There are a few things that are preventing me from finishing up stories on a consistent basis: a general lack of self-discipline, toxic perfectionism, time management skills, and an inability to stick through the end of a project. As I've gotten older and learned more about how my brain works, I've realized that developing a … Continue reading (Writing) The View From 10,000 Feet
(Friday Fiction) The Only Winning Move
I keep thinking about the Br'er idea -- I think it's a potent one that could be used to explore a lot of different themes floating in my head about the black experience. I just need to drill down into it and find out where the trouble spots are; I understand not everything is going … Continue reading (Friday Fiction) The Only Winning Move
(Reviews) DisneyFest: Cars 2, Winnie the Pooh, Brave
By 2011, the fortunes of Disney and Pixar were reversing; while the former had finally scored a critical and commercial success with Tangled, the latter was navigating the second phase of its career after moving past its original stories with the final installment of the Toy Story trilogy. Disney released one movie that year -- … Continue reading (Reviews) DisneyFest: Cars 2, Winnie the Pooh, Brave
(Writing) The Anatomy of the Story
This summer I want to take the time and get really serious about my writing. That means working on it every day, reading stories from friends and colleagues as much as possible, and thinking about the aspects of my craft that I need to work on. When I asked my husband -- the accomplished writer … Continue reading (Writing) The Anatomy of the Story
(Friday Fiction) Urban Gardening
I'm currently at Biggest Little Fur Con, a furry-fandom convention in Reno, NV. One of the things this particular con is known for is its incredible attention to theme and atmosphere. In 2015, a propaganda-filled dystopian theme slowly fell apart through the weekend to reveal the theme for the following year -- the Resistance. This … Continue reading (Friday Fiction) Urban Gardening
(Writing) Professional Deficiencies
It feels like it's been an awfully long time since I've talked about writing. When the Spring semester classes for college started, that ate up most of my time and what wasn't claimed there was spent on family, work, or my social life. Then my sister passed, and life since then has been pretty full … Continue reading (Writing) Professional Deficiencies
(Personal) The Best Thing About Tragedy
Pixar's Inside Out is an amazing film, and I'll get into exactly what I think about it later. But for now I want to talk about one perfect moment of many in the movie because I keep thinking about it recently. If you haven't seen the movie, don't worry -- I won't spoil too much … Continue reading (Personal) The Best Thing About Tragedy
(Personal) Eulogy For My Sister
When I was younger, I used to make plans with my sister to run away from home all the time. We always thought that the way our mother treated us was grossly unfair, and after a particularly hard day we would pack up a few days' worth of clothes, make a couple of sandwiches, and … Continue reading (Personal) Eulogy For My Sister
Zen & The Art of Getting Shit Done
It's been a hard couple of months for me, mostly because of a few unexpected emergencies. I got into an accident at the end of February that totaled my car, and it took about a month for my insurance company to make that decision and offer me a write-off settlement. I had spent a … Continue reading Zen & The Art of Getting Shit Done
(Fandom) 2 Words
Comedians who use shocking or transgressive humor are often no strangers to controversy and criticism. Even the best of them sometimes tip over into the gratuitous, but most don't stay there very long. The transgressive nature of stand-up comedy is used by these artists as a tool, a scapel that scrapes away the flab … Continue reading (Fandom) 2 Words
From the Desk of Jakebe T. Rabbit 