Today’s title brought to you by “I have no idea what to call this, so I’ll quote Vacation and hope for the best.”
Back in the old days, when bloggers wanted to post about something, but didn’t have a story to tell, we would do these posts on our blogs that linked to people and stories we thought were interesting. The comments of those particular posts always filled up with cool links of their own, and it’s how we built our communities. “Hey, check this out,” seems to have migrated over to social media, so it feels a little … vestigial? … to do one of those posts, but I want to post something, and the story I’m working on isn’t ready, so. I wanted to share two things I am doing, and then some music and books I’ve been loving.
First off, I had so much fun doing Wil Wheatcon earlier this year, the instant we finished, I asked Momentus and Stands if we could do another one, so I am thrilled to announce the upcoming WIL WHEATCON 2: 2WHEAT 2CON on September 19th. Here’s a video we made to promote and celebrate:
Speaking of me, this weekend I will be appearing for a pair of events at MOPOP in Seattle. On Saturday, I’m joining the museum for its celebration of 60 years of Star Trek. In the afternoon, we’ll be watching an episode of TNG together with a live running commentary from this guy. I’m going to let the audience choose if they want the funny experience of watching Justice, or the more thoughtful, reflective experience of watching Final Mission. Either way, it’s going to be really special for me. Then, Saturday evening, I’ll be part of their Supper Series, featuring a discussion and oral history of my experiences on Next Generation and beyond.
I think there are still some tickets left, if any of that sounds like something you’d enjoy.
Okay, let’s get into the music of it.
A little over a year ago, I stumbled across this phenomenal band from Mexico called The Warning. It’s three sisters from Monterey, who loved playing Rock Band together so much, they formed a real band when they were teenagers. They are so good, their fans crowdfunded their first albums and tours, and I discovered them right as they were breaking out with their incredible album, Keep Me Fed. They are difficult to pin into a single genre; I’ve heard them do punk, metal, hard rock, pop, and collabs with artists I never would have sought out on my own.
I am weirdly invested in their success, same way I am with The Linda Lindas, wanting this group of young women to have everything they ever wanted. I love them so much, I paid way too much for a scalped ticket to see them open for someone I didn’t know about, or stayed to see, when they played at the Greek earlier this year. I love them so much, I will go and pay three scalpers too much to see them three nights in a row when they are back in town later this month.
Their new album, Everything’s Falling, just dropped, and it’s such a gorgeous work of art. If you like the music I like, and you haven’t heard them before now, start with More, from Keep Me Fed, then Kerosene from the new album. If it lands on you, you’re going to have a really good time.
Speaking of The Linda Lindas, they also have a new record out that is blowing me away. GOTTA GET OUT continues the journey they began with No Obligation. I still believe they are The Go-Gos of the 21st century, and I’m waiting for the music industry to notice. If you live in or around Los Angeles, they play local shows all the time for as low as five bucks. Their punk spirit is infectious, and their live show is outstanding.
Oh! And Sincere Engineer, a punk band out of Chicago who are on tour right now, have a new album out called Probable Claws. It’s straight bangers start to finish, but I’m going to direct you to the song LOL, because Deanna invited me to contribute to it in the most Henry Rollins way I could. Can you believe that? I’M ON A PUNK RECORD!
Also: Die Spitz, Amyl and the Sniffers, Lambrini Girls, and Bad Cop/Bad Cop continue to fill my daily playlists with great music.
Books!
I’ve been reading and reading and then reading some more when I’m finished reading. Most of this is reviewing and preparing stories for It’s Storytime With Wil Wheaton, which has been leading me to pick up novels and collections from those authors.
Real quick: you may have heard me talk about the North Star for the podcast. Here’s how I put it in my Brief History for Uncanny:
The North Star is a concept I developed during TableTop. When faced with an editorial or content choice, we asked ourselves if we were aiming at the North Star. For TableTop, the North Star was Create More Gamers. For It’s Storytime, the North Star is celebrate art and artists, promote literacy, and create space for people to have a break from the ongoing horrors.
When I was at World Con this past weekend, I met a couple of the authors who I have narrated. These are authors I didn’t know about before I narrated them, who are all now on my list of “I will read anything they write.” I had hoped to put authors onto the radars of their biggest fans, who just don’t yet know about their work … without considering that I, too, would become one of those fans. These authors shared with me that a lot of you have become fans of their work, and it’s positively affecting their careers. It was so reassuring to me, to hear from them that we are perfectly aimed at our North Star.
So after I narrated his short story, A Grey Magic, I’ve become a Ray Nayler superfan, and I am just loving his new novel, Palaces of the Crow. I loved Maria Dong so much, I picked up her newest, Aviary. I grabbed Lavie Tidhar‘s The Circumference of the World when I was at World Con. I could go on and on, but you get it, right?
I decided to do a Summer Reading Program with my library, and I’m proud to be on a 62-day streak. Some of the books I finished and loved on my way to earning a personal pan pizza include Foundling Fathers, from Meg Ellison, Earth 7, from Deb Olin Unferth, The Language of Liars from S. L. Huang, Your Behavior Will Be Monitored, by Justin Feinstein, and The Ship of Death, by Kyle Winkler.
Also, I got to read an advance copy of John Scalzi’s upcoming novel, Monsters of Ohio, which was as John Scalzi as I hoped it would be.
I read more than one thing at a time, and I am currently loving Cleopatra, by Saara El-Arifi, Jane Wiedlin’s memoir, TMI, Memoirs of a Go-Go, and I just started Sublimation by Isabel J. Kim.
I think I’ve talked about this a little bit on the podcast and in promotion, but just in case I haven’t mentioned it here: Around ten years ago, I woke up one day without the ability to relax and focus while I read a book, or a short story, or a magazine article, or anything longer than a few paragraphs. I tried and tried to overcome it, but it always eluded me.
A good friend of mine, who is one of the smartest people I know, observed that I was not alone; this had happened to them and a lot of people we both knew. My friend suggested that it was feeling overwhelmed by the horrors inflicted upon us by that fucking peophile rapist war criminal, the trauma of the pandemic, and the two of those things colliding with absolutely devastating results. My friend said they just felt like their brain was full, all the time.
The horrors have gotten worse, not better, so what happened to help me find the space, the focus, the time, and the motivation to rediscover the kid I used to be, who always had his face in a book? I can’t point to one thing, only, but I know all the EMDR and IFS therapy I’ve done to heal and recover from CPTSD has helped a ton. I know that having the responsibility and accountability of reviewing stories to narrate for my podcast has helped a ton. I know that making a choice to wander into the pages of a story and stay there so I can experience it fully has been a challenge, that has also helped a ton.
I want to share something that made a huge difference for me, in case someone else who loves to read has been struggling like I did. I have this app that was developed by Hank Green, called Focus Friend. Basically, you tell it to set a timer for you, and then you focus on an activity until the timer expires. While the timer is doing its thing, you get a little avatar who knits socks and scarves that you cash in to decorate the little house they live in. It’s low-stress, non-judgmental, extremely satisfying gamifying, and allowed me to create time specifically to read.
Your mileage will vary, but I started with 15 minutes, then 30 minutes, then 60 minutes. I found that 30 minutes is a perfect amount of time. It’s not so long I feel like I’ve overcommitted, but it’s long enough to enjoy a bunch of pages. More often than not, when it tells me my time is up, I add another 10 or 20 minutes, so I can finish the chapter or section I’m reading.
Oh, hey, this is a perfect place to put this! I have a partnership with Blackstone Publishing, who are sponsoring my podcast. I curated a collection of titles they publish, across a wide range of styles, from Lit RPG to Weird Fiction to Epic Fantasy. You can explore the entire Wil Wheaton Recommends collection right here. One of the titles, Acts of God, is in my top ten at the moment. I love the author’s voice so much, I asked them if they had anything that fit the format for It’s Storytime, and they sent me The Council, which I loved so much I bought it from them immediately. If you haven’t heard it, now you know.
I’ve noticed that all this reading has been extremely good for my mental health. I’m choosing to be still, to be quiet, to allow my imagination to paint and hear the words. I’m finding little bursts of artistic inspiration in entirely unexpected places, because my imagination is ravenous at the moment. Creating space and doing the work I needed to do in order to feed it has not been easy. It hasn’t been anything remotely resembling the concept of “easy”. But I remember telling my boys, “everything worth doing is hard, and that’s why is worth doing.” A little tautological, sure, but whenever something gets really hard, I remember that, and it helps me push through it.
I guess what I’m saying in more words than I needed to is that I believe, based on my personal experience, that reading books is extremely important, and if more people read more books, our world would be a measurably better place.
Lastly, I wanted to talk about some of the video games that are giving me joy right now.
I absolutely love Fallout 76. I’ve been playing for almost two years, I’m a level 580 ghoul and I have built the maximum number of CAMPs available. Every night, I spend about an hour doing dailies and wandering the Wasteland, helping players the way I was helped, and enjoying the escape and serenity of fighting Deathclaws and Scorched. It’s one of those things I can talk about for hours, in a level of detail that would make even a casual player’s eyes glaze over. I won’t do that, today. I will exercise restraint and just tell you that after about 50 superb bait over fucking months of failure, I finally caught a local legend. I can solo a nuke silo without glitching in about 15 minutes, and I have probably dumped ten million rounds into Earle. This season didn’t have great rewards, but next season looks like fun.
I don’t remember how I found Ball X Pit, but it’s a supremely fun roguelike that my kids and I are currently trying to 100%. I am also incredibly late to the party on Undertale, which feels and plays like a game Double Fine designed for the NES in 1989. It’s on all platforms.
Okay, I know there’s more I could share today, (I haven’t mentioned any of the tabletop games I’m currently playing) but I have a meeting in fifteen minutes and I’ve been blogging since I woke up, so I need to eat breakfast.
What are you into these days? I’d love to hear what you’re reading or playing.
I’m Wil and I write this blog. I’m so glad you’re here. I host It’s Storytime With Wil Wheaton and co-host the official companion podcast for Stuart Fails To Save The Universe. If you’d like to get my posts delivered to you, here’s the thingy:
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I just finished Acts of God (as in I finished it about 15 minutes ago) which I picked up after you did The Council on the podcast. That has got to be the weirdest, most absurd, most surreal book I have read in a very long time and I loved every minute of it. So thank you for that. 🙂
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Kanan Gill has quickly become one of my favorites. I can’t wait to read more from him.
I love reading your updates, Wil!
I’m really frustrated that I already have an event I have to go to on Saturday night. Please come back to Seattle soon!!
I’ve recently started learning pottery using the wheel, and have found it really helps soothe my mind. I’m no good at it yet, but it’s still fabulous.
I’m also re-reading Sarah J. Mass books since she has some new ones coming out and I want to refresh my memory.
We seem to have a big overlap in musical tastes and I just found out about Panic Shack, a Welsh punk band that’s mostly women and had their self-titled album come out last year, you should check them out (they did a KEXP set).
Ohhhh thank you!
Well, you asked, so be warned.
If we weren’t celebrating our 26th anniversary this weekend with massive steaks and wine and such, we’d probably have gotten tickets to MoPop. Hope you have a great time!
Reading…I’m about 1/2 way through Connie Willis’s To Say Nothing of the Dog (I jumped right into that one after finishing Doomsday Book). I don’t know how I missed those two all these years. I’m also reading Erik Larson’s The Demon of Unrest (about the attack on Fort Sumter / start of the Civil War); I’ll read for a bit, get pissed at what a-holes the people of Charleston in particular were, and have to set it aside for a while. Queued up after Connie Willis is Sagan’s The Demon Haunted World.
Talking about Roguelikes, I just started another Zangband (an expanded offshoot of Rogue, Moria, iMoria with a Chronicles of Amber bent) character, and am taking another go at Portal 2.
Oh, and I’m eagerly waiting Scalzi’s next audiobook.
Larson is so great. I loved The Devil in the White City.
So excited to come to your second Wheatcon!! always love hearing about the things you’re interested in, I’ve found a lot of good recommendations from them, but I also just love seeing other creators enjoy what they’ve created and find joy in things other people have created too. Just some fun little moments I got from your post: I also just finished Acts of God and it was such a wacky story, but I immediately saw why you would like it and I just have such a fond spot in my heart for people that enjoy that kind of humor and weirdness in life. Also, I have never played Ball X Pit but I know it because I listen to the soundtrack all the time, I love instrumental and electronic music and the whole album totally slaps XD Hope you’ve been having a wonderful week and find many more things that bring you joy and whimsy ✨
During COVID I fell into the bottomless pit that is Web Fiction. Lots of fanfics. Even wrote a couple of unpublishable (but loved) novels in the ST:TNG universe.
I avoided LitRPG because I’m not a gamer (well, not since the original Castle Wolfenstein). Then a friend sent me a link to a LitRPG story by RavensDagger, and I fell into the deep end.
I’ve been following the tree of referrals (across genres) authors give each other on sites like Space Battles, RoyalRoad, ScribbleHub, and more. I’m presently reading at least a dozen novels that are being actively updated, which is a first for me, as I usually prefer to read only completed works. I recommend jumping in anywhere, give an author at least 10 chapters before making any judgements.
Around mid-COVID I, too, started living in the “Short Attention Span Theater”, unable to focus (cost me my engineering job), combined with an extremely worrying level of forgetfulness (that scared me enough to get screened for dementia). As I started reading more stories in parallel, I gradually became better able to remember the plots where I left off, no longer needing to re-read prior chapters to recall the context.
Have no clue about cause and effect here, but I sure like where my brain is now!
I haven’t been listening to anything extra interesting, but I just ordered Terry Brooks’ new novel (actually, it’s by Delilah Dawson – Terry Brooks is retiring!) called Brona. I’ve also been getting back into the swing of things with scale modeling. I was really into it for awhile, and life started to get in the way, but now I’m kinda jumping back in the saddle. I just finished a Millennium Falcon (which turned out good!), and I’m hip deep in the Discovery USS Enterprise. I also have a 3rd (!) 1/350 Enterprise Refit on the bench. Those things are hard as hell to build but turn out hella impressive.
I used to geek out enough about modeling to actually show my builds on my youtube channel, and I’m trying to get back into it. It’s at http://www.youtube.com/@mattsmodelshop. And yes, I’ve built a couple of Enterprise D’s. Showing these things off helps with my imposter’s syndrome some – people think my stuff doesn’t suck, so I try to believe them!
One way I’ve combatted the inability to concentrate on reading is by checking out library books. “Oh, I have to finish this book in 14 days? Challenge accepted!” I’ve been reading the October Daye series by Seanan Maguire. The early books are old enough that they are not in super high demand so I can pretty much go from one book to another. Currently, I also checked out the audio version of Adam Savage’s “Every Tool is a Hammer” from the library. It’s been super fun listening to Adam read it.
I recently finished playing Spiderman 2. It only took a couple of weeks to playthrough. Why aren’t these games longer? They are so much fun!
Thank you for sharing your struggles Wil, and I’m sorry that you’re having them. Your story was a small part of my desire to stop drinking. So I hope in another lives-that-rhyme way I can take your suggestion to cultivate focus and get back to reading!
I’m glad to know I’m not the only one that reads multiple books at a time! Will definitely try out Focus Friend 🧡
Currently reading the A Court of Thorns and Roses series (not normally my preferred genre but I’m happy I’ve given it a try) and currently playing Ball X Pit, Hades 2, and the deeply weird Date Everything.
Have you ever listened to Castle Rat? They’ve got a similar vibe to Die Spitz. If you haven’t checked them out yet, I would recommend starting with the video for “WIZARD”. They’ve got a few other really fun videos, and their KEXP set is pretty great, too.
Hi Wil!
Currently I’m reading the comic adaptation of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep and I’m trying to finish up trophies for Deadpool on the PS3. Glad you’re keeping so busy and also making time for your squishy brain to relax!
I’ve been playing Planet Crafter lately. It’s similar to Astroneer, Subnautica, and Satisfactory which I loved.
I go to the open mic at The Skylark Cafe in West Seattle every Wednesday. It’s kind of become my primary social circle. Their instagram has performances with a lot of upcoming artists. You might dig some of them.
One of the highlights is a guy named B!ngo. His song “Octopus” is a banger. Google search will take you to the song on Spotify.
My wife got me a ticket to the Star Trek thing for my birthday. I hope I’ll have a chance to say hi. It’s been about 15 years since I’ve seen you in person.
I got a DVD player looking at cool Star Track stuff. theres one part when Picard the grounds keeper are talking about that he’s the same age as Picard when Picard was in the Academy .LOOK at your after track With Jonathan Franks do the conversations sound the same? Beth Frame
Goodness but you’ve been busy! Interesting timing; Michelle Hurd was on Brent & Jonny’s podcast and talked about the issues she had with focus. I have to admit, her solution was interesting. Sadly, the authors I frequent aren’t due to release their newest books until later this month or in October…I’ve been rereading a lot!
reading is a loaded question. Im also the type to read a bunch of stuff at once but I really need to buckle down and at least focus on a few. Just started Book Six of Dungeon Crawler Carl, which is the main read. Nine Goblins by T. Kingfisher just became available on Libby, so I hope to start that soon, along with Eye of the World (why have i not finished that yet, cmon sandie). I also have decided to reread Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy after one of my discords had a fun little quote exchange session and I found myself alarmingly drawing blanks on lines that should have been right there. And then theres…uh….several other things i have laying around that ill read for a bit if theyre in arms reach.
wrote down your music recs, because i really need to expand mine away from all the instrumental/soundtracks and 90s stuff that currently takes up my YTM time.
Im finally starting the process for getting treatment for ADHD. Maybe that’ll take care of some of my executive dysfunction issues (i guess) that keep me from actually pursuing some of the stuff Ive had interest in but just…haven’t gotten around to.
I think you might like the band Rat Salad, Aussie pub punk, similar to Amyl.
Have you read much Chuck Wendig? Love his stuff, and his new book The Calamities has just come out, I’ll be reading it as soon as I can get my hands on a copy.
+1 for anything Chuck Wendig writes (I haven’t read his erotica yet because there’s so much! but I bet it’s just as well done as his other stuff). He’s one of very few authors where I just order the book in physical format the instant it comes out because I KNOW I’m going to want to keep a copy sitting on my bookshelves.
I can also highly recommend the audiobook of “It’s Not a Cult”, written and performed by Joey Batey. Most people will know that this is the actor who played Jaskier in the Witcher series, but I hadn’t twigged until halfway through when I looked him up. It’s a funny, disturbing, brilliantly observed and beautifully written book set in the north-east of England, and one that’s going to stay with me for a long time. In fact, another that deserves to be bought in paper form too.
Wil, you’ve helped me once again. I’ve had the focus issue lately, too, and it’s nice to know I’m not alone and what I can try to make things better. Thank you!
Lately, I’ve been into “Stuart Fails to Save the Universe” and “Ted Lasso,” as well as “Heartstrings” (based on Dolly Parton’s songs). I just got hold of Dolly’s book “Dreamer,” and I’m going to try some two-person DnD with my husband (cuz he loves it, but I’m new to playing–wish me luck!). We tried the Hive game the other week on your recommendation, and I loved it! So thanks for that too. 🙂
P.S. I heard that at WorldCon, you got kicked out of the room by a talking cat. Which, frankly, is kind of awesome.
Alright, I’m gonna do this as a list, or it’ll end up being longer than your post. (Am I the only person on this planet who didn’t suffer through the pandemic for even a second because my life didn’t change at all?)
💜𝐓𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐨𝐩: 𝐘𝐄𝐄𝐄𝐒, 𝐓𝐀𝐁𝐋𝐄𝐓𝐎𝐏 𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐒!! I FINALLY found a place to play D&D after almost 3 decades! I already have my first set of dice! And my first character is a Wood Elf Archfey. The craziest thing is how life aligns: the shop where I play is represented by a white rat, and when I told the DM that I was taking pictures of the game to post on your Threads and show you, he told me he plays STO with you, but he wouldn’t tell me your character’s name. Destiny is wild. Once I finish making my bag for my new dice, I’ll post the picture on your Threads so you can see it, I’m sure you’ll love it.
💜𝐌𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐜: The typical soundtracks I like (Disney, epic, Celtic, tribal, indigenous, TITANIC! I LOVE that soundtrack!!) Evanescence, always liked them, same with the old albums by Rata Blanca, especially Magos, Espadas y Rosas, which were SO heavy on all the magical and medieval stuff.
How could I forget Walter Giardino Temple’s album, ugh, my all-time FAVORITE! So mystical, incredible lyrics—check out “El club de las almas perdidas,” it’s a song I think you’d relate to just as much as I do.
Then I added a band you like, Sincere Engineer. I figured I’d ONLY be into “LOL,” but I ended up adding a bunch of their tracks to my Spotify.
💜𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬: Well, right now I’m reading Asimov’s I, Robot, though I have three more books on my list. I’m also still doing my scientific research—well, research that someone else already did and I just need to learn it. I love doing that kind of stuff, and you’d be amazed by how much you can learn with just a minimum of curiosity.
💜𝐕𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐨 𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬: I could sit here writing for a century and never finish. Every free game on Steam gets downloaded, every game I find online gets downloaded, and right now I’m playing Champions of Regnum, which I’ve been playing for 17 years. As for Star Trek Online, I had to start all over again because my character bugged out, I got mad, deleted it, and started fresh, and I think I found a good fleet to help me out. Undertale, I’m just getting started, but the overwhelmingly positive reviews on Steam are motivating me to play it, plus I found a patch to put it in Spanish.
So many, many people recommended Fallout 76 to me that I ended up buying it, but I haven’t been able to dedicate any time to it yet. (I’ll keep an eye out just in case I run into a level 580 ghoul, haha.)
I could keep going, but you have a lot to read, and I don’t even know if you’ll ever get around to reading this.
A big hug, Wil, and thanks for sharing this with us. 💜
⊹₊˚‧︵‿₊୨⋆.˚🦋༘⋆୧₊‿︵‧˚₊⊹
Boy do I wish I lived in Seattle, and not the opposite side of the Atlantic! I would love to hear your commentary on some classic ST:TNG episodes. If you ever get bored and want a new Patreon, I’d pay good money to hear your commentary and BTS of old eps, like on The Office rewatch podcast!
I absolutely love this type of post because I get great ideas for stuff to check out.
Watching: Battlestar Galactica, the reboot. For some reason I never watched it when it was on and I decided that needed to be rectified. I’m enjoying it. Your post about Wizard Wil reminded me that I need to check out SFTSTU.
Reading: Carrion Children by Tyler Brines. It’s really good.
Listening to: I just caught the Descendents and Social D on the opening night of their tour so I’ve been running through their catalogs. They both still sound great and I’m so happy Mike kicked cancer’s ass.
Wil, you’ve helped me once again. I’ve had the focus issue lately, too, and it’s nice to know I’m not alone and what I can try to make things better. Thank you!
Lately, I’ve been into “Stuart Fails to Save the Universe” and “Ted Lasso,” as well as “Heartstrings” (based on Dolly Parton’s songs). I just got hold of Dolly’s book “Dreamer,” and I’m going to try some two-person DnD with my husband (cuz he loves it, but I’m new to playing–wish me luck!). We tried the Hive game the other week on your recommendation, and I loved it! So thanks for that too. 🙂
P.S. I heard that at WorldCon, you got kicked out of the room by a talking cat. Which, frankly, is kind of awesome.
You and I have talked several times over the years about EMDR and how the CPTSD still gets us. Have you made your way to Jennette McCurdy’s autobiography yet? It’s been out a few years, but it took me a while to get the gumption to read it. As someone with very similar childhood trauma, it’s a fascinating book.
I have her book, but I haven’t been able to get into it. Every time I reach for it, my body screams I AM NOT READY FOR THIS.
Loved reading some of your recommended books! I’ve been reading some of my old books by R.A. Lafferty. He has a delightfully bizarre way of telling a story. 😀
I’m obsessed with the band Brigitte Calls Me Baby. They have a very emo 80s sound and their lead singer Wes Leavins is fantastic. On the first album he sounded a lot like Morrissey, Elvis, and Roy Orbison, which is why I got hooked, but now he’s developed his own sound.
I love Stuart Fails to Save The Universe. I have a very weak connection to the Big Bang Theory universe – a long time ago I worked for a software company founded by Bill Prady and the real Howard Wolowitz.
I always love reading your blogs and pretty much anything you’ve ever written that you publish. (And I love your podcast). You’re a fantastic writer and narrator, so thank you for making the world a more beautiful place.
If you have not read it yet, I highly recommend the book (and series) “Dungeon Crawler Carl“ by Matt Dinniman. It has a gaming aspect to the story that I think you’ll love. The audiobook version has an amazing narration by Jeff Hays. For a second, he had me going because his “New Achievement“ voice sounds like you. (I had to double check that it was not you). Anyways, happy reading, happy writing, and happy narrating!
I have been down a Dark Tower rabbit hole this year. I’d been itching for a reread, and the timing turned out serendipitous. Not long after I started, Stephen King announced a third Talisman book, and that series is Dark Tower adjacent. I’m about halfway through The Talisman and have until Oct. 6 to get Black House read before Other Worlds Than These drops. (Happy birthday two days early to me!)
I would love to experience Wolves of the Calla for the first time again.
Very similar taste in music and live tracking your recommendations. Might see you at the Thursday night show of the Warning. Can’t try for all 3 night as we’re seeing Bikini Kill on the Wednesday night.
Currently reading It starts with anger. Got turned on to James Spooner at the screening of Afropunk at the skirball. Next up is The Disappearers by Marlon James.
Naomi Alderman (amazing novelist… The Future is one of those books I can’t stop thinking about!) has started a “couch to 5k” but for reading on her Subatack “whatever works”. Highly recommend!
What an auspicious post to come across, just as I’ve converted one of our rooms to a library and set up Navidrome to self-host our music library for streaming! I was just thinking of looking into some punk or riot grrl music to add to the collection.
I’ve been reading through European Travel for the Monstrous Gentlewoman by Theodora Goes [Book #2 of her Athena Club series] and the printed volumes of the Boyfriends web comic. I also picked up A Rogue Thorn, a novel about the Hex Girls from Scooby-Doo.
I’ve been playing a lot of Pokopia this summer, but switching to the new Starfox game, as I get closer to finishing most of the content available in the former.
Thanks for the recommendations!
I just opened Spotify to add Skating Polly to my queue, and saw that I’ve already liked songs from them. Good call!
I’m about to put on the album and give them a proper listen. Appreciate the rec!
I want to second the recommendation of Focus Friend. I had a similar experience when, as a lifelong reader, I was having a harder and harder time reading. I’d be in the middle of a chapter and my phone would go ding and then I’d look up and 20 minutes would have gone by as I hit Reddit or something. I think of Focus Friend as “Counter-dopamine programming” – I get a little hit from completing a timed session and getting some socks/scarves, and then from occasionally buying a new house decoration. I just realized I’d been using it for a year when my Pro subscription re-upped.
I still give myself time so soak in the social media, but sometimes I’ll find myself doom scrolling and I just set a Focus Friend timer and dive into my book. It may take 5-10 minutes to stop spontaneously picking up my phone (as though it had somehow dinged without me hearing it) and then I finally settle back in to reading, same as I used to.
I don’t know to what extent social media companies are making social media “addictive”, but I’ve certainly done it to myself. Focus Friend is a nice way to come back to the reading I love.
(I also second Ball x Pit, a fun take on roguelikes and . . . breakout, I guess?)
I’m about halfway through Robert Reich’s memoir, “Coming Up Short”. Listening to him read it is like downloading all of grandpa’s life lessons in 20 hours, a real comfort listen despite the subject matter. After that, maybe I’ll pick “Dungeon Crawler Carl” back up.
Watching: “Lanterns” is surprisingly good. My wife and I had no opinion of Green Lantern at all, and now we’re invested as all heck.
Playing: I need to get back on “Persona 3” before the remake of “4” comes out. Then there’s Metaphor: Re-Fantazio, and P6, and a replay of P5… I think Atlus owns my brain.
For board games: I played “Treasure Island” recently and had a lot more fun from a bluffing/deduction game than I’ve ever had.
We have similar tastes in music, I already listen to all the bands mentioned above, so I think youd like Skating Polly out of Texas. Very Veruca Salt inspired, some Hole influence in there too, but also a lot of variety in genres they touch on. They’re fronted by two step sisters who play multiple instruments and theyre brother who plays drums.
I’d recommend listening to the tracks Camelot, Classless Act, Hail Mary, Louder in Outer Space, Stop Digging… I dont actually know where to stop lol.
Id also recommend fellow Canadian punks Propaghandi and specifically their latest album At Peace.
The Subtle Art of Folding Space by John Chu is an underappreciated read — I absolutely loved it and particularly recommend the audiobook (and as always, if you use libro dot fm you can choose what indie bookstore you support instead of feeding internet retail giant). It’s about not fitting into your family, and how you can’t change physics to make the world go the way you want. Also, there’s an amazing supporting character who, when they process things, instead of creating a spreadsheet or an essay as a writeup, they manifest food. Food literally magically appears as their output. Which is why the cover is steamer baskets of dim sum.
I have listened to The Warning’s album several times since it arrived. I find myself listening to Kerosene over and over. We have also been in since the beginning and have been fortunate to see them a handful of times in smaller venues and most recently opening for Yungblud (also a mesmerizing artist) in a larger venue. I am loving that the rest of the world is discovering them now.
I love reading your blogs (I like blogs much better than social media)
I recently read take me to your leader by Neil DeGrasse Tyson wich was a fun read and The Galathea chronicles by J.J. Green wich had me at the edge of my seat the whole time.
Yes to The Warning! They’re so amazing. I’ve already listened to their new album one time over. I hope to listen again and again this weekend. 🙂
I started an Agatha Christie book. I’m really looking forward to John Scalzi’s latest. Already have the audiobook pre-ordered. 🙂
Tabletop: I’ve just started playing Star Trek: Captain’s Chair, a 1-2 player deckbuilder. I picked it up because of the theme (obvs) and player count; we just don’t have friends over as much as we’d like, plus I’m more into games than my husband so the strong solo play was enticing. It is overwhelmingly deep, layered, and well-built. I feel like I’ve barely scratched the surface after hours of play. Each game takes 1-2 hours (allegedly; my experience is more like 2-3), and that’s its major drawback, especially in a household with 3 cats. I can’t just walk away mid-game and pick it up later, I have to make sure I’ve set aside a hefty time block. I highly recommend it!
I was on a gamin lull for years and I’ve started to find easier, sometimes cozy, more chill video games to play. I tried Fallout but immediately didn’t enjoy the combat so I quit. My last obsession was Stardew Valley, I was hooked early on and loved it for months. I just played through Monster Train 2, it was tough at first but with a few “mutators” (aka, run settings) I was able to make it a bit easier and more relaxing to play. Some other games I’ve enjoyed have been Dredge (Lovecraftian fishing game), Firewatch (short story based mystery), Dome Keeper (mining plus zapping aliens).
I took a longer than usual break from books but I’m back to reading and have a bunch of books that I’ve bought and are on my list. I just bought 5 Terry Pratchett books from the Disc World series so going to give that a go. I’ve never read Dune so I have that book as well.
My son has gotten me into Path of Exile 2, which is a Diablo-like game and absolutely beautiful. I’m a big cozy game fan so still keep up with Disney Dreamlight Valley and Pokopia in spare moments.
I feel you on the struggle to read. My inability to read began with the pandemic and only rarely lets up. Part of that may be the lack of spoons left to focus at the end of a hectic work day, but I know that’s not all of it. When I can read, I find myself dipping back into favorites I haven’t read in a long time (Stephen King’s early stuff, Harlan Ellison, Dune). It’s like comfort food.
Looking forward to 2Wil2Wheatcon – I enjoyed the first one every much!
Oh, and the podcast is a joy. I’m all caught up as of today and there have been some stories you read that will stick with me for a long time. Thank you for being you, Wil!
Slippin in a callout to the Cure on LoL ::chef’s kiss::
I play mobile games, because I can play them any time. I am on level 10,183 of Homescapes, which my children make fun of me for playing because it’s “basically Candy Crush,” but it’s not. You help a butler remodel and fix up homes, and there are side quests as well.
I also re-started Viking Rise, where you create a Viking village and complete quests. It’s also really fun, and does not have any merging or “Candy Crush” elements. It’s more of an RPG, and I love it. The music is great too. Only drawback is the writing is very tiny and I have to use my reading glasses.
I used to read a lot more, but don’t have time at the moment to read much, but I am trying to work my way through David Sedaris’s “The Land and Its People.” This is very funny and easy to get through.
Thank you for sharing all your stuff! I want to look into all of it. I have definitely heard of The Linda Lindas through NPR Music.
Keep on keeping on!
Hey Wil,
Today is Saturday September 5, our 30th anniversary. We’re taking our daughter out for pizza.
Had to share that with you.
For years and years and years I have been appreciating your work. Especially your narration work. RP1 has been a guidepost for me as I do my own narration work. The way you smile when you talk is so clear. Thanks for being there.
Happy Anniversary (late)!
Agree with your assessment of The Warning. They’ll be headlining a show in Mexico City in February, in a stadium, and The Linda Lindas will be the opening band.
That inability to focus that popped up, oh, around the time the Orange Menace came into office? Sounds kinda like a case of political anxiety to me. I’m writing about it in my dissertation right now. Totally different than general anxiety and has been documented to impact health in some interesting ways.That’s a nerdy way to say that the research validates your feelings!!! See also: My own similar experience. (And let’s not forget we had a pandemic in there just to ramp things up). Thanks for being you, Wil. You’re awesomesauce.
Damn, you do indeed sound like Henry Rollins on that track.
Been following The Warning since 2022. They are playing their largest headline show in Mexico City in February to kick off the Everything’s Falling World tour and the Linda Linda’s are opening for them. I saw their Auditorio Nacional Show in 2025.
Wait you were at the show in 2025?? I am SO ENVIOUS!
I’m going to do everything I can to get to Mexico City in February for that show. Linda Lindas are playing, too!
Appreciate the kind words – so glad you enjoyed Your Behavior Will Be Monitored!
Oh my god I LOVED it. I loved it so much. Thank you for creating something so wonderful.