What Helps Emily Gould Write?

Credit: Avid Reader Press, Sylvie Rosokoff

Emily Gould's new novel Perfect Tunes — about a young woman who moves to NYC in the early 2000s to follow her singer-songwriter dreams — is one of our favorites of the year. Here's what helps her write.

Audrey Gelman takes a ton of shit (as someone who the internet has also heaped scorn upon, I hit it off with her immediately) and I was definitely in the hater camp when The Wing first opened. "So pink! Corporate feminism. Exclusive and snobby. Named for a maxipad," you know the spiel. Then Audrey cleverly neutralized me by offering me a scholarship.

The Wing was the first place I felt totally comfortable and unselfconscious while writing.

A lot of the older, established writers I know either write in a home that's big enough to include a dedicated writing space and/or can afford to rent studio space. Having a Wing membership let me focus on writing without worrying about things like pumping breastmilk in a public bathroom or buying ten coffees a day to pay rent on a desk in a crowded cafe. It was a luxury that you better believe I am missing the hell out of right now. —Emily Gould

Author and BuzzFeed News reporter Alex Kantrowitz tells us about his new book, Always Day One: How the Tech Titans Plan to Stay on Top, and recommends related reads.

Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, and Microsoft have only grown stronger as they’ve grown larger. Their ability to remain inventive even as they age is the reason they’re still dominating the economy. The secret is not strategy, as I’ve learned in my years reporting on these companies. Underneath the surface, the tech giants have developed a new form of leadership and work culture that helped them stay nimble and soon may influence the way you do your job.

In my new book, Always Day One, you’ll read interviews with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, former Microsoft chief economist Susan Athey, along with more than 130 insiders. Here are three other books I recommend if you’re interested in the topic:

Facebook: The Inside Story by Steve Levy

What exactly has been going on inside Facebook all these years? It’s been a turbulent ride, and reporter Steve Levy embedded inside for much of it. Here, he gives the inside story.

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...and Others Don't by Jim Collins

Bestselling author Jim Collins unpacks the lessons that good and mediocre companies have used to achieve greatness. It’s another book that challenges our perception of leadership.

Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity by Kim Scott

Giving feedback is one of the most difficult things to do at work. Once you get good at it, all manner of opportunity opens up. In this book, Kim Scott writes the definitive guide to develop a culture of feedback.