Gaming actually really helps me alot to calm down and get out of the troubling parts of my life, and to clear my mind of things that happen. It’s like you go into a different universe. Caine Stands Up from The Bully Project on Vimeo. Caine Smith’s story is one of the powerful narratives filmed […]
The Wait is Over The Knights of Badassdom Is Finally Here on February 11, 2014.
As of today, John and I have officially sent the Second Edition to our copy editor, which means we’ve entered the production phase of the publishing process. That also means we have a tentative publishing date set for mid-March. (Does it get more tentative than a non-specific time in March?) Pre-Order the Book The good […]
We on the last edits, the copy editor stands ready, and the designs are ready to go. We’re just about into the production process, which means pre-sales will be happening soon. To get ready for that, we’ve made these handle little reminder cards:
The best stories rarely make it into the final draft of a book. I’m convinced of this. In the First Edition, I wrote what I thought would be the epilogue. It was the story of Richard Garriott’s mother as she spearheaded the creation of the Leonardo’s Children Museum in Enid, Oklahoma. This wasn’t just any […]
In 2006, John and I began working on what would become the Second Edition of Dungeons & Dreamers. For a variety of reasons, it’s taken us almost 8 years to get this story finished, but it now appears as if that journey is almost complete. We’ve edited, rewritten, haggled, reported, thrown out, and rebuilt the book, […]
After years of writing, we’re down to the last few edits. We have a (mostly) completed and re-written manuscript, we have a draft out to some amazingly kind readers, we have the printing process nailed down, we have the press materials ready, and now we have the front cover (tentatively) designed. Since you’ve been popping […]
“The only way it’s ever going to change for us is if a poor person is elected president, and that isn’t going to happen.” How I See People Viewing Appalachia When elections roll around, I try to pay close attention to how people speak about Appalachia. I do that because I’m both interested in how […]
“Hello cousin Brad. Just letting you know that Dad died this morning. The last of that group of Bakers. Glad you got to visit. Love Connie.” I received the text at 9:33 pm last night as my wife and I sat on the couch watching television. I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to think […]
The difference between Bob and I was just a matter of degree. Our lives had taken on eerily similar trajectories. Yet an objective observer would have likely said my life was empirically better. The difference between my cousin and I was this: I carried a deep-seated shame that he didn’t know.
“You waking up hungover in jail is right up my alley. The rest of it sounds too academic.” That’s what Alex Heard said to me during our conversation after he finished reading my proposal. I can’t say I jumped for joy at that critique, but the conversation that followed helped me frame what I wanted […]
What is Appalachia? When I tell stories about my family and its relationship to Clay County, Kentucky and the County Seat of Manchester, people tend to think I exaggerate. You hear about poverty, feuds, grudges, anger at the government, lack of formal education, and a general desperation, but they don’t seem real.