What's up with all the pseudoscience

The Biology of Belief (2005) by Bruce Lipton

What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About™: Parkinson’s Disease: A Holistic Program for Optimal Wellness (2003) by Mary J. Shomon, Jill Marjama-Lyons

Then there's a lot of "modern American lit" that I suppose he only has on his list because his publisher sent him these books for advertising, and even more books about drugs

Weird list

>>7522925
>and even more books about drugs

is he burnt out?

The fiction he reads falls into three categories:
1. Rereading the same four or five authors he's reread for years. Lin has never been well-read. I doubt he's ever read a novel published before 1960 except for school.

2. The books of his friends, people dependent upon his own career, like Sam Pink or Elizabeth Ellen. You know, in an interview, Lin said he didn't like to talk to writers more famous than he was. He does not read other writers, including young NYC writers, outside of his followers.

3. His boss at Sarah Lawrence, Brian Morton -- who actually is a great novelist, but definitely someone whose books Lin wouldn't touch if he wasn't his boss.

>I feel
>I feel
>I feel
>I feel
>I feel

>>7524618
>1. I doubt he's ever read a novel published before 1960 except for school.

He likes The Book of Disquiet, which I suspect is a rec he got on /lit/.

>>7522853
Does Tao have any discernible talent?

>>7524838
I think he does. The first half of Taipei is pretty interesting, but once Erin shoes up it turns to the slog. I think Tao has something going with his style and nuance, he might just need some better prose and focus. That might be against the point though.

>>7524880
Why does it turn to slog? What specifically about the novel wasn't working? When you say "interesting," do you mean "interesting" to you personally, or that, in general, every human on the planet who read it would find the first half interesting and the second lackluster?

He makes four references to books he is reading for his next novel ("Leave Society") including Tad Szulc's book on Chopin.

This gives me the impression that all of his /lit/ fanboys will give up on Tao Lin when they find he's not continuing to write about bored, aimless, drug-taking airheads like themselves.

He is obviously maturing -- he'll be over 35 when his next book is published -- and his reading list, combined with his leaving NYC and whatever "alt lit" culture (a term he always hated) makes me certain he is desperate to reach a larger audience.

People accuse him of still posting here, but I am sure he is annoyed people still write about him on 4chan. He's trying to get beyond his old fanboy audience, and to be best known in /lit/ is the kiss of death for an author who wants a real career and who has real ambitions.

In other words, he's kissing off you moron fanboys.

>>7525861
lmao

>>7525861
He's explicitly stated he doesn't want fame, money, a broader audience, etc. He just wants to create art. His writing doesn't "mature," it just takes on different shapes and formats. There's a vast difference, for example, between Cognitive Behavior Therapy and Taipei. I also don't think he's capable of feeling annoyance or hatred.

>>7522959
I don't know if Tao Lin is capable of burning out. His drug intake seems monotonous and more of a habit than an impulsive binge-and-quit type thing. I mean I'm sure his way of writing and thinking is a result of his drug intake, but I don't see it changing significantly any time soon.

>>7524704
I hate the use of "I feel" over "I think" in hippy and artistic circles. It's a shallow drive at seeming more empathetic and artistic instead of calculative. Yes, you may have an emotion relating to something but you are not stating that you feel said emotion, you are stating your thoughts on it. It makes me way angrier than it should.

Looks like he's gotten into biochemistry.

STEM memes aside I wish some STEM folks would step up and start recommending nonfiction for various subjects aside from textbooks. There had to be some good middle ground between popsci and textbooks.

>>7528209
>STEM memes aside I wish some STEM folks would step up and start recommending nonfiction for various subjects aside from textbooks. There had to be some good middle ground between popsci and textbooks

>>>/reddit/

besides, non-fiction is just a meme.

>>7525861
>He is obviously maturing
True, he grew a mustache.

>>7528224
Daily reminder to quit calling everything a meme.