and The Doobie Brothers, and how he helped shape their songs and albums. Ted
Newsletter Issue #252: 14 Diversions
Patton tells you to get weird, the worst solo ever, and the origin of the blurb — it’s all the latest issue [https://mailchi.mp/cjchilvers/issue-252-14-diversions] of my newsletter from this weekend. Sign up here [https://www.cjchilvers.com/subscribe] to get it before it’s posted on the
The Era of Perfection
YouTuber/Record Producer Rick Beato mourns the loss of imperfect music [https://youtu.be/L-8EbHkc8tc]: It does seem that there’s a new generation of anxiety-filled, perfection-seekers topping the charts. But what’s topped the charts has rarely been what’s interesting to the devoted fans/evangelists of any art
New newsletter: Issue #250 "Creativity in Anxietyland"
Podcast zombies, personal websites, and notebooks for bad ideas — it’s all in the latest issue of the newsletter [https://mailchi.mp/cjchilvers/issue-250-creativity-in-anxietyland]. Subscribe here [https://www.cjchilvers.com/subscribe].
"Suggestions for Staying Safe While Shopping"
Today, Kottke.org [https://kottke.org/20/03/grocery-store-worker-offers-suggestions-for-staying-safe-while-shopping-during-the-pandemic] highlighted a grocery store worker’s video and her suggestions for safe shopping during a pandemic. On the list was (item #3) was, “Go to the bathroom at home.” Jason commented: > “Are people serious with #3?! Jesus. I know it
New newsletter: Issue #249 “Hunkered”
Photography in a quarantine, the spy pixel debate heats up, and the world needs more editors — it’s all in the latest issue [https://mailchi.mp/cjchilvers/issue-249-hunkered] of my newsletter. Sign up here [https://www.cjchilvers.com/subscribe]. Thanks!
Examples of Newsletters Doing It Right
I keep a folder of well-designed newsletter examples going back years. Here’s some of my most contemporary favorites. Here’s a great sign-up form from James Clear [https://jamesclear.com]: The copy on this is form (located above the mast for entire site) so well-considered. It’s not “Subscribe,
