Art by Fredrick Nolting
Nick Mamatas inadvertently introduced me to the concept of cognitive commitments a couple of weeks ago thanks to twitter. It’s been something I haven’t been able to shake ever since. I’m paraphrasing mind you, but he explained how a lot of readers don’t gravitate towards short story collections versus novels because there are way too many cognitive commitments they have to make. Obviously, you’ll feel more confident committing your time and energy towards one book, one narrative as opposed to twelve. That’s a big ass cognitive commitment, but it helped put things in perspective for me.
I started out as a flash fiction writer and I could barely write more than 1k words in my late teens. I used to focus my energy purely on writing short stories and utilized the spray and pray method. I think D.F. Lewis and someone else may have inspired this approach to submitting fiction for me. In my 30s, I’ve turned my attention towards writing longer works of fiction, mainly novellas. I’m making more of an effort to write short stories this year, but I know people like a full course meal as opposed to an appetizer. I want to give the people something hearty & substantial while at the same time challenging myself with a larger canvas.
The Backrooms is an easy cognitive commitment for. Manageable. This dread-inducing video below is just over one minute. It’s like a nice edible and I can always find time for it. I’ve always had a hard time committing to long anime, mangas, and tv shows with a million seasons. I jumped ship on Game of Thrones after Season 5. I don’t think I ever finished Weeds, Californication or Dexter. Mind you Weeds did drop in quality so I’m not sure if that counts. In my teens, I used to read 7 book fantasy series and trilogies all of the time. Now that I’m grown and have a ton of responsibilities, I’m very selective about my cognitive commitments.
I had to stop playing videogames a long time ago because it was sucking up all of my time and I was escaping reality a bit too much for my mental health. Final Fantasy 10 really had me consumed in that world. I cried multiple times during the narrative and felt deeply connected to the character’s and their plight. Elden Ring looks tempting though. Might take a dive into that world one day.
I’m still making steady progress on Project Bullet Baby. It’s been a long time since I’ve been writing this consistently and producing this amount of words. Feels good though. Makes me feel like I’m on the right track and moving towards my goals. And if everything goes well, it’ll be on the Ghoulish Books roster next year.
I was featured on this episode of the DickHeads podcast with David Agranoff and Cora Buhlert to discuss Leigh Brackett’s great book The Big Jump. This was my first introduction to Brackett, but ole girl can write her ass off and is underrated in the canon of sci-fi writers. Really enjoyed digging into this novel and hanging out on the pod.
Currently Watching: Moon Knight & Atlanta Season 3.
Currently Reading: Third World Magicks by Mike Kleine, The Inspection by Josh Malerman, and Hunger For Death by Joshua Marsella
Currently Smoking: Packwoods DTLA OG
Somehow I forgot Westside Boogie existed. Ever since his first mixtape, Thirst 48, I knew he was here to stay. There’s a lovely amount of vulnerability and openness on display that always resonates with me. Dram knocks th the hook out of the park and Boogies becomes a westcoast minister delivering a powerful sermon in his verses. Makes me feel like you can always come back from the harshest of L’s aka losses.
Most of the time, I cringe when labels pump out an endless stream of songs after a rapper’s death, but this single by Juice WRLD deserves to be put out. It’s moody, angsty and feels heartfelt. The artist in the visualizer adds to the emotional potency of the song as he fervently paints this portrait of Juice.
“I put in work by my only.”
I stumbled on Fred Jones accidentally as I was scrolling through twitter. His music is hypnotic, weird and engrossing. He pulls you into his world and doesn’t let go. I think of him as London’s answer to Young Thug & Playboi Carti. And I’m surprised he doesn’t have bigger following quite yet. True artistry…
I hope everyone has a beautiful Solar Eclipse this weekend. And until next time…
I went through the same transition as a writer, which I think is interesting. Always focused on writing really short stories. Could barely even think about writing one longer than 1,000 words.
I'm also a big fan of novellas. They're the perfect length for most things. I'm experimenting with linking and overlapping novellas and even a sort of "choose your own adventure" structure, using a novella as the length of a choice.
I really love these!! I look forward to reading and listening to new (to me) songs! I finally feel like I’m in the know!! Thank you!