Richard Nash, publisher of Soft Skull, stated that he would not sleep for the duration of the year. “Sleeping gets in the way of the way we do business at Soft Skull,” said Nash. “If I’ve learned anything from talking with the litbloggers, it’s the Dan Wickett philosophy: There’s always an emergency energy reserve.” Nash decided to carry out the plan after meeting with several sleep specialists, who assured him that, aside from a few power naps, he could very well continue working without sleep for many months.

“I realize that I’m just one guy and that this probably isn’t very good for me. But then I’ve always lived by the credo: nothing ventured, nothing gained.”