Good News! Pindelyboz has decided to publish my story, "Halfway Down The Hole," in an upcoming issue. This is a big moment for me, since this will be the first published story that isn't a fairytale retelling. It's also a very personal story, the only story I've written (so far) about the most tragic events in my life: the death of my stepfather and the subsequent alienation of the family I grew up with. When I wrote it, I didn't think it lived up to the massive amounts of emotion in that sort of situation. It's a very short piece, sketching out a bunch of emotions and past events in a simple context, and so I sat on it for awhile not sure if I would even try to publish it. Revisited it months later, reading it with fresh eyes, I thought, "hey, that's pretty good. It doesn't do justice to the whole experience, but then again, it doesn't try to." So, to sum up, I'm happy. Can't wait till the story comes out (though it may be awhile).

Also, I hereby offically retract any degoratory comments I may have said about Bloc Party's Silent Alarm. I see now that it is a fucking wonderful album, possibly the best of the year. Highly recommended.