Mastodawn

New accounts on HN 10x more likely to use EM-dashes

https://www.marginalia.nu/weird-ai-crap/hn/

#HackerNews #NewAccounts #HN #EMdashes #AITrends #HackerNews #WritingStyle

New accounts on HN 10x more likely to use EM-dashes

I’ve had this sense that HN has gotten absolutely innundated with bots last few months. First most obvious giveaway is the frequency with which you see accounts posting brilliant insights like 13 60 well and t6ctctfuvuh7hguhuig8h88gd to f6gug7h8j8h6fzbuvubt GB I be cugttc fav uhz cb ibub8vgxgvzdrc to bubuvtxfh tf d xxx h z j gj uxomoxtububonjbk P.l.kvh cb hug tf 6 go k7gtcv8j9j7gimpiiuh7i 8ubg or 1662476506 or Аё Beyond the accounts that are visibly glitching out, the vibe is also seriously off.

Oriana Turus Feb 7

Haiku 5-7-5

Sending love and hugs
with flowers, landscapes, places
it’s the postcards way

#haiku #postcards #writingstyle #picture

Mark Feb 1

We learned the importance of antecedents in junior high/middle school writing class. Sometimes a direct antecedent can imply something without explicitly it.

E.g., this line “Every…animal with a brain needs sleep—and even a few without a brain do, too” made me think “what animals lack a brain?”

She answers in the next sentence: “Humans sleep…”.

Direct antecedent: a few (animals) without a brain. Implication: Humans (at least a few of us) lack brains.

Nicely done. #writing #WritingStyle

C. L. Nichols Jan 13

https://www.storyangles.com/post/minimalism-vs-maximalism-in-writing

In writing styles, two opposing approaches steal the spotlight: minimalism and maximalism.
Sparse prose or elaborate descriptions? See how they stack up against each other.

#minimalism #maximalism #writingstyle #StoryAngles #fiction #writingcommunity #writer

Minimalism vs. Maximalism in Writing

Are you painting with broad strokes or fine details? In writing styles, two opposing approaches steal the spotlight: minimalism and maximalism.These contrasting techniques shape how authors craft stories. Sparse prose or elaborate descriptions? See how they stack up against each other.Minimalism: Less is More Minimalist writing strips away excess, focusing on essential elements to tell a story. It’s about brevity, simplicity, and letting readers fill in the blanks. Ernest Hemingway famously wrot

StoryAngles

Ekimellnea Nov 2

The writing is fast, clean, and tight. You feel the pressure. You feel the weight of every call, every risk.
#WritingStyle #BookLovers
https://thisgrandpablogs.com/cuban-missile-crisis/

Cuban Missile Crisis: Max Hastings’ Powerful 1962 Retelling

Cuban Missile Crisis retold by Max Hastings—an intense look at the 1962 standoff that brought the world close to nuclear war.

THIS GRANDPA BLOGS

Marisabel Munoz Oct 21

Kind of sad about reviewing my book on writing style of 10 years ago and finding out all I learned from it (yes, including the em-dash and antithesis) is all that AI has hijacked. I'm trying hard to ignore it, but I keep wondering what's worth adapting and what's worth rebelling for.

#AI #writing #writingstyle #emdash

David - Forking Mad Oct 15

On the keyboard today, I bash out a small rant about Acronyms

They are great, as they save unnecessary repetition, but bear in mind that assumption is a foolish thing when writing.

https://forkingmad.blog/acronyms/

#blogpost #acronyms #writingstyle

Acronyms

Acronyms are great, as they save unnecessary repetition, but bear in mind that assumption is a foolish thing when writing. Firstly, the definition of an a...

Forking Mad+

Hacker News Sep 15, 2025

Human writers have always used the em dash

https://www.theringer.com/2025/08/20/pop-culture/em-dash-use-ai-artificial-intelligence-chatgpt-google-gemini

#HackerNews #HumanWriters #EmDash #WritingStyle #AIChatGPT #LanguageEvolution