Jun 7Member-onlyZodiac Reading ListMy latest novel Exalted is about a cynical internet astrologer. I started writing it because I was reading birth charts online at the time, collecting all this useless knowledge and feeling like a scam artist. Like my protagonist, I was obsessed with astrology but I wasn’t sure I believed in…Astrology6 min readAstrology6 min read
Published in The Shadow·Feb 2, 2021Member-onlyInterviewing My Ex Girlfriend About Her NovelU Up? drops today — Author Catie Disabato is my ex-girlfriend. Unlike her U Up? protagonist Eve and her ex Bea, Catie and I are on good terms. We continue to exchange writing and are even in the same writing group. We were dating for most of Catie’s drafting of U Up?, and in the…Pineapple 20219 min readPineapple 20219 min read
Published in The Shadow·Feb 1, 2021Member-onlyConstitutional Law 101A lapsed lawyer breaks it down — My book Bad Lawyer drops this May. It’s about my wack experiences in law school, courthouses, and law offices. The idea is to demystify law as a revered profession. And in anticipation of its release, I’ve decided to write a series of accessible and hopefully entertaining primers on legal topics…Pineapple 20218 min readPineapple 20218 min read
Published in The Shadow·Jan 18, 2021Member-onlyTo Medicate or Not To Medicate?The great psychotropic mindfuck — I’ve always fantasized about walking into my therapist’s office, lowering my sunglasses, and announcing: “well, I’m cured!” Sometimes I feel that way, when I’m on an upswing. I’ll talk to my therapist like I’m the most neurotypical person on the planet. “Anxiety? I don’t know her!” But as preeminent anxiety…Anxiety6 min readAnxiety6 min read
Published in Human Parts·Jan 11, 2021Member-onlyDon’t Fall for the ‘Twin Flame’ TrapIt’s just woo-woo-speak for toxic codependency — Last year, I was eating a salad and watching Bravo’s Southern Charm when cast member Madison LeCroy called her on-again, off-again boyfriend Austen her “twin flame.” A piece of lettuce fell out of my mouth. I’d been reading a lot about twin flames at the time, mostly because my messy…Pineapple 20216 min readPineapple 20216 min read
Jan 4, 2021Member-onlyBad Year; Good Content2020 in review Normally these types of lists come out before the new year, but who cares about time anymore? 2020 was a weird one. A virus named for a Mexican lager ravaged planet Earth. The US government fucked up even more than usual. The chaos queen was voted out…Year In Review4 min readYear In Review4 min read
Published in Human Parts·Dec 11, 2020Member-onlyStarving Myself StraightComing to terms with my sexual anorexia — In her 2000 novel Aliens and Anorexia, Chris Kraus writes that it’s “impossible to conceive a female life that might extend outside itself.” That is, we expect women to be insular, private, shrinking. …This Is Us9 min readThis Is Us9 min read
Published in Human Parts·Aug 26, 2020Member-onlyNot That Kind of VirgoWe aren’t all the Excel-loving, clean-freaks you think we are — I’ve always been annoyed by popular conceptions of the Virgo sun sign (which generally belongs to those born between August 23 and September 22). Most distill it to the following attributes: clean, logical, persnickety, and — worst of all — Virginal. I never saw myself this way. I can be…Astrology5 min readAstrology5 min read
Published in Human Parts·May 20, 2020Member-onlyEditing Ourselves Into OblivionWhere does the real me end and the fictional one begin? — In her 2010 experimental novel, How a Person Should Be, Sheila Heti writes that “most people live their entire lives with their clothes on.” They are private and possess a natural modesty. Others, artists, she writes, cannot put their clothes on. …Writing5 min readWriting5 min read
Mar 24, 2020Member-onlyQuarantine Reading ListAmidst a nationwide quarantine, I keep seeing calls for a return to reading. LA’s Skylight Books is offering free-shipping. LitHub is providing personalized quarantine book recommendations. Book-sharing website LibraryThing is now “free to all.” …6 min read6 min read
