Welcome to my writing archive.

I’ve been writing about pop culture and the arts since the early ’90s. (Read more about me here.) This website collects some of the best of it, originally published elsewhere in print and on the web. I’ll add more as time goes on, both older work and new stuff. I hope you find something interesting here.

A beginner’s guide to Doctor Who (1963-2010)

A thorough and (at the time of writing) complete primer on the venerable sci-fi TV series, which kicked off my long-running column writing about classic-era Who. For more of my writing about the series, go to my Doctor Who page.

Interview: Donald Westlake a.k.a. Richard Stark

One of the greatest American crime novelists opens up about the crooks who read his books.

Interview: Ray Harryhausen

A career-spanning talk with the master of stop-motion animation, who gave us Clash of the Titans and Jason and the Argonauts.

The Future Sounds of Yesterday: A Sequence of Synthesizers in Science Fiction

How technology, music, and science fiction changed the universe together.

Review: The Handsome Family: Last Days Of Wonder

Where Edward Gorey meets Johnny Cash.

10 great Asian horror films

From Godzilla to Audition, a roundup of truly terrifying chillers from the other side of the Pacific.

Travel: London chic for only shillings

How to see the queen’s city without paying a king’s ransom.

Travel: Time Traveling

Trekking to Minnesota’s most impressive archaeological sites.

Terry Pratchett: Snuff

A review of the 39th novel in the long-running Discworld series.

Minnesota music and arts

A few less than 10,000 reviews, interviews and articles covering the creative spirit of the land of 10,000 lakes.

Interview: Michael Yonkers

A talk with the reclusive Minneapolis psychedelic guitar wizard.

Interview: Jeremy Ackerman of Walker Kong

The indie-pop bandleader talks about the group’s fourth album, Phazes Of Light.

Grant Hart: Good News For Modern Man

A review of the splendid 1999 solo album by the former drummer of Hüsker Dü.