[Neuro]Diversity

Mpepper/ November 30, 2023/ Uncategorized

I was filling out a form that asked about diversity, and… It felt like the form was asking me to out myself in some way(s). Which isn’t cool. I live a really heteronormative life on the outside, and I don’t think I should be required to talk about private things in order to tick a box. I write diverse books…

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AMC’s IWTV Eps 2 & 3

Mpepper/ October 14, 2022/ Reviews

All right, it seems only fair to update my thoughts after having watched two more episodes of Interview with the Vampire. I very much appreciate that Lestat’s true character is being slowly revealed. OR… it could be that he is trying and failing to change. That much is not entirely clear, but I suppose that’s kind of the point. I

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AMC’s Interview with the Vampire

Mpepper/ October 11, 2022/ Reviews

I have only watched the first episode of AMC’s take on Anne Rice’s vampires, but I have some mixed feelings. And yes, I understand why some changes were made, and I don’t have a problem with those. I don’t think Louis needs to run a slave-owning plantation in order to tell this particular story. His being a person of color

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One Night in Wildcat Woods

Mpepper/ August 5, 2022/ Announcements, Writing

My #steddie-inspired story about two teen boys lost in the woods behind their high school is now up on Amazon, so I’ve had to remove the PDF. To be clear, this isn’t directly fan fiction; it’s fanfic adjacent. And not explicit in its steamy scenes. 1989. Though Drew and Rayze were friends in childhood, they’ve long since grown apart–until the

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Thoughts on Loki (and Loki)

Mpepper/ July 31, 2021/ Reviews, Think Pieces

Once upon a time, there was a little “boy.” He had been adopted by a powerful family, the family of a king, in fact. This boy was meant to be a prince. But his greatest bond was with his adopted mother. He delighted in time spent with her, and in “feminine” things. (His mother was a great warrior in her

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Books: We Contain Multitudes by Sarah Henstra

Mpepper/ May 19, 2021/ Reviews

I didn’t like it, then I did, then I didn’t again. The set-up: high school sophomore Jonathan Hopkirk (“Jo,” age 15 at the start of the book but 16 by the end of it) and repeat senior Adam “Kurl” Kurlansky (18) are assigned by their English Lit teacher to write letters to one another. Jo idolizes Walt Whitman, dresses in

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Television: Merlin (Seasons 1 & 2)

Mpepper/ April 10, 2021/ Reviews

Very late to this party, but my daughter requested to watch this series. She’d seen an episode of it at a friend’s house once, had immediately pinpointed Merlin and Arthur as a couple, and had been curious ever since. So we started watching it as part of our regular girl time. For those unfamiliar: Merlin is a BBC television series

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Books: Carry On and Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell

Mpepper/ December 23, 2020/ Reviews

It probably helps to start with Fangirl. Which I read, oh, two or three years ago? It’s the only other book by Rowell I’ve read, and I only thought it was okay. But I know I’m not the only person to think the best parts of that book were the faux fan fiction pieces the main character was writing. For

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Movies: Mulan (2020)

Mpepper/ September 5, 2020/ Reviews

So this was… okay, I guess. I don’t know what I was expecting. Maybe something epic. It wasn’t that. It was just kinda fine. It starts well enough, with a young Mulan showing off her chi as she chases a chicken through her village. Here is a girl with the energy, power, and abilities that have been traditionally reserved for

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About Those Starred Books

Mpepper/ June 19, 2020/ Uncategorized

I’ve finally gotten all the links up on my Bibliography page. If you click on the book images, you should be taken to the Amazon page for that title. (For Letters to Rob, you’ll be taken to the PDF.) I agonized about linking to Amazon, as I’d really prefer you to support indie bookstores, but based on pretty much all

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