Of Dice and Men: The Story of Dungeons & Dragons and the People Who Play It by David M. Ewalt My rating: 3 of 5 stars It’s wildly difficult to write a first-person account of a phenomenon. The reason: Authors-as-characters only work when they become surrogates for the reader. Too often writers inject themselves into […]
While I am happy at Ball State University, I have to give some love to my (graduate) alma mater, the University of California at Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism. All graduate programs are not created equal. Berkeley is an elite institution training (future) award-winning journalists who can tell stories across every medium. This is not […]
I believe in science, but I spend almost no time reading the academic literature where the science of my craft (journalism) has traditionally been published. I spend even less time trying to craft research that would get published in those outlets. For most normal human beings, this is not a controversial stance. As a tenure-track […]
When I first read Black Like Me in high school, I was sick to my stomach for two reason: This was the first time I experienced a hopeless despair about humanity. I wasn’t reading history (although it was set twenty years before); I was reading the now; and It felt oddly strange that it took […]
People have this romantic notion of what it must be like to be a writer. More often than not, it looks like this. Of note: the giant coffee mug, the beard, the sleeveless undershirt the clipboard, and the look of utter disdain at having a creative palette that consists of the worst tools known to man, “words.” […]
I spent 30 minutes watching this discussion between Kerry Washington and Don Cheadle this morning, and when it ended I couldn’t believe how quickly the time had gone by. In general, I avoid listening to people analyze large conceptual ideas (gender in Hollywood) because too many people fall back on well-worn cliches and show little […]
The scariest thing for a recovering addict to do is return to his life of crime. Seven years ago, I stepped away from writing. Five years ago, I stepped away from just about everything else. Thanks to some amazing friends and support from people who believe in So Far Appalachia, I guess it’s time to […]
Day 15 of the So Far Appalachia Kickstarter project, and funding has stalled at the 40% mark. The math is starting to work against the project. I don’t like to live in negative spaces. Until recently, I never considered what my life would be without writing. Now, I contemplate it every day. The truth is […]
There are no days off in 90-in-90s. While The Girl and I planned on doing an 18-mile bike trip this AM, Broad Ripple CrossFit yesterday broke our wills. There was no 7:15 wake-up. Instead, we slept until 8:30 and then hobbled around the house. We finally took out the bikes, and headed to MoJoes for […]
Maxx, the dog spent most of yesterday clinging to me and sleeping at my feet. (He spent the night cuddled up on the bed as well.) This generally means he’s really, really tired. Instead of running with him, I decided to bike to Mo’Joe Coffee House. I haven’t gotten my writing done yet, but I’ve […]
This is the second post in my series of reading and interactive environments over at Jane Friedman’s blog. I. The role of reading in American society is changing. We need look no further for evidence than research studies aggregated in books such as The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupifies Young Americans and Jeopardizes […]
A few months back, I began writing up my thoughts and research regarding reading and interactive environments over at Jane Friedman’s blog. I promise very soon Jane that I will return to that endeavor. There’s more to say and my research has been parsed now. Until then, I’m re-posting my work. I. In August 2010, […]