General

  1. Honestly, It's Not for Everyone

    That’s Nebraska’s current tourism slogan, and it seems perfect to me. Most people from the state (at least among those I know) will freely admit there are no obviously sublime sights, no real mountains, no towering redwoods, no massive canyons, only one real waterfall (and it ain’t much by Niagara standards). But then they will say something like, “it’s got a lot of subtle beauty.” And so it does. I was born in ranch country, way out in the northwest corner of the state, in the shadow...
  2. Prose versus Story: The Great Divide

    In my first blog post I explained that, when reading literature, I value story over prose. I then compared my appraisal of those two facets of fiction with how I would prioritize a school’s campus against its student body and faculty — with the campus representing prose, and the students and faculty representing story. Using that analogy, I stated that while I care about campus quality, and believe I’m fully capable of appreciating beautifully and brilliantly constructed schoolhouses, the...
  3. In Praise of Imperfection

    In Praise of Imperfection Years ago, I read that, in some cultures, a vase that has been cracked and repaired is considered more beautiful than a perfect specimen. The imperfection tells a story of triumph. “I have suffered, but I have survived.” Battle scars are to be worn proudly. It’s the imperfection that adds depth to the piece. Imperfection is a lot more interesting than perfection. Otherwise, what would we gossip about? But seriously, what is perfectionism but an attempt to...
  4. True to Type

    I've been reading H.L. Mencken's A Choice of Days, selections from his autobiography that deal with his early adult life, culminating with his work as reporter and later city editor of the Baltimore Sun. Engaging, clever, sometimes painfully casually racist, but all in all a good read. But what I am most taken by at the moment is the cover photo of him as a young man, at a desk, corncob pipe in one hand, a stack of typed paper to one side of an old-fashioned typewriter, with his other hand...
  5. All I can do

    All I feel I do is endure. There is no way out of this thing, this experience of awareness. All the pain, and all the pleasure passing by while I watch it. Everything is happening in one space, and I don't even know where or what it is. What I am. The thoughts that come up are the same, I don't choose which ones arise, I only notice some of them as they do. Some are more viral than others, and the whispers of others often wiser. No wonder this idea of the angel and devil on the shoulder is...
  6. “Important” Supporting Characters

    According to the almighty Wikipedia, a supporting character is a character in a narrative that is not the focus of the primary storyline, but is important to the plot/protagonist, and appears or is mentioned in the story enough to be more than just a minor character or cameo appearance. That’s an adequate definition in my opinion. It does, though, beg a couple of questions. For starters, what is a reasonable standard or indicator for considering a character “important to the...
  7. Dreams/nightmares

    I really don't know what to call them any more, they start as dreams and develop into nightmares or something else in between? At first you could be in control and little by little you lose that control. You notice it, all you have to do now is see what happens and pray you wont feel anything that's coming. You feel the fear, the pain, all the feelings. I cannot run away from it anymore, or hide. I can only take a glimpse of what is to come. Just a glimpse. Since is not the first time any...
  8. Still not dead…

    I don’t even know when the last time is I logged on here, let alone posted content, reviewed others’ content, or acted like a member of this community. I’m still alive, still writing. In fact, I’ve started taking a class from David Gerrold, which is exciting. In case anyone’s interested, I’ve launched a new website with a series of shorts I’ve been working on, called Tales of the West. Stop on by if you care.
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  9. Grimdark My Way

    What exactly is the grimdark genre, and why is it so awesome? Well, I imagine that once I answer the first question, the answer to the second will instantly become apparent. In case it needs to be stated, my conceptualization of the fabulously ferocious grimdark genre is merely that — mine. Others will disagree, and they’ll likely (hopefully) have thoughtful reasons for doing so. This disclaimer will hold true for most, if not all, of my blog posts going forward. With that out of the...
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  10. The real meaning of magic

    I was plunged into this by a random statement made by Ian Crossland on the Tim Pool podcast. Ian is not the brightest bulb on the tree, and often says things that seem ridiculous to me, but this one took me up short and launched a new line of inquiry for me. He said something to the effect that Words were originally magic spells, that's why they're spelled Hey, even a broken clock is right twice a day, and even somebody who says a lot of ridiculous things also spits a lot of truth. I know...
  11. Questions and Statements

    We are born asking questions. My mother likes to tell the story of newborn me being placed in her arms for the very first time. The memory is engraved in her heart and in her mind, such a strong impression it made. The little bundle I was looked her right in the eye, asking, “Well, you’ve got me now. What are you going to do with me?” And ever since, I have been asking, “What does this mean?” Where do questions come from? A need to know and understand. Curiosity, surely. Riddle me this,...
  12. Decaying Mind

    Sometimes it feels like my mind is slipping. Too many universes to keep track of. Or perhaps my psychosis sickness is making itself heard... not literally. I just feel so stupid at times. Like my mind is really decaying. I recently comissioned two artists for illustrations outside their expertise. It only occurred to me to search for the right artists after I had comissioned the first two. What the hell, mind? What the hell is going on? Years ago, I would not have made that mistake. I seem...
  13. Visual Thinking

    I discovered Dr. Temple Grandin, who is an extremely visual thinker. She brings up some fascinating things in this video: I still haven't followed up on my earlier post about visual thinking, and I always intended to. This is getting me fired up about it again. I don't have the powerfully vivid imagery she seems to have, but I do get some visuals, and I can work with them in my mind, change them at will etc. I definitely do some of my thinking this way, probably especially when I'm drawing...
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