Akira Toriyama, creator of Dragon Ball, died early March of 2024. He was 68 years old. Those who know me well know I love Dragon Ball. I love the art style, the chaotic and wild but ultimately meaningful story-telling, and the quirky but rich cast [...]
What is Authentic Masculinity? As I suggested in my last post, I think there’s a balance to be struck between what the world expects or requires of you and what you are underneath. This means that one considers what the world expects or needs while [...]
A couple of years ago, I heard a psychologist say that fiction has been shown to improve social interaction. At first, I felt justified. This meant there was function to all those hours I’d sunk into stories. Next, I felt curious… how did fiction help [...]
Are infatuation and lust worth the loss of love? I really like Bobby Lee. He’s hilarious and likable, and earns nostalgia points since I watched him on Mad TV back when cable was a thing. Like many comedians, he’s had to reinvent himself with the [...]
“You guys are the real heroes.” Athletes say it. Politicians say it. It’s often said out of gratitude for recognition, but is it true? Are we, the everyday people, heroes? On one hand, the concept of a “hero” is generalizable to the human experience. We [...]
This is a follow-up to my last post on villainy. Check out the bigger-picture post here. Anyone honest and humble should admit that they would at least be tempted to go the route of the villain should the circumstances be right. When we acknowledge that, [...]
Breaking Bad, Joker, perhaps Infinity War… some stories just nail the psychology of “the bad guy.” Why are we so fascinated by bad guys? Why do we insist that stories have “three-dimensional” or relatable villains? Simply put, bad guys who are bad just for the [...]
Usually, "flat" = boring. But in literature, flat character arcs have every bit of meaning as those that rise or fall. I’ve been writing stories for a few years now – not necessarily finishing them, mind you, but writing them no less – and since [...]
At University, I got used to my ideas being challenged - even despised. I figured people wouldn't like my views, and had no problem with it. I was pretty old-school, Christian, and relative to the student body, conservative-leaning in some ways. What did surprise me [...]
In my last post, I discussed a few reasons why the Western world (or, perhaps the world, in general) is polarized, particularly when it comes to political beliefs and issues. More or less, a psychological switch has been turned on, making us more sensitive to [...]
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