Monthly Archives: November 2013

Nov
26

Brain Freeze

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This awesome image is by Natalia and you can get it on a T-Shirt here! It’s a pretty good representation of my own mind at the moment. Mostly because I’ve got a number of things being juggled, but also because I suddenly find myself with ideas and no place to put them. And most of them are unrelated, so then it becomes a matter of prioritizing – what can I get done and what’s a pipe dream, and what just needs to be back-burnered until such time that it makes sense to work on it. Like, I have this concept that could make a really funny, tongue-in-cheek game or comic…but I’m not sure where or how I’d pitch it. (I *could* write it up as a series of short stories or something, but honestly, everything I’m imagining definitely requires a more visual medium.) And okay, yes, I’ve got friends in… Read more
Nov
19

Writing Voice

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In cleaning Lucy’s room this weekend, I came across her 1st grade journal – basically it’s one of those class things where the students are required to write about something every day. Most of Lucy’s entries are an odd mix of things – wanting to be a Ninja or a werewolf or some random ramblings about trees and how happy she is that there aren’t any that have been cut down around our house. It’s funny, because in meeting with her teacher this year, there was a lot of talk about her writing “voice” and how distinct it is. Which is one of those elusive things authors tend to talk about – no matter how good a writer’s grasp is on story or plot, you can’t really teach voice. It’s something you have or you don’t, although I believe it can certainly be cultivated – it’s the unique thing about… Read more
Nov
13

Fairy Tale of Murder Hello Kitty

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The one thing I love about traveling is just how different the little things are. Aimo sent me this picture from her local Malaysian McDonalds – where you can apparently buy Hello Kitty toys based on different fairy tales for this next month. (She got me the Ugly Duckling, yo – because she is awesome.) But what really cracks me up, is while Red Riding Hood and the Frog Prince are Grimm Fairy Tales and the Ugly Duckling is Hans Christian Andersen, we’ve also got the cowardly lion from The Wizard of Oz. And then we have the Singing Bone Hello Kitty. Which, you know – I get that most fairy tales come from a grim-dark area – the original Red Riding Hood and Frog Prince weren’t always that pleasant, but at least they had happy endings, more or less. The Singing Bone? It’s a Grimm tale as well, but… Read more
Nov
1

Hanging Out in Silence

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There’s this saying about friends and relationships – how the best ones are often punctuated by periods of comfortable silence. Not that it’s not great to chat and laugh and talk, but there’s something just as nice when there’s a natural lull in conversation and there’s no great rush to fill it. (And there’s a difference between comfortable and tension filled. I’ve been party to both and the latter is really uncool.) There’s a completely different sort of silence when the kids or pets are involved. Quiet is good. Silence is BAD. Like you just know that jar of Vaseline was opened and is now smeared all over the the carpet of a bedroom. (Fair cop – I did this when I was two. This sort of silence is *terrifying*) In today’s world of social media, silence feels like a lost art. We’re all so busy shouting our business to… Read more