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Warning: I don’t do Spoiler Alerts. But, if you’re reading an essay or an article about any sort of story then you’re going to find spoilers. You can’t disucss any story and completely leave out what happens. I will ruin Oliver Stone’s JFK for you now by saying that there is no way Oswald acted alone.

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Read any article at random.

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Handwritten notes and manuscript pages Writing

Essays about storytelling, language, and the craft of writing.

Ally writing in St Louis, circa 1998 Fiction

Original stories from the Wall.

Cookie Monster cupcakes in a Warhol-inspired pop-art style Culture

Writing about film, television, sport, music, and meaning.

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For those that don’t need categories: All essays, stories and ideas — in one place.

Music Ally Chisholm Music Ally Chisholm

Sometimes we stumble into where we want to be and other times the algorithm gets it right

Spotify should be a revelation. And often I do think of how amazing it is that I live in a time where I can think of any song, any piece of music and have it to listen to in seconds, all at the low low cost of £9.99 per month. Where I think it becomes problematic is when it becomes like having a huge table with a buffet, but this buffet has everything you could ever think to eat.

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Music Ally Chisholm Music Ally Chisholm

On a bus in Camden. Fight Club era

I used to say that if you sat still long enough, the world comes to you. That’s how it felt. The fame of the people was never the point. The famous were sucked into the same orbit as the rest of us.

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Music Ally Chisholm Music Ally Chisholm

The Noise Coming From Philippe

What will always win me over is a singer who just makes extraordinary noises. This goes beyond singing a song. This is more than performing a song. This is a song bursting out of the singer.

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Music Ally Chisholm Music Ally Chisholm

Palo Alto, 1998

Freebird was more like an orgy of guitars and you could never just start at the guitar section. You’d have to build to it.

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