In this blog post, a mom with mental health issues and a love of Star Wars reflects on how Carrie Fisher, the actress who played Princess Leia, became an inspiration and role model. The post explores Fisher’s struggles with mental illness, her impact as a mental health advocate, and how her books have helped the author understand and accept her own mental health issues.
The Space Mom We All Needed: How Carrie Fisher Helped Me Accept My Mental Illness
“Do or do not. There is no Try” Yoda
P.S. Return of the Jedi is in the theaters for a short time to celebrate its 40th anniversary. I saw it over the weekend and it is better than ever. Check your local theaters for tickets and showtimes.
Every woman who makes a crack in the glass ceiling stands on the shoulders of another woman who made that crack possible.
The teaser trailer for the new DisneyPlus Ahsoka series was released last week. A spinoff of The Book of Boba Fett, it follows Jedi Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) as she follows clues of a nascent threat to the newly liberated galaxy.
I am the first to admit that my knowledge of this character only extends to the live-action Star Wars series. That being said, I am looking forward to this female-led program that once more proves that women kick ass.
Ahsoka premieres on DisneyPlus in August.
Warning: this post contains spoilers. Read at your own risk.
A new season of a beloved television series always brings out feelings of excitement and questions about where the narrative will go.
The trailer for the 3rd season of The Mandalorian was released earlier this week. After breaking the #1 rule in Mandalore of removing his helmet, Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) has to redeem himself. Traveling the galaxy with Grogu (otherwise known as Baby Yoda), politics mingles with meeting up with old associates and new foes.
As usual, the details are being kept close to the vest, which is perfectly fine with me. I would rather wait to know what happens rather than be spoiled.
Am I looking forward to it? Absolutely?
Season 3 of The Mandalorian premieres on DisneyPlus on 3/1/23.
Here’s to the books we read in 2022 and the ones we will read in 2023.
There are two arguments when it comes to a prequel. One is that it allows a formerly minor character to get a little bit of time in the narrative spotlight. The other is that it is a cheap copout by the studio. Instead of giving voice to new stories, they are relying on a known (and perhaps too reliable) IP.
Andor premiered last Wednesday on DisneyPlus. In short, it is a prequel of a prequel. Five years before the events of A New Hope, it follows Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) as he becomes the rebel that we know him to be in Rogue One.
While getting on the bad side of bureaucrat Syril Karn (Kyler Soller), he joins the rebellions by way of Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgard) and Bix Caleen (Adria Arjona).
So far, the first three episodes have been released. The connective tissue between the boy he was and the man he has become is starting to come together in a way that feels right for the character.
My favorite character so far is Maarva Andor (Fiona Shaw), Cassian’s adopted mother. She is not blind to what is happening and though she does not appear to have one, she has a spine made of steel.
Do I recommend it? Yes.
New episodes of Andor are released every Wednesday on DisneyPlus.
When we think of films or TV shows, we often think of the boldface names at the top of the credits: the director, the actors, the producers, the screenwriter(s), etc. For every name that is in large letters, there are many others whose work is important, but unknown by the audience.
Light & Magic is a new six-part documentary about the creation of Industrial Light & Magic, otherwise known as ILM. Started by George Lucas, the company started out as a way to create special effects for Star Wars Episode 4: A New Hope. In the beginning, they were a bunch of young rebels living off of dreams, hard work, and a limited budget.
Over the decades, ILM would not just become the pioneer for special effects. The company would also be behind the success of some of the biggest movies of our era, creating visual imagery that has caused multiple generations of fans to ask “how did they do that?”.
I enjoyed this documentary. It proves that determination, creativity, diligence, and coloring outside the box can change the world.
Do I recommend it? Yes.
Light & Magic is available for streaming on Disneyplus.
Summer vacations, in their many forms, should be simple. A chance to get away from the every day, see something else, and generally take a breather. But anyone who has ever gone away will tell you that it can be far from simple.
Lego Star Wars Summer Vacation recently dropped on DisneyPlus. In this 45-minute kid-friendly film, Finn (voiced by Omar Miller) is more than excited to get away with his friends for a little while. But then they all scatter and Finn is left to wonder if his expectations were just a little too far from reality.
This movie is so much fun. it is adorable and fans of all ages will love it. The humor is mostly directed at a younger audience. However, there are a few easter eggs that the adults will recognize and get a chuckle out of.
Do I recommend it? Yes.
Lego Star Wars Summer Vacation is available for streaming on DisneyPlus.
Politics is more than the creation of a series of laws. The impact of such legislation has consequences that go far beyond the room that it is passed and signed in.
Over the past few weeks, the Republicans got owned twice.
The first instance came earlier this week. During a campaign event, Texas gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke was speaking about the need for gun control in the wake of the school shooting in Uvalde in the spring. One person laughed and O’Rourke went off on him. The crowd cheered in response.
This is the type of leadership we need. We need someone who cares more about saving lives than padding their pockets or kissing the asses of their 1% donors.
Meanwhile, last week, former Vice President Dick Cheney released an ad supporting his daughter Liz while warning that he who shall not be named is dangerous. The reaction from MeidasTouch contributor Texas Paul is absolutely on the spot.
These days, the former VP is one of the OGs of the right. Back in the day, his nickname on the left was Darth Vader due to his less than moral actions. I can’t say that his reputation has taken a 180. But given what is going on in this country at the moment, his warning should not be taken lightly.
We still have time to save our nation and our future. The question is, will we do so, or let everything we know and love turn into a dumpster fire?
Learning to write can only be described as a process of trial and error. For every polished piece or story that is published, there are others that are still in messy draft form.
Many writers (myself included) started writing via fanfiction. Fanfiction is fiction that is based on previously released work. The beauty of this genre is that there are so many opportunities to take the narrative in a new direction. The story can be a prequel, a sequel, go inside a character’s head, take place in an alternative universe, etc.
The one caveat is that the publishing date determines whether or not the writer is breaking copyright laws. Anything that was published more than 100 years ago (i.e. the novels of Jane Austen or Charles Dickens) is public domain and obviously fair game. The same cannot be said if the tale being crafted is based on a work that is less than a century old. Anyone writing, for example, Harry Potter or Star Wars fanfiction is wading into legally murky waters.
The answer is yes, you can learn to write via fanfiction. Some of my early works are in need of a major rewrite. Even with that cringe factor, there is no doubt that I was learning along the way. The basics of creating fiction in terms of narrative, characters, setting, etc, can be mastered via this genre. E.L. James, the creator of the Fifty Shades of Grey series, has become one of the preeminent authors of our era started out by creating Twilight fanfiction. Regardless of one’s opinion of James’s writing, there is no doubt that she has turned a hobby into a successful career.
Not everyone takes the same route when they start out writing. That does mean, however, that one path is better or worse than another. We all learn how to craft stories in our own way and own time. One of these routes is fanfiction.
Writergurlny 
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