“I SAW THE SASQUATCH”

“A large silhouetted figure descended from the ridge where the McBride fire was still raging. He was maybe two hundred yards away. I prepared to shout at him, to ask if he was okay. A handful of geese shrieked and flew overhead. The strange man looked up at them, and I saw the light hit his face and illuminate it for the first time. That’s when I saw who he was. What he was.” …more

• Judgment in Writing (May 3, 2019) – Removing judgments from our writing in order to let the story stand on its own

• The Incredible Winking Prose (Apr 23, 2019) – Writing in a way that seems to regard and comfort the reader

• Writing About Real People (Mar 26, 2019) – How do we write about people in our lives, knowing that they very well might read our words?

• Start With What is in Front of You (Dec 3, 2018) – Beginning by acknowledging and engaging with what is already on your mind

• How is a Raven like a Writing Desk? (Oct 19, 2018) – An exercise in building empathy, finding the connections between everything

"Lessons from Fighting The Black Snake at Standing Rock"

from Medium.com - November 22, 2016

"The Black Snake is why everyone is camping in ever-colder temperatures on the Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota. It is a reference to an old Lakota prophecy of an evil serpent that will crawl through the Great Plains. If it is allowed to win, the prophecy goes, we will have violated our bond with the earth too much, and the Black Snake will eat us all up, causing the end of the world." ...more

Now available in book form from Middle Creek Publishing. All proceeds go to Oceti Sakowin.

Other Writing

• "You Don't Understand Detroit" Satellite Press Transmission 3.16.15

• "The Birth of the Drum Set" Smithsonian Folkways Magazine 3.15.15

• "Book Notes" Largehearted Boy 2.27.15

• "Let Me Show You How To Love This: 'Green Arrow' by Yo La Tengo" Vol. 1 Brooklyn 1.13.15

"Wrestling with the Republican Convention"

from Portland Mercury - July 27, 2016

"You don't get any closer to understanding the appeal of Donald Trump by looking at his policies or listening to his speeches. Smarter people than I have been driven to depression by trying to sort out the reasoning behind his popularity. I went to Cleveland last week for the Republican National Convention just to be near such an odd and crucial moment in history, to sail into the heart of the lonely storm and all that." ...more