Hatching Twitter
Nick Bilton's book about the founding and infighting at Twitter.
Where Hatching Twitter comes up1 episode or test
Hatching Twitter is Nick Bilton's account of Twitter's founding and infighting, and the sources here cover its craft, not its business. It opens with Evan Williams vomiting into a bin before addressing 300 employees, then pays that off later. A friend's note, "I hate them all," pushed Bilton to make flawed characters human. Lesson: open with a vivid moment, resolve it later, and use ordinary details to keep readers invested.
- 1Friend reads the draftWrites "I hate them all" on page 160
- 2Still no one to root forSays "I'm not rooting for anyone"
- 3Studies Hitchcock, murder mysteriesHow readers stay close to killers
- 4Adds ordinary momentsLost car keys, dropped groceries, loving mother
From Nick Bilton, Hatching Twitter
What was said about Hatching Twitter
Hatching Twitter opens on a flash-forward of Evan Williams vomiting before a speech. The book opens with Evan Williams vomiting into a garbage can before he has to address 300 employees. He wipes his shirt and walks out, then the book cuts back to young Williams riding his bike in Paloma and pays off the opening later.
Bilton uses it as his example that a flash-forward opening can carry a whole book: the striking image asks a question the reader stays to see answered. Compared with American Kingpin's 58 short chapters, Hatching Twitter's chapters are longer and have fewer cliffhangers.
A reader who hated every character pushed Bilton to humanize Twitter's founders. A friend from Stanford wrote "I hate them all" on page 160 of a draft and "I'm not rooting for anyone" on the printed 300-page manuscript. Bilton then studied how Hitchcock and murder mysteries keep readers close to killers.
His lesson was to give flawed people ordinary moments and visible good intentions, such as a mother who loves them, lost car keys or dropped groceries, so readers can step into them. "You can't hate the characters. You have to want to read them."
How to Improve Your Storytelling Skills (Nick Bilton Interview)
Opens with Evan Williams vomiting into a garbage can before addressing 300 employees, then cuts back and pays it off later. Its chapters are longer with fewer cliffhangers, and a friend's "I hate them all" note on a draft pushed Bilton to make characters more human.
Hatching Twitter opens on a flash-forward of Evan Williams vomiting before a speech. The book opens with Evan Williams vomiting into a garbage can before he has to address 300 employees. He wipes his shirt and walks out, then the book cuts back to young Williams riding his bike in Paloma and pays off the opening later.
Bilton uses it as his example that a flash-forward opening can carry a whole book: the striking image asks a question the reader stays to see answered. Compared with American Kingpin's 58 short chapters, Hatching Twitter's chapters are longer and have fewer cliffhangers.
A reader who hated every character pushed Bilton to humanize Twitter's founders. A friend from Stanford wrote "I hate them all" on page 160 of a draft and "I'm not rooting for anyone" on the printed 300-page manuscript. Bilton then studied how Hitchcock and murder mysteries keep readers close to killers.
His lesson was to give flawed people ordinary moments and visible good intentions, such as a mother who loves them, lost car keys or dropped groceries, so readers can step into them. "You can't hate the characters. You have to want to read them."
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