"Churn" Might Actually Be a Good Thing for Streaming Services
If you've been reading a lot of coverage of the Streaming Wars [TM] lately, you've probably been hearing about the problem of "churn." Churn, we're told, is...
Revision is the Process of Going from General to Specific
Here's another half-baked essay about revision — since I'm in the middle of revising a novel right now! (If you missed it, last week's essay was also all...
Revision can be fun. No, really.
Revising a work of fiction is pure agony. This is one of the main tenets of the writer credo (or maybe just a huge meme among writers.) And yeah, it...
Some (Probably) Worthless Thoughts About Content Moderation
Here's an incredibly crappy fable: Once there was a young person of great distinction who wore the most scintillating pair of kaleidoscopic pants. We'll call...
10 Hot Takes About Star Wars
Hey, everyone. I'm reupping a piece I wrote for Star Wars Day back in 2021, because I figure most of y'all never saw it. I hope the Force is treating you...
What People Have Been Saying So Far About Promises Stronger Than Darkness!
It's been a few weeks since Promises Stronger Than Darkness came out, and I have been so chuffed about the response to this one so far. I've never written a...
What the Universal Translator Tells Us About Exploring Other Cultures
Science fiction is full of miraculous technology. You've got instantaneous teleportation across great distances, time travel, faster-than-light starships,...
Here's What I'll Do If You Buy My New Book!
Hello everyone! My novel Promises Stronger Than Darkness comes out tomorrow. It's the last, and I think the most fun, volume in my young adult trilogy that...
EVERYTHING You Need to Know Before Promises Stronger Than Darkness!
There's just one week left before the release of Promises Stronger Than Darkness, the final book in my young adult trilogy, which I've been calling...
Don't Say Characters Lack "Agency." Here's Something Talk About Instead.
There's one common term that I was pretty careful not to use in my writing advice book, Never Say You Can't Survive: "agency." As in, "characters in a story...
Here are Some of My Favorite Trans/Non-Binary Books!
Some amazing folks, led by author Sim Kern, are launching a Trans Rights Readathon starting today, to raise money for trans organizations. I meant to tweet...
The First Article I Ever Wrote About Trans Issues
I've written countless articles and essays about trans people over the past twenty or so years, including some recent ones in Teen Vogue, the San Francisco...
Writing Comic Books is HARD. Here's Why
I've heard prose authors say stuff like, "I wish I could just write comics. You just have to write some dialogue and sketch out some action, and the artist...
7 Hot Takes About Star Trek
1. The Federation is most interesting when it has an ideological foil. The original Star Trek pitted Captain Kirk against fake gods, rogue Starfleet...
J.K. Rowling and "Separating the Art from the Artist"
In case you've been living under some kind of magical rock, there's a new Harry Potter tie-in video game out now, called Hogwarts Legacy. I honestly wasn't...
I Still Loathe The Concept of "Careers"
So I used to have a rant that I spouted off sometimes, about how much I hate the idea of having a "career." Back in the day, I was lucky enough to have a day...
Everything you need to know about New Mutants: Lethal Legion!
I've always dreamed of writing superhero comics. I love how colorful and earnestly weird they are, and how well they lend themselves to a mixture action and...
Interview: Assigned Media's Evan Urquhart Explains Why We Need Trans Journalists
Lately I've been so grateful for Assigned Media (assignedmedia.org), a new outlet where journalist Evan Urquhart keeps track of transgender news, and...
Some Ideas for How to Save Short Fiction!
Hey, thanks for reading my newsletter! I don't charge any money to read Happy Dancing, but if you would like to support me, I would be super grateful if you...
I Was a Religious Icon for a Dozen Years (Part 2)
Note: You're reading the second half of this essay about singing in church choirs as an atheist... the first half came out last week, and you can scroll down...
