The Words I Needed Then

July 31st, 2023 Today is the last day of Brushfire month, which means I can shut up about it for a little while now. I tell people that I don’t write for an audience, and that is generally true; I don’t sit down and think of a target person, their age or gender or preferencesContinue reading “The Words I Needed Then”

Brushfire Release Party 2: Electric Boogaloo!

July 30th, 2023 I had a truly amazing time yesterday at the first-ever 1850 pop-up; I just want to thank every single soul who stopped by and made my day, and a special thanks to Cori and Dane for knocking their debut event in this space out of the park. Now, if you didn’t makeContinue reading “Brushfire Release Party 2: Electric Boogaloo!”

Brushfire: We Don’t Decide Who It’s For

July 27th, 2023 The best (online) conversation I ever had about my graphic novel The Weirdos was with a fellow dad who let his 13-year-old read it. (The dad and his kid shall remain nameless out of respect for our private conversation, but they are two of the coolest cats I know.) My immediate reactionContinue reading “Brushfire: We Don’t Decide Who It’s For”

Brushfire: Definitely More (Unnecessarily More) Than You Thought It Was About

July 26th, 2023 I’ve been working on Brushfire for over half a decade, and two-thirds of it is out in the wild for people to pick up and read, yet I still have a hard time explaining to people what it’s all about. I usually mention that Brushfire itself is an underground community of wildlife,Continue reading “Brushfire: Definitely More (Unnecessarily More) Than You Thought It Was About”

Faribault High School Reunion ’23

July 15th, 2023 I had a ridiculously good time with these kids last night. We had our [loudly coughs]th high school reunion, and reunions are so stupid, which is why I love reunions so much. The further away we get from who we used to be, though, the less stupid reunions get. You get remindedContinue reading “Faribault High School Reunion ’23”

Fall Out Boy in Somerset

July 14th, 2023 We could not have asked for a better day outdoors than yesterday when we sat down on the grass in Somerset to watch my absolute favorite band, Fall Out Boy. Until a thunderstorm rolled into town and asked: “You sure about that?” After three sets under beautiful weather, cold drinks in hand,Continue reading “Fall Out Boy in Somerset”

the graetness of being human

July 10th, 2023 “Every night you make somebody’s day.” I can’t easily explain why I’m still in the restaurant business after all these years. There are the reasons I keep freely between my fingers like playing cards, displaying them when people ask me to show them a magic trick. As a writer who makes veryContinue reading “the graetness of being human”

A Look @ The Brushfire: Wave 2 Collector’s Set!

July 8th, 2023 Wow, so on the first day that Brushfire: Wave 2 was out in the world, my website got the most views it’s had since… ever. Like, literally. It was the most times my website has been visited since I’ve had a website. That blows my mind and I wanted to thank everybodyContinue reading “A Look @ The Brushfire: Wave 2 Collector’s Set!”

Happy Brushfire Day!

July 4th, 2023 It’s the fourth day in July, which can only mean one thing: it’s Brushfire Day! My 11th book, Brushfire: Wave 2, is officially out now! There are several ways you can read it: 1. The best way: I have BOTH Waves, RIGHT NOW, available on my website to read FOR FREE. NoContinue reading “Happy Brushfire Day!”

Bad Brains + Bad Hearts

July 1st, 2023 The world lately has me feeling a kind of sick, and I’ve been having to remind myself of a lesson I learned early in sobriety. When I got better, my first instinct was to help everyone else get better, too. It’s not a bad instinct, but it’s a naïve one, and itContinue reading “Bad Brains + Bad Hearts”