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Practice your writing by typing out classic literature. This method not only enhances your understanding of rhythm, structure, and nuances but also connects you deeply with the timeless flow of literary history.This is a BETA version.

Type the words from the book. We gave you 4 words to start with.

The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a novel set in the Jazz Age on Long Island near New York City in 1922. It tells the story of the mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby and his passion and obsession with the beautiful former debutante Daisy Buchanan. The novel explores themes of decadence, idealism, resistance to change, social upheaval, and excess, creating a portrait of the Roaring Twenties that has been described as a cautionary tale regarding the American Dream.

Read more about F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Great Gatsby
once more for Gatsby he had vanished, and I was alone again in the
unquiet darkness.


                                  II

About halfway between West Egg and New York the motor road hastily
joins the railroad and runs beside it for a quarter of a mile, so as
to shrink away from a certain desolate area of land. This is a valley
of ashesa fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and
hills and grotesque gardens; where ashes take the forms of houses and
chimneys and rising smoke and, finally, with a transcendent effort, of
ash-grey men, who move dimly and already crumbling through the powdery
air. Occasionally a line of grey cars crawls along an invisible track,
gives out a ghastly creak, and comes to rest, and immediately the
ash-grey men swarm up with leaden spades and stir up an impenetrable
cloud, which screens their obscure operations from your sight.

But above the grey land and the spasms of bleak dust which drift
endlessly over it, you perceive, after a moment, the eyes of Doctor T.
J. Eckleburg. The eyes of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg are blue and
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Why Type a Masterpiece?

Typing out classical literature is not just an exercise in patience; it's a deeply immersive way to understand the rhythm, structure, and nuances of great writing. By manually reproducing the works of renowned authors, you engage with the text on a level that reading alone cannot offer. This method allows you to feel the flow of sentences, the choice of words, and the intricate construction of paragraphs that make these works timeless.

Style is a very simple matter; it is all rhythm. Once you get that, you can't use the wrong words.

– Virginia Woolf

literati is a unique platform where writers can select from a vast collection of public domain classics to type out. This practice is akin to a musician playing pieces by the masters to internalize the elements of composition and performance. Just as the musician learns the subtleties of each note and chord, the writer learns the power of each word and sentence.

Prose is like hair; it shines with combing.

– Gustave Flaubert

Engaging directly with masterpieces allows writers to absorb the rhythm of the text, the ebb and flow of its pacing, and the beauty of its imagery. It cultivates an appreciation for the craft of writing and provides invaluable lessons in how to construct compelling narratives, develop characters, and evoke emotions in readers. Happy typing!

The only truth is music.

– Jack Kerouac

More on this topic:

"Imitate then innovate", an article by David Perell