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Guy wrote first novel on smartphone commuting on the F line

nydailynews.com — It's no wonder Brooklyn author Peter Brett's first novel is a dark, demonic fantasy - he wrote it on the F train. Brett, 36, tapped out most of "The Warded Man," which hit U.S. bookshelves last month, on his smartphone on daily trips from the Fort Hamilton Parkway stop near his Kensington home to his job in Times Square.

Who dugg this? Made popular Apr 26, 2009

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  • robwhite1979, on 04/25/2009, -0/+37Kudos to this guy for his excellent time management skills... I used to use the metro to get to school and work everyday and would usually just try to nap or maybe play some GBA if I wasn't tired... This dude makes me feel like a slacker :(
  • inactive, on 04/25/2009, -0/+27I'm picturing him actually putting an office on a train, and that amuses me.
  • ZhiZaki, on 04/25/2009, -0/+17....and I just doodle when I'm bored.
  • sexypeon, on 04/26/2009, -1/+131. Doodle when bored
    2. Create site called XKCD.com
    3. ?????
    4/ Profit!
  • sexypeon, on 04/26/2009, -0/+12Most defiantly not ironic.
  • CannedMango, on 04/26/2009, -0/+11Here's an excerpt...

    "R U Hapy?" he askd. "Smtms, I thnk so" she rpld.
  • scuba7183, on 04/26/2009, -0/+11Methinks that went straight over eramos's head
  • coachmcguirk, on 04/26/2009, -0/+10...all I can manage to do is listen to podcasts on my commute.
  • Regulator980, on 04/26/2009, -0/+7Japan has been doing this for years:

    http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/12/02/in-japan-half ...

    http://www.mobileshop.com/blog/offbeat-news/crazyn ...

    http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/02/25/japan.mobilenov ...
  • Kingfish1, on 04/26/2009, -0/+6Dugg for the F Train diss. You could probably actually write a novel in the time you spend WAITING for that train...
  • Tyrant505, on 04/26/2009, -1/+6you KNOW it wasn't a iphone. /owner
  • specialK16, on 04/26/2009, -0/+5I've thought about that as well. But where I live if I were to get my smartphone in a plubic bus I probably wouldn't live long enough to finish a book.
  • Hardataq, on 04/26/2009, -0/+5Good for them.
  • Hardataq, on 04/26/2009, -2/+5I love my iPhone, but I can barely rattle off a text message without my chunk-o fingers hitting 14 unwanted keys, I just hope this guy either had a phone with an actual keyboard or a ***** of Advil.
  • diemunkiesdie, on 04/26/2009, -5/+8Until I RTFA, I thought the title meant he wrote the book without ever using the letter F.
  • gcnaddict, on 04/26/2009, -0/+2I'm sure he's quite a thumb wrestler now.
  • DavidTurnbull, on 04/26/2009, -2/+4I love the plubic bus.
  • LotosDescendant, on 04/26/2009, -0/+2I enjoyed reading this story, but as others have pointed out, it's not exactly something new. The amount of literary projects going on utilizing new technology is pretty awesome though. Twitter alone has a bunch, such as http://thaumatrope.greententacles.com
  • homer00, on 04/26/2009, -0/+2What the hell happened toyourspacebar?
  • ScottMitchell, on 04/26/2009, -0/+2Props to this guy for following his dreams, but talk about a risky career move. FTA:

    "The book has sold 2,500 copies since Del Rey Books released it in the U.S. five weeks ago. ... After selling the book, Brett left his job - and the daily commutes - in October 2007 to pursue writing full time."

    If novels are anything like the computer trade market then 2,500 copies in five weeks isn't bad, but those sales would translate to maybe $5,000 for the author, at most.
  • humbop, on 04/26/2009, -0/+2This was done in Japan, a couple of years ago. By a woman, I believe.
  • Brak710101, on 04/26/2009, -0/+2I'd bet there are writers out there that have the story's universe and characters so well laid and planned out in their heads that they don't need notes or an outline.
  • mmittimm, on 04/26/2009, -1/+3Why?
  • bronxelf, on 04/26/2009, -0/+2Probably because even in the summary it's not referred to as the "F Line". It's referred to as the "F Train" which would clearly indicate it's a train. The summary clears up the misconception- you never even have to get to the actual article.

    That would be my guess.
  • Coven, on 04/26/2009, -0/+1It's only about 45 min to an hour from Ft Ham Pky to Times Square on the F.
  • coachmcguirk, on 04/26/2009, -1/+2I have never agreed with a comment more in my life....
  • inactive, on 04/26/2009, -2/+3He wrote itonthe F train? I hope it doesn't have any F bombs.

  • diemunkiesdie, on 04/26/2009, -3/+4I thought he might have been trying to write a lipogrammatic book. Like "Gadsby: Champion of Youth" which doesn't use "E".

    We don't have Subways or very much light rail in Texas so I don't automatically think of trains when I hear "F line"; I think of the letter "F".
  • ScottMitchell, on 04/26/2009, -0/+1Perhaps that explains why its sold only 2,500 copies?
  • darkzealot89, on 04/26/2009, -0/+1*WOOSH*
  • Shaderone, on 04/26/2009, -0/+1...what he said.
  • Gloogle, on 04/26/2009, -0/+1He touched em up once he got home doofus.
  • nunofgs, on 04/26/2009, -0/+1Are you some kind of stalker?
  • Quito, on 04/26/2009, -0/+1I used to ride the F train from the same stop as that guy to go into Manhattan and let me tell you, my loathing towards it knew no limits. It was slow as hell, irregular, there were no announcements on the platform and if you were lucky to hear anything inside the train, it was so incomprehensible it was comical. And yeah, the G is absolutely the disowned child of the MTA (Metropolitan Transit Authority).
  • MadHarvey, on 04/26/2009, -0/+1I'm sure he planned out what he was going to write for the day before he got on the train, and left notes in the text for details he was unsure about and needed to fill in at home.

    That being said, typing a novel on a smart phone sounds like torture to me. Why not get a netbook or something? Even writing on paper would be better than that..
  • omaryak, on 04/26/2009, -0/+1I've thought of doing things on the train like that, but I tend to get motion sickness. Good for him.
  • inactive, on 04/26/2009, -0/+1Stupid Itouch typing on that is tough
  • minnymoo, on 04/26/2009, -0/+1You think that's bad, I question the G's existence.
  • oda1, on 04/26/2009, -0/+1There's no way to verify this. I could type out a novel and say I wrote it using my Ipod's scroll wheel.
  • nunofgs, on 04/26/2009, -0/+1I seriously doubt there's an app that creates a physical qwerty keyboard on my iPhone :(
  • wizzroom, on 04/26/2009, -0/+1Sweet I used to live in Kensington and took the F. Can't say I was as productive as this guy...I preferred to take power naps.
  • Matteus117, on 04/30/2009, -0/+0loved this one! im trying to break into the writing game myself and i know its difficult to find the time (and discipline) to sit yourself done and do some proper work!! - its often occured to me, while stuck on the train, about the minutes of my life being wasted by shoddy train time keeping and such........ think i better get a smart phone!
  • brandita, on 04/26/2009, -1/+1That's cause there is no F express so he had a lot of time to kill. Though I have to say he's a bit more productive than me.
  • diemunkiesdie, on 04/26/2009, -3/+3I wonder why my comment, answering your question as to my thought process, is being dugg down...
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