I can only say why I wanted to make the movie: to convey what I love about Tokyo and visiting the city. It’s about moments in life that are great but don’t last. They don’t go on, but you always have the memory and they have an effect on you. That’s what I was thinking about.

Sofía Coppola (via filmingtheworld)

I wish I could write like that! --CM

"The Loch Ness Monster’s Song" by Edwin Morgan

I didn't discover this until I was deep in revisions for Swamp Song, but this is close to what I wanted for the feel of the book. It was, and continued to stay, something very different instead. It's squishy--hardly any edge at all (unless, of course, I'm so edgey that the degree of edge of the story just didn't register to me). I've come to believe, in unraveling a story from within yourself, that we're born with a certain caliber of story to tell. We have stories waiting inside. And I'm only left to wonder if, once I've told those I was born with, no others will come or I will start to tell the kind of story that I'd design. --CM

Question posed on Facebook: "So if you could sing like ANYONE in the world, for just one night, who would you choose?"

Do I automatically get accompanying dance moves? Yes? No contest! Ad Frank!

Jonathan Preen’s uncle Perry came into this world a mystery. His unique anatomy left doctors scratching their heads as Perry grew into adulthood, using his differences to his advantage against the nasty creatures in the bayou. The townsfolk of Lockport, Louisiana wondered which the scarier monster was: the scaly, cold-blooded kind that wound up in their kiddy pools every summer, or the misshapen, warm-blooded one they called to fish them out. Jonathan just wanted to know where his uncle learned to play--not the violin like him--but that jangly old fiddle. Greater mysteries follow as Jonathan’s trip to lay his uncle to rest turns into an extended stay. Far from his home in Chicago, Jonathan adapts to life in a small town on the edge of the Louisiana wilderness where he dodges the advances of overly-hospitable Southern belles, learns that the best music comes from the heart, and wonders if the songs he plays in the bayou will be his last as he confronts his late uncle’s arch nemesis—a monstrous alligator known to the locals as Vaurien de Lafourche.

First praise for this book since its release comes from my dad:

"The first coupla pages looked good, sis."

So take it from a man in a cammo hat and buy this book for its first coupla pages! Love it for the rest!  --CM

Nary a more valuable story-telling apparatus to be found! --CM

If you like this song (like I do), scroll down to support efforts to make more like it! --CM

16 great tunes for kids of all ages by TMBG bassist Danny W - who brought you "Where do They Make Balloons?"+"I Am a Paleontologist".

Let's all be advocates for each others' dreams! --CM

If you check out The Ottermelon on deviantArt and decide you must have more, I am here to tell you that you most certainly can have it! Check her out here on the Tumbls!

Makes all the finer points --CM

The Ottermelon. I call her Schnurg. There is a lot of talent in this showcase. And a lot of monsters. But I won't vouch for the talent of the monsters. She did the cover art for my upcoming book, Swamp Song. --CM

#8: Finish your story. Let go even if it's not perfect. In an ideal world you have both, but move on. Do better next time.

Taking this advice as I push to publish a three-year project for Christmas. I get so mired in the present that it's easy to forget that other opportunities are forthcoming, humans are capable of change and even improvement, and sometimes "good-bye" is the next natural step in a relationship. --CM