Transcription Error is a blog about writing, craft, and the beautiful mess of learning. For anyone who believes that the best stories come not just from what we know—but from what we have yet to discover.

If you’re a writer, or even tangentially interested in creative writing as a hobby, you’ve already heard it:

“Write what you know.”

It’s a refrain heard by all writers—written on the chalkboards of creative writing classrooms, put into bold, dark ink in craft books, uttered in friendly, coffee-shop conversations between peers—but its origins are murky. Some attribute the quote to Mark Twain or Ernest Hemingway, though neither author has claimed it. In a way, its unknown origins are fitting. This ubiquitous little piece of advice has mutated, evolved, and spread through literary culture like a favorable gene.

But here’s the catch:

To write what you know, you must first know something.

That means reading widely. That means going about life with your eyes and ears open. Asking questions, following your curiosity wherever it leads—not just through literature, but through science, history, culture, and the whole, world-wide human experience. Most importantly, you must follow it through your own writing process, your revisions, and the occasional, beautiful errors that you will make. That’s where this blog begins.

Transcription Error is a place for those who love writing, learning, and the strange alchemy that happens when the two pursuits collide. It’s part essay collection, part field notebook, part conversation-starter. Whether you’re an aspiring author or a seasoned wordsmith, a science enthusiast or a history buff, you’ll find inspiration here.

Explore different subjects through each blog post, and learn how these bite-sized lessons in topics well outside of the realm of writing can inspire your craft. Plus, make a home for your mistakes with the occasional ‘Transcription Error’ post.