The whole idea of conspiracy theories has been around for a long time, but they didn’t really capture the public imagination until the rise of the internet and the mainstream popularity of shows like The X-Files. Since then, conspiracy theories have become a firm part of mainstream culture, with every man and his dog having
Exoskeleton was published in 2012, but I only came across it recently when I saw an advert for it in my Facebook newsfeed. There was a quote from a reviewer on the ad that said, “This book left a stain on my soul.” Naturally, being drawn to all things dark and sinister, I decided I
Life sucks. There is no getting away from that fact. Maybe not all the time, but a lot of the time, life sucks big fat donkey balls. That’s a statement you won’t come across too often in these days of self help and positive thinking. To those who advocate brainwashing as a means to a
I’ve never really been one for writing down ideas in notebooks. I have tried to do so in the past, but I never maintained the practice. I couldn’t stop myself from thinking that it was a waste of time. In the brief periods where I have recorded some of my ideas, I found little benefit
The other day I came across a quote by Jim Rohn that reminded me of something profoundly important, something that I had let myself forget, and because of that, I am now suffering the consequences. The quote I’m talking about is this one: Your level of success will rarely exceed your level of personal development,
It really annoys the shit out of me when I find out that one of my favorite TV shows has been cancelled. It has happened a lot lately. Constantine was axed, even though it fucking rocked. I also hear that Banshee is being axed after the upcoming season. Then there was The Following (WTF!). And
Sometimes I dread reading a review of my work for fear of what it might contain. No one likes to have their work torn to shreds by a reviewer who had a problem with, or blatantly hated, what you had to offer. Probably the most painful reviews to read are those that are the most
As a writer, I am more productive now than I have ever been in the past. The reason why I am so productive these days is because I have learned to focus. Staying focused is a daily battle for me, as it is with most people. At any minute of the day, there are always
Continuing on with this series about some of my non-literary influences, I would like to talk about someone who was a profound influence on me at one time, and that is Bill Hicks. I say one time because as I explained in the last post, I try not to get too influenced by anything or
In a quest to explore some of the things that have influenced me as a writer over the years–things other than books–I have decided to do a series of posts on some of those influences. Books are only part of the story when it comes to the things that have influenced me as a writer