Writing Out Loud

By On February 23, 2016

The other day Ta-Nahisi Coates tweeted about no longer being able to journal online. By journaling, I think he meant working ideas out on the fly, writing to learn, writing out loud.  As a public intellectual, everything he writes is now seen as a definitive statement, a historical utterance. in such a situation, trial and error is seen as faulty reasoning; evolution of opinion becomes hypocrisy. When you are no longer anonymous, you can never write “nothing.”

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The Life of Norman

By On February 16, 2016

I have a rather involved obsession with The Life of Norman.  It’s a little internet gem that coasts at the speed of around 1997. No pictures. Simple text. Pure community brilliance.  This sub-reddit consists of stories that feature Norman, a decidedly mediocre antihero engaging in unimportant failures.  It’s obviously Ironic in tone, but the kind that garners sympathy, not ridicule, and it’s just trivial enough to avoid the Kafka-esque vortex. Here’s an example:

Norman was grocery shopping, where he decided to buy two cans of Coke, not diet or caffeine-free, just plain Coke. He knew the sugar was bad for him but he was feeling adventurous and wanted to treat himself. “One for Saturday night, and one for Sunday night.” he thought.

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What I Learned from Writing my First Screenplay

By On February 14, 2016

I was in a funk. It was an ambitious project with an impossibly short deadline. But here’s what I learned writing my first feature screenplay. 1) Be naïve 2) Embrace Genre 3) Plan first, write second 4) Deadlines are your friend 5) Stop thinking.  Anyway, I feel pretty good about it and come what may, I know I’ll be at it again soon.  Read it here.

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Worth Watching: Tangerine

By On February 14, 2016

Tangerine movie poster

Besides the fact that this was shot on an iPhone, Tangerine directed by Sean Baker (@lilfilm) is proof that simple stories can still be intriguing, especially if they are given original, under-represented characters.   Rated R in the most R sense of the word, so be warned.

Even with a DSLR, we would have ended up having extra crew members, and I would have had to find certain lenses, which I just didn’t have the budget for. So what we did is just start looking at iPhone experiments on Vimeo, and we were very impressed by what we found. We realized that, instead of spending money on the equipment, we could put the money on screen on things like locations and having extras.

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Andy Weir Talks Publishing at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

By On December 7, 2015

Here’s a great talk by Andy Weir, author of The Martian.  He is also the author of The Egg, an awesome short story about reincarnation.

 

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All Slang is Vulgar: An Guide to 19th Century American Etiquette

By On March 2, 2015

One of the books I still have around is this treasure:  Decorum: A Practical Treatise on Etiquette and Dress (1882)

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Book Collecting in the Age of Crate & Barrel

By On February 20, 2015

I am currently without my books. We are selling our little condominium and on the advice of my realtor, I have removed my books from the shelves. I have even removed the shelves. I’d like to think that there is a Buddhist’s simplicity in the apartment now, but really it’s just empty and crude.

My collection was not impressive. I have known some very good collectors in my time, and my library of some couple hundred volumes doesn’t compare. I am neither voracious enough, nor wealthy enough to build a proper collection.

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The Sweetest Dream that Labor Knows

By On December 3, 2014

There is a rule I hold very dear when it comes to matters of work: no excuses, no explanations.  The story of how you completed something, or worse, why it is not what you hoped it would be is an indulgence.  It is dull.  The work should speak for itself.  This is a useful rule to follow during those weak moments when you feel ready to quit a project.  It is a rule for school children who are far from the master years.  But let’s put rules aside for the moment.

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Why So Serious?

By On November 10, 2014

As many are fond of pointing out, The Fool in Shakespeare’s plays is the one figure that may speak freely against authority.  While the rest of a king’s court is sycophantic, the fool’s role in court is privileged because he is honest.  We are meant to be  in awe of this fact.  After all, free speech is democracy’s most favored virtue and to see it exercised by one with so little social power pleases a modern audience. But really, this Fool is a dramatic innovation, not a political one.

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Check out my new story at Hobo Pancakes

By On June 7, 2014

I’m really psyched that “The Synchronist” found a home at the San Francisco based comedy magazine Hobo Pancakes.

Here’s an excerpt:

When a man hears his own voice from the mouth of legend, naturally he grows proud.  His chest swells.  He walks with long, slow steps across the plaza, gently slapping the day’s newspaper at his side.   When he finally reaches his favorite café (much like this one), he sits and waits for the server to take his order.  He speaks loudly so the whole café can hear him.  “The Panna Cotta,” he says.  “No, rather, the Torta di Riso.”  He watches how the patrons look up from their papers, as if a strange wind has passed over them.  They stare down the long halls of memory, unable to pinpoint the familiarity.  But then, inevitably, someone will begin to say “are you?,” and then stop themselves, for the thought is ridiculous.  It can’t be.  But then they must inquire.  “You know, you sound remarkably like that actor…the American…Kip…Kip?”

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