fiction and creative non-fiction from Brennan Quenneville
At this point I've read all of John Green's books and enjoyed each of them immensely. I've also become a big fan of the VlogBrothers as I slowly make my way through their massive catalog of videos. Despite my age placing me slightly outside of the group's target demographic, I am proudly a Nerdfighter. If [...]
Christmas music. It's kind of a divisive topic among music critics and fans. There are those who enjoy the seasonal novelty and those who are disgusted by the saccharine commerciality of it all. And then, of course, there's everyone who falls somewhere in the middle (i.e. most reasonable people). So if you're one of those [...]
It's over. Finished. Done. National Novel Writing Month has finally ended. [sigh of relief] It's a weird experience, NaNoWriMo, not least of all because it forces you to think about writing as work, an obligation. Maybe that's not the intent of the event, and it's certainly possible that other participants don't feel this way, but [...]
I wrote earlier about the truth in the old cliché that you should never judge a book by it's cover. And while that remains true, sometimes reading a book because of its awesome cover can still be the right choice. Though I had read Siddhartha and enjoyed it, the book wasn't particularly transformational for me and [...]
I've mentioned before how certain songs or moments can burrow into my brain so that I want to hear them over and over and over again. There is a reason that the term 'earworm' exists, after all. And Narco Debut's 'In Frustrate', from their self-title EP, has definitely wormed me. There is a fine line between inspiration and [...]
We've come to the part of the year where candy and sweets are everywhere, all the time. You pretty much won't be able to escape cookies and pies and chocolate flavored toothpaste until after New Year's Day at this point. Wait. Chocolate flavored toothpaste? Seriously? That's really a thing? God, we are truly a disgusting [...]
First some disclaimers: I like to think that I once offered one of the finer defenses of Panic! At the Disco's A Fever You Can't Sweat Out. (An album released back when they still rocked the exclamation point.) I really enjoy Brendon Urie's voice. Aside from A Fever You Can't Sweat Out, his performance on Forgive Durden's [...]
Here's the thing about NaNo. Well, not the thing, since I already talked about that, but another thing. Oh, I did that already, too? How about another another thing? Alright, then. Another another thing it is. See, as that last paragraph indicates, NaNo makes you kind of crazy. Which I think is counterintuitive. Most people would, [...]
Austin Grossman's Soon I Will Be Invincible is a book about superheroes that is neither a comic book nor a graphic novel. Drop the comic, drop the graphic. It's simply a book, a novel. About superheroes. And it is awesome. The story is told through the alternating viewpoints of a literal evil genius, Dr. Impossible, who suffers [...]
A long time ago my musician father taught me that there are two kinds of great bands: great live bands and great studio bands. Being one doesn't necessarily imply or prohibit the other. But when a band is both, it's worth celebrating. Sometimes it's that easy. So when BQDC's spirit-animal-turned-band Gates came through Detroit on Friday, [...]
Songs & Stories 