In my New Year's message last year, I mentioned not reading the news but creating stories instead. Little did we know what a horrific year it would turn out to be, making news junkies out of all of us. Last year felt like ten with the blitzkrieg of events unfolding before us. If you’re …
The Shape of Stories
Photo by Danny on Unsplash Writing is tough, but what happens when it’s not? Say you’re working on the first draft of a story. You’re humming along and things are going great. Then you notice you’ve written 5,000 words and you’re nowhere near the end of it. How do you solve this problem? Do you write a novel? …
RIP, Professor
Photo by Getty Images Last week, we lost Neil Peart, one of the best (if not the best) drummers in the world and the primary lyricist for the Toronto-based prog rock trio Rush. It still boggles the mind that he’s no longer with us. Both a poet and a polymath, Peart was his own man …
You Say Tomay-to, I Say Tomah-to
Photo by Peter Lewicki on Unsplash I’ve been called a film snob so many times throughout my life, I’ve lost count. I used to tease people about their favorite movies: “How can you like Top Gun?” My cinematic tastes are discerning, for sure. I don’t like everything I see. But who does? I haven’t seen every popular movie, …
New Year, New Message
Photo by Álvaro Serrano on Unsplash Here we are at the dawn of a new decade. Troubling times. I try not to read the news too much these days. Instead, what I choose to do is make things. They’re just thoughts, ideas and stories, but hopefully they can help you notice things you'd never give a second look. …
Storytellers Anonymous
I’d been to industry trade shows before. Hotel ballrooms filled with crowds of people. The kind who steal a glance at your badge, wondering if you’re someone worth talking to. After realizing you’re just a guppy they move on, looking for the next big fish. But a writing conference? I had heard of them, but …
Movies Inside My Head: Superman The Movie
A hero is reborn on the big screen In December 1978, the world saw the dawn of the big-budget superhero film with the release of Superman. Created in 1938 by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, Superman made his comic book debut in Action Comics #1. The Adventures of Superman, starring George Reeves, aired on TV in …
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The Mall Around The Corner
I’ve been fascinated with shopping malls ever since my childhood. Before I could drive, I bugged my parents to take us to the mall. It was the place where I fell in love with the movies, witnessed the latest fashions, wasted quarters at the video arcade and had a few adventures of my own. The …
People Inside My Head: Joe Frank
I can remember the first time I heard Joe Frank on the air. His wasn’t your standard public radio talk show or drama/comedy. This was a different animal altogether. Like all great art, it was a by-product of his experiences, neuroses and obsessions. Frank’s world was one of loneliness, despair and heartbreak. It was also …
Memories of George Romero
I was a kid growing up in Texas when I came across George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead for the first time. It aired each Halloween on a local TV channel. I could never watch the entire movie, it was too scary for my young mind. The bits I did see gave me bad dreams …