Profiling

Sometimes, you can tell what kind of a post you're going to get from Lance Mannion before reading it.

No really. Among the clubs he carries in his bag are two that immediately stand out on the page (or screen) just by their shape, even before you focus in to see what they're about.

There are the discursive ones, slower paced, a little more formal sometimes, not infrequently about literary matters. (Like this one for example.) When you see long paragraphs and chunky block quotes, built up high and carefully, you know you've got one of these, even before you read the first sentence. Polish your glasses, sit up straight, and begin.

But if you see one that zooms along, one single-sentence paragraph after another, lots of white spaces to make room, then you know he's rolling, which is a whole 'nother kind of post. Fast, streaming, usually covering a lot of ground before it gets where it's going.

I recommend this zoomer on empire to your attention. (Follow all links; Wolcott's triggering piece is good too.)