And election. And holiday season. This summer was a welcome respite from the long months indoors closed off from so many faces that I love. It was deeply gratifying to have friends over for outdoor dinners and drinks on the porch. …

Sexual Citizens, by the quotes I loved most Full Twitter thread here. I’ve been chipping away at (and complimenting) @JenniferSHirsch and @shamuskhan’s book Sexual Citizens: A Landmark Study of Sex, Power, and Assault on Campus for a while and I finally finished it. In publishing, use of hyperbolic words like…

Slip into a different one. I have a problem with reality these days. Not the terribleness of being immersed in this particular timeline, though there is that too. No, my problem is more staying in this reality for any length of time. My scholarly expertise lies at the intersection of…

“Sounds like this quack is hamster-wheeling her little pea brain in overdrive to justify her Tinder/Facebook/Twitter attention-whoring crimes against logic.” “You may have a Ph.D. but you are obviously lacking skills in observation and common sense. This piece of garbage “smartphone” I type on now, and the “information” it continuously…

The Question: What is this book actually about? This week I published a book, one that I hope fulfilled my book manifesto. The question I seem to get most often is — um, so what is it actually about?Delivered with a friendly smile but also a puzzled head-tilt. Others seem to believe they’ve figured it out based on…

I loathe small talk. Meaningless chatter makes my teeth itch, my skin tighten and crawl. Immediately after long bouts of it, I have to dive into something emotionally challenging or intimate, to try to wash off the sticky shallowness of superficial encounters. “No child…has ever mastered the art of small…

The New York Times recently posted an op-ed about all of the things you could do with your life if you set aside your smartphone for a year. I’m not setting aside my smartphone, and I don’t think you should. Below are all the things you can do in a…

In a sea of scaremongering thinkpieces, the recent article A Dark Consensus About Screens and Kids Begins to Emerge in Silicon Valley by Nellie Bowles stands out for its evangelical hyperbole. The piece is filled with quotes like, “I am convinced the devil lives inside our phones,” and “On the…

Motivation, Audience, and The Writer’s Practice I was recently asked to write a blurb for John Warner’s upcoming book The Writer’s Practice: Building Confidence in Your Nonfiction Writing, aimed at helping both new and seasoned writers hone their craft. I was honored by John’s request, and also somewhat intrigued. I…