State of the WIP Address

I’ve obliquely shared about my current WIP, through posts about protagonist change-ups, essays on world building in general, meditations where I work through some of the book’s major themes, and self-imposed deadlines (none of which I have met, but all of which have moved me closer to the end goal). Now that the end of […]

Making Good Look Good: Top 5 Non-Boring Good Guys

Last week, I introduced the idea that often, “good guys” can come across as boring. I’m not sure if this tendency is a deficiency in the way they are written (i.e., the author’s understanding of what constitutes “goodness” is shallow) or a deficiency in the way we perceive them (as in: being in mental turmoil/moral […]

Top 10 Books of 2018

When I posted my Top 10 Children’s Books before last Christmas, one of my friends asked if I had a Top 10 Books of 2018 list in the works. Of COURSE I did! Well, not at that very moment—but I thought it would be fun to develop one after the new year. Then I got […]

My Solution to Resolutions

New Year’s Resolutions have come under fire lately. My whole adult life, I’ve heard the (perhaps deserved) cynicism. While I’m generally skeptical of what culture says we should do, I do like New Year’s Resolutions. The new year is a guaranteed fresh start, an official milestone to look forward to as the beginning of something good. […]

What Fantasy Authors Can Learn from Beowulf

“If You Want to Write Fantasy, Stop Reading It.” That was the title of a post I wrote a couple years ago for Faith & Fantasy Alliance. (You can read it here now.) Despite the clickbait title, I don’t believe fantasy authors should discontinue reading fantasy: for one, it’s important to keep up with developments […]

Very Belated Thoughts: Moana

When I first saw Moana, I ranked it as typical Disney. It was better in some ways; Moana’s primary relationship is with family, not a boyfriend, which is a refreshing change, and she is athletic and does stuff. But once I saw the same old “Junior knows best” and “Follow your heart” tropes at play, […]

Things that Have Changed my Life in 2018

After my last two fairly “heavy” posts, I thought I’d follow with something fluffier—more of a personal update rather than an analytical essay (but I have some great ones coming up, let me tell ya)! Here are a few things I’m LOVING this year. Time. After a prolonged season of financial strain and working several jobs […]

Laws of Magic: Less is More

It’s counterintuitive, isn’t it, that magic—this concept that makes possibilities endless—can actually be better when you give it boundaries? Part of the lure of magic is that it’s mysterious, right? Not necessarily. The draw of fantasy for many is not only passively experiencing, but learning a new world: understanding it well enough to work out […]

The Science of Magic

One of the biggest protests to reading fantasy is, “Well, magic means anything can happen and it doesn’t have to make sense.” I’ve read books like that–I call one of them out below–and I agree. They’re problematic. People want to read books with plots that, you know, work. Magic can’t just come in and clean out […]