The late Toni Morrison eloquently stated, “I’m always annoyed about why Black people have to bear the brunt of everybody else’s contempt. If we are not totally understanding and smiling, suddenly we’re demons.” Ms. Morrison was an example of how a phenomenal Black woman can recalibrate your entire reality with a few sage words. My … More But I Paid Him A Compliment
One of the true joys of my career is that I get to meet some truly extraordinary and amazing people from all walks of life. These individuals are using their gifts to make this world a better one. A few of them, I’m both honored and humbled to consider colleagues and good personal friends. Case … More Disability Visibility: An Interview With Alice Wong
My time as a contributor to the Nerds of Color was definitely a blessed one. The story of how I was recruited is a story in itself. From a professional standpoint, being a contributor led to some excellent opportunities. Everything from networking, to receiving gigs, projects and other opportunities. More than that I gained some … More The Nerds Of Color: Political Engagement In And Through A Racialized Fandom Space
So news broke yesterday that the creators of Rape of Thrones are creating a new series called Confederate. It essentially reimagines the South winning the Civil War and slavery continuing. Because in the age of a Trump presidency, Dylan Roof and #BlackLivesMatter, white power fantasies are exactly what we need.
So this weekend Doctor Who regenerated for the 13th time and is now a woman. Jodie Whittaker is replacing Peter Capaldi as the iconic Timelord. As with all things speculative fiction and social justice, social media has been lit, to put it mildly with everyone expressing opinions for and against the new Doktah. I have … More Six Thoughts On The 13th Doctor Who
Critics are allegedly saying that Spider-Man: Homecoming is the best movie of the summer. Fans are allegedly saying that this is the best Spider-Man film, EVER. What am I saying to all of this?
One of my New Years resolutions was dedicating this year to leveling up, specifically as an author and artist. Or rather as an auteur. 😉 Breaking personal records and churning out more pieces than ever, I’ve spent the better part of the year in nonstop writer mode which of course is the equivalent of Puppet … More Lifewriting 101
As many of you know, June is the month of LGBTQ Pride and I couldn’t think of a better time to call out a few tropes that inundate comics and media when it comes LGBTQ characters/themes. Tropes that if I never see again for the rest of my existence, I’d be eternally grateful. While this … More Queer Tropes Redux
Author Scott Tracey recently announced on social media that he is re-releasing his popular Witch Eyes trilogy. My reaction to such glorious news: So in honor of LGBTQ Pride Month, I thought I’d share my review of book one to whet the appetites of the few of you who might be unfamiliar with the excellent series.
If you’ve read this excellent site, follow me on social media, or have known me for five minutes, then you probably know that not only am I hopeless comic book geek and Midnighter is my patronus through and through.
Originally published on The Future Fire As a writer, storyteller, and a queer person of color, it goes without saying that diversity and inclusion is very important to me. Anyone who’s known me for five seconds is aware of the fact that I’m a rabid comic book fan. It’s modern day mythology and as a … More Q Is For Queer Speculative Fiction
So recently I got an opportunity to catch director Guy Ritchie’s King Arthur Legend of the Sword which stars Charlie Hunnam as The Once and Future King. The film can best be summed up as Camelocked Stocked and Two Smoking Barrels.
A gent by the name of Josh Inman said it best, “Everybody wants diversity…….until it happens.” So recently on social media this stick figure drawing came across my timeline on social media. When I saw it was from Jim C. Hines, I laughed and laughed and laughed. The mere fact that this fraudulent bigot was … More Why White Saviors Like Jim C Hines Are Anything But
This weekend news broke that after two issues, Marvel’s Black Panther & the Crew has been canceled. The series revolved around Black Panther, Storm, Luke Cage, Misty Knight and Manifold who band together to take on a dangerous wave of street-level threats in this new ongoing series by co-writers Ta-Nehisi Coates (New York Times best-selling author … More The Cause of the Crew’s Cancellation
2017 is simply not here for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. First there was epic debacle known as #IronCyst. Now the shark has substantially been jumped with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.
As many of you may know, in addition to being a published author, an equal rights activist, and a nerd seraph, I’m also a pop culture analyst. A regular fixture on the Nerds of Color, my work has also been featured on Salon, MTV.com, Mental Health Matters, Geeks OUT, Black Girl Magic Lit Mag and a … More Harvard Man
Originally published at Fangs for the Fantasy A gent by the name of Malcolm X once said, “The media’s the most powerful entity on earth. They have the power to make the innocent guilty and to make the guilty innocent, and that’s power. Because they control the minds of the masses.” Many people often wonder … More Navigating Through Race- The Plight of Storytellers of Color
Just when Marvel thought it was safe. Color Commentary is back and this time we’re breaking out the Snark Fu once more on arguably the biggest disaster of 2017: Netflix’s Iron Fist. That’s right. Myself and Madame Gao will once again be providing the tea, the shade, and the truth on all things Discount Arrow. But … More Color Commentary: Iron Cyst and the Return of the Draggin’
Originally published at Thagomizer Recently I was having a conversation with a couple of friends and acquaintances regarding the release of my novel, Hollowstone. As I explained the premise behind the book, they expressed it was a novel they would be very interested in reading. They then expressed that they don’t read books. As the … More Writing to the Non-Existing Audience
In the age of #BlackLivesMatter and the Trump administration, bigotry and institutional oppression have been front burner topics more than ever before on social media and in 3D-space. Needless to say freedom fighters such as myself are speaking our truths and shining light on the darkness that is racism and other forms of bigotry. Unfortunately … More Freedom Fighter
DENNIS R. UPKINS 