I’m Figuring Things Out – No More Transcripts Here

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When I started posting video transcripts from my essay channel here, I thought it would be a helpful addition. But I recently discovered that YouTube now automatically generates transcripts for every video. I have no idea when they introduced this feature—it’s probably been available for quite some time without me noticing. Since the transcript is already provided by default on YouTube, reposting it here doesn’t add any extra value.

So, I’ve decided to stop posting transcripts on this site.

When I launched this blog, my goal was to create a real-time diary of a hobbyist writer trying to build something. That includes learning, making mistakes, and adjusting course along the way. Naturally, that means my approach will change from time to time.

For instance, I originally planned to write weekly posts about storytelling lessons from movies, shows, books, and more. But right now, I’m leaning toward doing that content in video form instead. It helps me reach more people. Just this Monday, I published a video about a storytelling lesson from the movie The Menu, and it reached more viewers on Rumble in two hours than my written post did within an entire week.

I’ve got a bunch of ideas on how to promote my writing and build an audience. Some of them might turn out to be nonsense. That’s part of the process. This blog is a real-time diary, and in real time, there will be plenty of mistakes and course corrections.

The first of those: I’m shifting my focus toward video production and away from regular blogging. But don’t worry—I’ll still keep you posted here about what’s working, what’s not, and what I learn along the way. Yet, video production is my main focus; blogging is only a minor priority, for now.

On George R. R. Martin Addressing the Fans

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So, the master decided to address his fanbase recently. Once again, he had to comment on Game of Thrones. His post quickly turned into a rant about fans ranting about him not finishing the series (source).

I get it. An author can write whatever he wants. And if Martin doesn’t feel like writing the next book in the series, nobody has the right to troll him into doing it.

At the same time, I also understand the fans. They’ve invested their time, emotions, and a significant amount of money into the series. Reading an unfinished series can feel like a wasted effort when there’s no conclusion in sight.

The show on HBO was great — fantastic, even genius — until they ran out of source material and had to “invent” the last two seasons. Was it the showrunners who rushed it all into that strange ending? Or was it actually Martin himself who gave them that ending?

Maybe Martin had already outlined the finale, which the show then used, and after seeing how fans reacted, he became unsure about publishing it in book form. Maybe he even lost interest, because at this point it feels like trying to reanimate a dead horse.

Whatever the reason behind the delay, I believe that an author carries a certain responsibility to bring a series to an end — especially when readers have invested so much and when the story depends on multiple character arcs and major cliffhangers.

You can end James Bond, Reacher, or even Batman mid-series, because most of their adventures are episodic by nature. But ending Game of Thrones halfway through is like ending The Lord of the Rings before Frodo reaches Mordor — or Harry Potter before the final confrontation with Voldemort.

Or to put it differently: It’s like Robert Kraft going to a massage parlor and only getting… a massage.

By not writing the next book, the master is leaving us all with collective blue balls. And that’s the reason he is receiving ridicule under every single one of his posts. The only way to end that would be to sit down and write the damn ending.

PSG Wins the Champions League

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Congratulations to PSG on winning the Champions League. They fully deserved the title after defeating a strong Inter in the final, a red-hot Arsenal team in the semi-finals, and – perhaps most impressively – overcoming Liverpool, arguably the best team in Europe this season, in the round of 16.

PSG had a rough start to the season, playing poor football and only scraping through to the knockout stage with a bit of luck. But in the second half of the campaign, they looked unstoppable.

Luis Enrique managed to shape a formidable team, blending talented young French players with experienced professionals from around the world – especially from Portugal and Brazil. He has proven himself to be a world-class coach.

That said, it still feels like a bittersweet moment for European football.

More than a decade ago, the oil sheikhs bought the club with one goal in mind: to win this trophy, no matter the cost. It was always somewhat satisfying to see Qatar fall short despite spending what seemed like limitless amounts of money. As a football romantic, I took a certain joy in watching them fail to buy success.

But now it’s done. PSG and Qatar have shown that, with unlimited resources, you can eventually buy anything in football – even the Champions League.

Congratulations to PSG, but Rest In Peace football romanticism.

Write Better Books | A Lesson from The Menu

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One of the best movies of the past few years is The Menu. Its opening scene delivers a great lesson for storytellers:

It perfectly captures the essence of show, don’t tell.

You could explain everything about the exclusive restaurant the characters are visiting via having the characters talk about it. You could have a narrator describe the incredible menu awaiting the guests in the intro. But the film doesn’t do that—it shows it to us instead.

The scene begins with Hoult’s character being visibly upset when the female protagonist lights a cigarette. He tells her that smoking will dull her sense of taste—just before they experience a highly refined meal. That single moment tells us everything about both characters: he is the passionate food connoisseur, deeply invested in the experience; she’s the indifferent plus-one, just along for the ride.

Moments later, Hoult’s character spots a famous food critic and is instantly impressed. Most people wouldn’t recognize a food critic on sight—even if he’s the most renowned critic in the industry. This tells us that Hoult’s character is not just interested in fine food—he’s obsessive about it.

In just 90 seconds, the film establishes the setting and the dynamic between the two main characters. And it does so without a single line of direct narration—it shows us everything we need to know instead.

This is excellent writing to learn from.