Wiser Web Wednesday – a semi-regular link to posts of interest from around the web, by those far wiser than myself:

 

Fountain Pens Australia Facebook Group
Have you heard? There’s a giveaway happening!

The fine people at Bookbinders Online have kindly provided a bottle of Iroshizuku Syo-ro and a Tomoe River notebook for one lucky Australian based member of the group.

To enter, leave a comment on the giveaway post by 4pm this Thursday (24 September). If you are thinking of joining the group there is no better time:
Fountain Pens Australia

 

Fountain Pen Economics
Some posts have a way of keeping at you until you write them, and this appears to be one of those.

A very touching account of family, and the resounding influence they have on us and our lives. I don’t believe this could have been any better written — thanks for sharing Jonathan:
Memento Mori

 

Nib & Ink
Continuing on with the theme of the post above — another post fortified with emotion. This time intertwined with the author’s love of pens, resulting in a truly unique custom-made writing instrument by a very talented pen maker.

Thanks for writing about a great pen Matthew, and more than that, sharing the story of the great person behind it:
Review: Newton Pens “Moody”

 

Dave Rea
A couple of things about this: Firstly, I am always amazed at the thinking of others and the subsequent nerdery which often ensues. Second, Dave writes really, really well. Always highly enjoyable to read. Time will tell if there is any way to predict the longevity of the TWSBI Eco – however this is not a bad place to start.

After you’ve read the following, be sure to check out Dave’s fantastic notebook indexing web service Indxd.

But first:
The Polarizing Truth: Why Your TWSBI Eco Won’t Break

 

The Pencilcase Blog
As I worked my way through this excellent review, I found myself coming around to the finish and overall design. There is certainly no shortage of places to look for a new pen. We really are spoiled for choice:
Edison Collier Fountain Pen Review

 

Executive Style
So our 29th Prime Minister signed one of his first agreements with a fountain pen. I cannot fault his taste. Apparently he also wears an Apple Watch and listens to The Pen Addict and Connected. Ok fine — so I made that last bit up — though you never know right?:
A fountain pen: crucial tool of trade or pretentious affectation?

 

The Sydney Morning Herald
A little on the back room machinations which resulted in Australia waking up to a fifth Prime Minister since 2010 earlier this week:
How it happened: Inside the Malcolm Turnbull leadership coup

 

The Huffington Post Australia
A NSW senator on why the government should take a hands-off approach in dealing with something government is apparently finding difficult to understand: the sharing economy. Of course the example at the forefront of all this is Uber, with the Australian Tax Office determining there should be different rules for Uber in order to “level the playing field” for taxi drivers.

It begs the question though: more regulation for Uber – or less red tape for the taxi industry? I’m not really sure where the answer lies:
Hands Off The Sharing Economy

 

David Hewson
Currently on Android or the web, my message here is not about the platform or service specifically — more so the brief outline of how a successful author keeps track of a work in progress.

I keep book diaries simple, direct and honest (if you think you’re writing crap you need to say so).

Honesty is clearly tantamount to success:
A book diary in action

 

Ulysses Blog
One to file in the “just because you can doesn’t mean you should category”. That said, a few simple steps from idea to iBook:
Self-Publishing for Absolute Beginners

 

Perfect Daily Grind
Although the specific details might vary in the eyes of some — a timely reminder to keep that espresso machine clean:
Espresso Machine Maintenance: The Essentials

 

CRS Coffeelands Blog
One of my favourite coffee blogs with another enlightening piece on what occurs at the heart of the industry — the farms.

By the time we collected baseline data in Nariño in 2012, Nespresso and Starbucks were buying more than 98 percent of the region’s coffee.  This is generally a very good thing for growers.

This post has a focus on the remaining 2% of growers who wished to explore third-wave opportunities directly with buyers looking for smaller, high quality, traceable coffee.

I tip my hat to those working tirelessly to improve things at the ground level:
Nariño’s Third Wave

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Wiser Web Wednesday – a semi-regular link to posts of interest from around the web, by those far wiser than myself:

 

Mark Hodder Presents
For the past year or so, I have done all of my writing in Ulysses, switching between the Mac and iPad versions at will, with iCloud providing a seamless transition between the two by reliably syncing my work.

Although largely a piece extolling the virtues of Ulysses, there is also a glimpse into the workings and workflows of an author — something I always find particularly fascinating:
This Writing Malarky: How I Work



The New York Review of Books
Elmore Leonard produced forty-five novels in fifty-nine years. That is some career. There were certainly few better than those I was fortunate enough to pick up and read, beginning with 1988’s Freaky Deaky, through Get Shorty (1990); Rum Punch (1992); Out of Sight (1996); Cuba Libre (1998) and Be Cool (1999).

A little back story on the man behind so many marvellous words:
The Elmore Leonard Story

 

Macdrifter
I too have migrated my Zite feed to Flipboard in the last few weeks, however have been an active Flipboard user for quite some time now. I use my own “Magazines” as read-it-later type services, enjoying the format when I go back and read what I “flip” in there. Probably worth a post at some point, however it would no doubt be somewhat less elegant than this one:
Migrating Zite to Flipboard

Incidentally, my Flipboard magazines unsurprisingly run across two categories — drum roll please: coffee, and pen & paper. What? How could you possibly have guessed?:
Brew – Ways of Coffee
Analogue Station – Pens, Paper & Other Capers

 

Alt. Haven
A first paper review? You’d never know it, as Junee’s concise yet informative piece flows as well as any. As for the subject matter, the good old Tomoe River paper really does take some beating, and the form factor of these Backpocket journals looks pretty impressive as well.
Review: Blank and Write Backpocket Journal Tomoe River Edition

 

The Gentleman Stationer
Another Kakuno review and another happy reviewer — certainly no surprise to me. As far as the price point and value for money are concerned, this probably sums it up (a statement you won’t read in a Visconti review):

…so I dropped it into my cart when I was doing my weekly household shopping

Also, I’d agree — there are other “beginner” pens far more “child-like” out there, and I happily abscond with my son’s intermittently:
The Pilot Kakuno: Another Excellent Option for Newbies

 

Gorgeous.Ink
It is posts such as these which confirm my embrace on the superficial nature of my own — and I’m certainly not complaining. One of the main reasons I write here is to learn, most often from posts like this one. Being somewhat of a Pilot fan – I of course very much enjoyed this one from Paul:
Pilot Pens and the Super Quality Nib & Feed System

 

Crónicas Estilográficas
Here I refer you to my comments immediately above. I love these posts — always so much to learn (did I say that already?):
Of Nibs and Models. Pilot

 

Tools & Toys
A Josh Ginter pen review for Tools & Toys is always worth reading — and ogling. I have a couple of Kaweco Sports — both of the plastic variety and have been eyeing those of metal construction for some time, and the Brass looks mighty attractive.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again about Josh’s posts: Great review. Fantastic photography:
The Kaweco BRASS Sport Fountain Pen Review

 

Field Notes Brand
The Fall 2015 Colors Seasonal release is here, with another great video well worth watching. For the first time, Field Notes have made their own paper. Looking forward to the reviews.

Let the Tweets begin:
“Shenandoah” for Fall 2015

 

Coffee Strides
I offer this link for obvious reasons, however with minimal basis for comment. As I’ve said many a time — my coffee thoughts and opinions are formed squarely as a consumer, having never worked in the industry. That said, gender equality across an entire industry is both a serious matter, and something worth striving for.

And personally I am not a fan of calling out a high ranking female competitor for being female. Who cares if you are the highest ranking female? The point is to understand why, in general terms, women are not competing as much as men and why, when they compete, they do not seem to win.

Some interesting thoughts here:
Why Women Do Not Compete in Coffee Competitions

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Wiser Web Wednesday – a semi-regular post to links of interest from around the web, by those far wiser than myself:

 

Perfect Daily Grind
A little too late for a career change? Perhaps, however if I were to do it, a reasonable pathway might be something like this:
How YOU Can Make a Career Out of Coffee Roasting

Daily Coffee News
Of course the link above just wouldn’t do without this follow-up. The first in a four-part series by the Craft Coffee Institute’s Andrew Russo on launching a small commercial roasting operation:
Roastery Planning and Pitfalls Part 1: Equipment

The Sweet Setup
Although not exactly pushed for space on my Mac at home, unnecessary files such as these are always high on my list to clear out:
Quick Tip: Control how many backups Day One stores

Reckoner
What’s not to love about an article on backup strategies that begins with:

But most of you are playing fast and loose with valuable 1s and 0s. You’re pretty much Vincent D’Onofrio in Full Metal Jacket.

Of course the moral of the story being the vital importance of backing up your data in the form of three different copies, in two formats, with one copy in the cloud: aka the 3-2-1 strategy. Anthony Agius as only he can:
How I Keep My Precious Data Safe

The Pen Habit
I of course read the DC Pen Show wrap ups as I’m sure many of you did, and thoroughly enjoyed them all. I was surprised to learn this was Matt Armstrong’s first pen show, however far from it that he wrote such a great series of posts on the experience:
2015 DC Pen Show Report – Thursday and Friday
2015 DC Pen Show Report – Saturday and Sunday
2015 DC Pen Show: Wrap-up

Art of Manliness
I have been known to share the occasional podcast recommendation on these pages, however for a quite a few more suggestions, the Art of Manliness will happily help you out:
24 Podcast Suggestions for Men

Gear Patrol
Gear Patrol with the morning routines of some notable individuals, including DDC’s Aaron Draplin:

Wake up, check for heartbeat.

If its bacon and eggs. I love a coke with ice

Fuel for Field Notes indeed:
How 9 Notable People Eat Breakfast

On Fountain Pens
Maybelline shares her five fountain pen recommendations for beginners. One through three on the list I own, and would certainly agree with their inclusion here. The Ohto I’ve not tried, and aren’t quite taken with the design, whereas the Plasir is a great looking pen, and if it writes as well as the Preppy, is on my list of future purchases:
5 Fountain Pens for Beginners

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