The five columns that writers should be reading this week

Also, writing in dialect, keeping your writing for yourself, cumulative sentences, and a must-read bio of Steve Jobs’ early years.

Writing at Friendly’s. What if one of your favorite writing joints (which is probably also your favorite coffee joint, cheeseburger joint, or book-buying joint) closed down? That may be the case for author Nicholson Baker. The East Coast restaurant-chain Friendly’s is trying to secure a loan to avoid bankruptcy; Friendly’s happens to be the place where Baker wrote at least part of one of his novels. In this piece on the Browbeat blog for Slate, David Haglund explains why Baker and Friendly’s go well together. For Baker’s part, he says, “I’m always happy when I see the green Friendly’s topiary sign on the Mass Pike. Let’s hope they close some stores and emerge stronger.”