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Category Archives: Essays
Observations from the Donation Center
It’s been six months since I started volunteering at the Friends of the San Francisco Library and I have to say it’s the most fun I’ve ever had not getting paid to work. Most days, I help out at the … Continue reading
On Meeting the Sloths
In the gift shop at the Aviarios Sloth Sanctuary near Cahuita, Costa Rica, an educational DVD cover reads “Sloths: Hardly a Deadly Sin!” It’s true, there is nothing sinful in the unhurried lifestyle of these jungle beasties, but they certainly … Continue reading
2009 — The Things that Really Matter
It’s easy (and fun!) to blather on about the media we consume each year, but ultimately, books and movies are seldom the defining elements of our lives. In roughly chronological order, here are my life highlights of 2009: Seeing our … Continue reading
Posted in Author Doings, Essays
4 Comments
Ball Games
I think I was in kindergarten when I first attempted juggling. Back then it was scarves, and rather than technique, success depended more on how quickly you could flail your arms. My next juggling memory dates back to annual trips … Continue reading
On Writing Sarah
A while back I wrote a post on the challenges of writing Jareth. As intimidating as it is to put new words into such an iconic character’s mouth, it’s honestly been a lot of fun. After all, Jareth is timeless. … Continue reading
Posted in Essays, Return to Labyrinth
30 Comments
A Sensible Endeavor
My obsession with Star Wars action figures probably began on Christmas 1981, or at least that holiday yielded the first photographic evidence. Looking at 4 ½ year old me, sitting by the tree with my AT-ST walker and Hoth playset, … Continue reading
Posted in Essays, Life, etc.
37 Comments
Elegy for Old Books (And the people and places that sell them)
When your parents are no longer together, and neither lives within a thousand miles of where you grew up, when your friends and family are scattered across the country, and when you haven’t spent more than a year or two … Continue reading
Posted in Essays, Life, etc., Reading
21 Comments
Skub’s Tale — The Joy of Serials
By the time I’d finished the script for the first volume of Return to Labyrinth, some of the characters had fleshed out backstories and multi-volume arcs, while other characters were, admittedly, sketchy. Moppet, for example, is developed to the point … Continue reading
Posted in Essays, Return to Labyrinth
13 Comments
On Writing Jareth
I mentioned in a recent comment that I was working on a “Jareth Chapter.” Well, on Wednesday I finished that chapter (phew!) but it still has to go through approvals (*fingers crossed*). I’m not going to comment on the specifics … Continue reading
Posted in Essays, Return to Labyrinth, Writing
86 Comments
Brick Habit: Obsession
I don’t remember my first LEGO set — it was probably from the Space or Castle lines — but in the two and half decades that followed, I’ve had an intense on-again, off-again relationship with the perfect plastic bricks. Some … Continue reading
