#750: Neil Gaiman and Debbie Millman

This episode is a two-for-one, and that’s because the podcast recently hit its 10-year anniversary and passed one billion downloads. To celebrate, I’ve curated some of the best of the best—some of my favorites—from more than 700 episodes over the last decade. I could not be more excited. The episode features segments from episode #366 "Neil Gaiman — The Interview I've Waited 20 Years to Do" and episode #214 "How to Design a Life — Debbie Millman." Please enjoy! Sponsors: AG1 all-in-one nutritional supplement: https://drinkag1.com/tim (1-year supply of Vitamin D (and 5 free AG1 travel packs) with your first subscription purchase.) Eight Sleep’s Pod 4 Ultra sleeping solution for dynamic cooling and heating: https://eightsleep.com/tim (save $350 on the Pod 4 Ultra) LinkedIn Jobs recruitment platform with 1B+ users: https://linkedin.com/tim (post your job for free) Timestamps: [00:00] Start [05:11] Notes about this supercombo format. [06:14] Enter Neil Gaiman. [06:44] What Ian Fleming taught Neil about writing — even when he doesn't want to. [09:56] Neil's biggest rule for writing. [12:41] Neil's process for writing first drafts. [14:30] What Neil aims to accomplish with his second drafts. [14:40] Something Neil noticed when he first started writing and editing with the use of computers. [17:27] Notebooks Neil prefers for writing first drafts. [21:56] Fountain pens Neil has known and loved. [22:57] How Neil's default writing time has changed over the years. [24:56] The value of the Groundhog Day routine. [26:24] Today's methods may not be tomorrow's. [27:53] Lessons learned from Terry Pratchett. [29:22] Parting thoughts and gratitude. [31:21] Enter Debbie Millman. [31:45] How Debbie describes her diverse background to new acquaintances. [33:38] A childhood drawing predicting Debbie's future. [37:54] Debbie's unintentional path to becoming a designer. [45:41] Overcoming initial rejection. [50:04] Debbie's advice to her college self after that f