Leveling Up at the Game of Life, Writing, and Other Trivial Pursuits
There’s something disturbingly satisfying about turning life into a game. Slapping a shiny label on the monotonous grind of daily existence, like “gamification,” makes it all feel a bit more palatable. Setting goals becomes like gathering ridiculous little badges or leveling up in some virtual fantasy. Except in real life (IRL, if you will) instead […]
The Necessity of Play
In the early days of my literary escapades—when I still thought that tearing through classic novels like some Adderall-fueled word junkie was a good idea—I stumbled upon a rather curious theme. It seemed that every other story involving children had the poor souls trapped in a web of strict agendas, meticulously designed by adults who […]
Confessions of a Content Creation Connoisseur
Why do I subject myself to this madness of content creation? It’s simple, really. I’ve been in the trenches of creativity long enough to have accumulated a decent stockpile of experience, insight, and a few war stories to boot. But I don’t think of myself as a ‘guru’ or ‘influencer.’ Perhaps I’m more like the […]
Outlining My Childhood Dreams
As a young girl, I entertained four very different career aspirations. The first, believe it or not, was to be a mapmaker, that most ancient of professions, where one spends their days hunched over parchment, tracing coastlines and mountains with painstaking precision. I imagined charting uncharted lands and giving names to the nameless; what a […]
Warships: The High Seas of My Imagination
As a young girl, while most kids were busy obsessing over the latest toy craze or perfecting their cartwheels, I was consumed with the peculiar fascination of naval warfare. As others were pretending to be superheroes or princesses, I was imagining myself as the commander of a grand fleet, barking orders from the deck of […]
How Winnie the Pooh Surpassed Star Wars as the 3rd Highest Grossing Media Franchise
In a plot twist more unexpected than Jar Jar Binks’ continued existence, Winnie the Pooh has quietly slathered honey all over the ambitions of the Star Wars franchise, emerging as the third highest-grossing media empire. Yes, you heard it right. That honey-obsessed bear, who can barely put on a pair of pants, has outperformed lightsaber-wielding […]
If You Blog, Will They Still Show Up?
I grew up in the golden age of blogging, that glorious time when you could scribble a few thoughts on the internet, hit ‘publish,’ and suddenly find yourself the authority on just about anything you please. Yeah, I remember those days fondly. Back then, the most intense competition was between you and that one overly […]
Creativity, Genius, and the Nature of Understanding
I’ve been labeled a “genius” by various well-meaning folks over the years. Some of them even dared to slap on the more flattering “creative genius” tag. I suppose I should be flattered, but honestly, I’ve always found it a bit bewildering. Maybe it’s my tragic flaw, but I just don’t see it. Sure, I’ve got […]
What It Takes to Be an Essayist, According to E.B. White
Writing is a shape-shifting beast. You can be “good” at it in a dozen different forms and still feel like you’re chasing your own tail. For years, I fancied myself the next great novelist — imagining a future where my name graced the bestsellers list, sandwiched between the latest dystopian romance and whatever Stephen King […]