Things You’d Think Female Movie Characters Would Have Learned

…or why having key chains full to the teeth with keys and knickknacks for things no human being can possibly need for every moment of the day is really a bad idea. First things first, a disclaimer: I am talking very specifically about female characters in movies. I am not talking about real women (though […]

Book Magnet Entry #3: Null Pointer and Star Strikers by Ken McConnell

The third entry for my Book Magnet Project is in, and late (because of me). There’s a story, though: I picked up the letter containing Mr. McConnell’s magnet and bookmarks and put it into a book, where it remained for quite some time due to my mind deciding it didn’t want to memorize where I […]

Magical Realism: A Brief Definition (in the form of a rebuttal)

Over at Suite 101 they have an article about Magical Realism. While the author lists some excellent examples of the subgenre, I do think she gets one thing quite wrong: An angel walks into your local grocery story with shiny wings and a glowing halo. Everyone accepts this as a natural occurrence and doesn’t bat […]

Movie Review: The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

You’ve probably never heard of this movie. More than likely, it’s not even playing in your local movie theater. What is it? Well, for starters, it’s the last movie to feature Heath Ledger, which became a problem for the director because they hadn’t finished filming (which explains why Jude Law, Johnny Depp, and Colin Farrell […]

Suspending Disbelief While Writing Fantasy (Harder Than It Sounds)

I may have talked about this before (in passing), but I wanted to bring the subject up again, and in a little more depth. And then I’m going to ask a question. I’ve been struggling as of late with writing fantasy. While I love the genre, I can’t seem to get past the third or […]

Why I’m Glad I Was Poor When I Was A Stupid Writer

I’ve been thinking back to the good old days when I was young and unaware of my imminent demise from alcohol poisoning or a brain aneurysm. It occurred to me, in that musing, that I should be very grateful about growing up on welfare and various other degrees of poor-ness. Why? When I started really […]