For a window into why the prospect of an investigative book is freaking me out so much, I present to you this post I wrote almost exactly four years ago: Electrolicious: My Credentials.

The summary: I have made a career out of being a careless, bullshitting writer. In fact, I remember my first semester of college a professor telling me I was “skilled but lazy,” pointing out that I used twists of language to gloss over the weaknesses of my writing. He was absolutely correct, of course, and I knew it then just like I know it now.

It’s remarkable that I’ve made it as far in my writing career as I have, considering I’m a lazy hack with a sociology degree. I can only assume this is because I’m good at using language to compensate for research. I wonder what might happen to my writing if I have language AND research?

My brain is tired from all this agonizing.