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The fashion photographer who turned his blog into one of "Time's top 100 design influencers."
 
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NYMag's Sam Anderson used a survey from the Guardian that asked contemporary writers to share writing tips for their peers. Many seem to suggest that writers be a little more like their type-A compadres, by never being satisfied and always striving for deeper analysis and the most perfect descriptor. Also, I like P.D. James' word choice as she deems English the "richest and more versatile language in the world." English may not employ reason universally and, in some cases, the rules and exceptions are downright nonsensical, but it is certainly rich. To the article!

1. Roddy Doyle: "Do feel anxiety — it’s the job."

2. P.D. James: "Increase your word power. Words are the raw material of our craft. The greater your vocabulary the more effective your writing. We who write in English are fortunate to have the richest and most versatile language in the world. Respect it."

3. A.L. Kennedy: "Remember writing doesn’t love you. It doesn’t care."

4. Anne Enright: "Remember that all description is an opinion about the world. Find a place to stand."

5. Neil Gaiman: "The main rule of writing is that if you do it with enough assurance and confidence, you’re allowed to do whatever you like."

6. Geoff Dyer: "Don’t be one of those writers who sentence themselves to a lifetime of sucking up to Nabokov."

7. Anne Enright: "Imagine that you are dying. If you had a terminal disease would you finish this book? Why not? The thing that annoys this 10-weeks-to-live self is the thing that is wrong with the book."

8. Zadie Smith: "Resign yourself to the lifelong sadness that comes from never being satisfied."

9. Will Self: "Regard yourself as a small corporation of one. Take yourself off on team-building exercises (long walks). Hold a Christmas party every year at which you stand in the corner of your writing room, shouting very loudly to yourself while drinking a bottle of white wine. Then masturbate under the desk. The following day you will feel a deep and cohering sense of embarrassment."

10. A.L. Kennedy: "Older / more experienced / more convincing writers may offer rules and varieties of advice. Consider what they say. However, don’t automatically give them charge of your brain, or anything else ─ they might be bitter, twisted, burned-out, manipulative, or just not very like you."


Read more: Anderson: The Best Writing Advice of the Best Writing Advice -- Vulture http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2010/02/anderson_the_best_writing_advi.html#ixzz0gZH0Rv70
 
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So this genius decided to take three weekend one-credit classes to ease up her week. While this seemed fine at the time, I didn't consider how much fun I would have spending 12 hours learning software I already know how to use. So, dear readers, I give you a spread I made in about ten minutes. I had March's Harper's Bazaar next to me so it kind of served as inspiration. Plus, I had to catch up on NYMag's coverage of London's fashion week, hence the runway shot.

All of the pieces in this spread are heavy in texture and detailing. Black with sparkle was the predominant theme, and I think this will continue to be a trend for many Fall seasons to come.

One trend that I hope will never die is the ballerina-theme, most often seen in  chiffon tops, rosette purses, and simple flats. The beloved Spring contrast between the baby-girl pink and military couture is equally interesting and complements basically every skin tone.

So, although this post began about my InDesign class, this is essentially what I thought about all day. In my mind, these are the real lessons.

Update: Today we made books.
 
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aThe weekly column that appears in the Times' Sunday Styles section is absolutely one of my favorite morning reads. Each week, a different author details a story of love in his or her life -- like that of a sister, a lover, or a child. This week's is especially beautiful.
 
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Originally, I was excited about Google Buzz. Then I saw it. Having acquainted myself with the media giant's answer to social networking, I've decided it's basically a Twitter feed for the people you email. In my case, that's four people. Buzz allows its users to sync their Twitter feeds as well, so the Buzz messages pile up in my Gmail account as I've probably already read them on Twitter.

Apparently Google sent out an apology response immediately after the product's release, making it the fastest commercial backtrack in history. Bravo to Google for knowing its audience, I guess.

The bottom line: I won't use Buzz until it becomes an entirely different product. Google, you're better than this.
 
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Every Monday and Friday, at about 7:45 a.m. you can find me standing in line at my local Starbucks. I'm probably a bit yawny, my hair might resemble a troll doll's, and my eyes might only be partially open. But what you might not see (or you may definitely see) is me digging through my always-too-big purse to find my phone so that I can make sure I have enough money to purchase the Starbucks I plan to enjoy. "How is this possible?!", you ask incredulously. I'll tell you. It's called The Best iPhone App Ever.

Chase Bank has had its App out for awhile, and I've yet to hear negative reviews. The App has large icons that allow for easing typing, and simple functions like viewing your accounts and paying bills. It takes about five clicks to pay a bill, and it only asks that you enter your username and password to view your accounts. It's almost as if Chase DOESN'T want me to overdraw and DOESN'T want my money in overdraw fees. Novel.
 
Here are a few of my favorite outfits and collections of fashion week. The runway is turning out to be an explosion of sequins, satin and velvet. All appropriate for fall, but with the exception of the perfectly tailored blazer -- velvet should be banned.

A note on velvet: it's extremely difficult to make an attractive piece made of the fabric without the finished product looking like it was stolen from the set of The Princess Bride.

On to the clothes!
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Above is one of the first looks from Zac Posen. I've read rumors that he's in financial trouble, but if this outfit is any indicator, his RTW could save the biz.
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Although fashion week isn't over just yet, words cannot express how much I loved almost all of Diane Von Furstenberg's line. The patterns were exquisite and fresh -- she didn't dwell on the tired '70s carpet look, and she reinvents floral prints almost every show. In the above look, DVF mixes all of fall's trends (happily excluding the dreaded velvet). Even the runway looks like a pile of fun.

As an added bonus, most of fashion's current Top Models walked in the show and looked fabulous.
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Let us observe the the collection from Victoria Beckham, who is arguably the best celebrity designer. I think it was Style.com who said that her line of "body-con" dresses has evolved and now embraces draping, while maintaining the beautiful silhouettes and tailoring of her previous collections. The most fabulous thing about this look though, are the glasses.

All photos are kindly borrowed from nymag.com
 
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As my capstone project lurches forward, I thought I'd update my fan club on our progress. Together with the editors at Meredith Corporation, and Professor Fennell, we've decided the focus of our magazine will be brunch. Yes, that meal you might have once a month, or once a year. We're going to give you a reason to have brunch every weekend. Here are a few:

1. Cocktails before 5 p.m.
2. In some cases, pajamas are allowed.
3. While dishes are both sweet and savory, they can be healthy and substantial.
4. It's an implied group event (read: fun).
5. It's more fun than your cardboard cereal, but less hassle than a formal holiday meal.

Have I convinced you? Are you too busy to answer that because you've just ran to your favorite restaurant to order the morning prix fixe menu? If not, I'll just have to let the final prototype do its job.
 
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On this first day of New York Fashion Week, it was announced that Alexander McQueen, a 40-year-old British designer, had committed suicide last night. The designer had one of the most sensational shows of Spring 2010, and the line has reportedly been selling like crazy. Above is an image from the collection from NYMag.

About the collection, which Lady Gaga has worn in her music videos, McQueen said he wanted his models to look like aliens. He certainly succeeded. The collection of mostly dresses utilized prints that looked a lot like space-age butterflies and other insects. The shoes were the most spectacular though, and allegedly some models refused to walk in the show out of fear of the ten-inch platform monsters. Editors raved about the show, and even the live-stream that featured a music video with vocals from Gaga, was hugely successful.

The designer had nearly achieved success like that of Marc Jacobs, and his death is a very deep wound to modern fashion.
 
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That's a good question. It's one that was (surprise!) asked of me on both of my publishing graduate applications. What I've come to realize, even though those applications have already been sent, is that there is no singular reason. In fact, I've decided to ardently pursue publishing because it combines all of my interests. Seriously, in some way, it combines ALL of them. So, for my own sense of clarity I'm listing those now.

1. Reading about: personal finance, Latin, words, writing, social/racial inequities in major cities, feminism, fashion, the economics of the U.S. education system, the CIA and FBI, spiritual discovery (appropriately placed next to governmental investigatory bodies). 
2. Editing all of the above.
3. Traveling and the accompanied sense of newness.
4. Writing and discussing all of these things.
6. The monetization and marketing of all media.

So I hope it's not just in my imagination that publishing, in some way, includes all of these. If anyone knows otherwise, please let me know so I can submit my application to live on parents couch this summer.