The Weirdos, Part V: The Wait

August 28th, 2023 Das wasn’t supposed to be a Weirdo. The Wait actually started out as a comic book about the restaurant industry, after years of people telling me that I should write about the experience, which explains its title and setting. It was a separate thing altogether, until I realized that I had writtenContinue reading “The Weirdos, Part V: The Wait”

FIGHT!

August 21st, 2023 I look like an idiot. I haven’t been on my usual bullshit lately, writing about my messy emotions or mental health, or about politics or the climate or philosophy or grief or sobriety. It’s not that I don’t think about these things anymore; they’re all I think about, the things that keepContinue reading “FIGHT!”

The Weirdos, Part II: The Sketch

August 11th, 2023 I love Abigail “Axis” Coire — aka The Sketch, though she’s never referred to by that name in Volume I — so much, for so many reasons, but one of the strongest is her complexity. The irony of this is not lost on me, because she began as a single question: “Wouldn’tContinue reading “The Weirdos, Part II: The Sketch”

Brushfire: Wave 2 Officially Sets Sail!

August 9th, 2023 I blinked and, whoa, tonight was over! I met a lady this afternoon who wondered aloud if she was meeting a future famous best-seller, and this is the part of the post where I get saccharine like cotton candy and tell the people who have been supporting me this whole time —Continue reading “Brushfire: Wave 2 Officially Sets Sail!”

“Faribault famous”

August 2nd, 2023 I did a neat thing last week and it’s out today: the Faribault Daily News published a feature on me + my life + my work! You can check it out on their website at faribault dot com and of course I have some behind-the-scenes tea for you! – Pam and IContinue reading ““Faribault famous””

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: 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”

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”

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”