Still Working on Life, Ten Years Later
Over ten years of blogging, I’ve changed names, designs, subjects, and selves. Looking through the old evidence reminded me why I keep returning: I’m still working on life, one realm at a time.
When a zine isn’t a zine…
I recently discovered that some of my beloved “zines” aren’t zines at all—they’re chapbooks! What began as mild embarrassment turned into a delightful realization: I’ve accidentally been running a small press. In exploring the tangled history between zines and chapbooks, I found that their difference isn’t about rules—it’s about intent, and the shared joy of making stories personal again.
Lines, Tones, and Tiny Victories: A Quick Tour of My Zine-Making Pens and Markers
Waterproof lines, velvety tones, and a few battered marker tips—here’s the candid rundown of the brush pens, cool-gray Tombows, and papers I trust (or quarantine) while cranking out zine pages.
Barking at monsters
Dogs bark at rabbits. I bark at Elementor. A funny look at creative chaos, Barkyard Security, and how overreaction might just be our default setting.
How to make a zine habit: four in and still rolling
Online zine-making seems to have gotten easier after only four issues, maybe because I’ve streamlined the process (or at least stopped reinventing the wheel each time). The idea and draft It starts with the idea. Some weeks it comes fast, other times I spend a couple of hours thinking it through. The easiest ideas show […]
The Birth of a Zine Habit
A behind-the-scenes look at creating my first illustrated Substack zine — why I made it, what I learned, and why this might be the start of a new creative habit.
Interviewing characters for my new series
Ever wondered how authors discover their characters? Join me behind the scenes as I use playful AI-powered interviews to bring Core and Nova—two hilarious, heartfelt characters—to life for my new sci-fi series, Realmspire.
My adventure writing a sci-fi murder mystery
Turning spaceships and chocolate into a murder mystery has been a wild ride—but Aliki’s adventure is just getting started.
How Storyteller Tools by M. Harold Page makes plotting addictive
Lost in the messy middle of your story? Storyteller Tools by M. Harold Page transforms planning into play. With conflict diagrams and clever QABNs, it’s like story sculpting on steroids. Fair warning: once you start, you might not want to stop plotting. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!
SoCS: Collar
Hello again! Summer is almost over. The yellow coneflowers are gone, the cornflowers are almost done. Goldenrod and morning glories are in their height, climbing the banks along the fields, and the corn is ripe. About a third of the houses I see have autumn decorations on the porch already. They remind me of my […]
#SoCS: A New Friend
I just discovered a WordPress blog by Linda G Hill with a post called “Stream of Consciousness Saturday”. I think she might have started this in March of 2014, it was the oldest post I could find although I confess I didn’t read all of the posts she’s written since then. In her own words, […]
Camp Nanowrimo and the 100 Day Project
Today I’m going to steer away from the serious art thinking that I’ve been discussing in the last few posts and switch to some fun things. We all can use some fun in our lives, right? April is almost here, which means Camp NaNoWriMo will be starting soon, as well as the 100 Day Project, […]
What to Do After NaNoWriMo
After finishing NaNoWriMo with more than 51,000 words, I found myself wondering what comes next: rest, reflection, prompts, and the strange emptiness after a creative sprint.