Jihyun and I have been on an amazing virtual library tour talking about Korean Folklore. Check out And The River Drags Her Down if you need some gothic Korean folk-horror in your life.

I did an amazing storytelling workshop at the Busan International High School. I love this series of games that cures stage fright and convinces kids they have already have the confidence, experiences, and skills to be great storytellers. Every once in a while I get to see it change a life.

It's pretty cool to have a political family that, rather then being made up of heirs and heiresses, includes a comedy rapper, a webcartoonist, and and Oscar/Gay and Lesbian Film Festival Best Picture nominee.

Just did a one hour book talk at one of my dream libraries to a big empty room and two librarians because ICE was outside and no patrons came in. This will change. We will stop this.

This needs more attention: Zohran SPLIT the straights with Cuomo. ALL of his margin was from LGBTQ+ voters. Every Dem who ever said “we should abandon the transes” needs this shoved down their fucking throat with a ramrod.

This one seems fitting for today. If you're looking for a fun romp featuring Korean folklore, banned book clubs, fighting fascism, and kick*ss grannies, try this read. (Tho I suggest reading No Rules Tonight if you want a better understanding of the main characters) #booksky

Hyun Sook won't admit she's too scared to watch Good Boy (2025) so instead she keeps suggesting similarly-named movies that she would never have proposed otherwise. Last night we watched Good Boys (2019) and she gave up 20 minutes in. Tonight she suggested Good News (2025).

American flags have become the go-to symbol of far-right hate groups in Korea. They mob airports and wave them foreign visitors as they scream slurs and tell them to get out of Korea. Why the US flag? The politicians they see using them on the news stand for the same hate that they do.

I bristle when people say I post a lot about politics, as I just discuss aspects of life and identity that have been politicized by bad actors, not politics. But re: politics? If you can vote for Zohran, vote for Zohran. If you can convince someone who can vote for Zohran to vote for Zohran, do so.

Remember when the book banners said it was "only" school libraries? That kids could get the book at the public library or buy it? We knew they were fucking liars and moving the goal post again and again. Not the first bookstore that caved to their bigotry and it won't be the last. America.

Y'all. Every episode of the new season of Sesame Street has animated segments art-directed by Student Ambassador artist @axureneas.bsky.social I can't believe my best friends Axur and Grover worked together!

Y'all will not believe this. Somehow Left Vine has pulled Right Vine back out of the water. Poor sportsmanship? Windy day? What the heck?

Good news! I'm a virtual guest speaker at one of my dream libraries! Bad news! Attendance at said library is way down because ICE has been indiscriminately grabbing people from the street outside! Worse news! That's just treated as normal now.

Hyun Sook and I ran a spooky Good Old-Fashioned Korean Spirit-themed coloring table at the Busan Halloween Market. @penguinteen.bsky.social @penguinschoollib.bsky.social

Happy Halloween from Good Old-Fashioned Korean Spirit!

Giving Hyun Sook the grand tour.

I remarried Hyun Sook in the church from When Life Gives You Tangerines. Not like, officially or planned, or anything, we just saw a lil sign that it was shot here.

Happy Korean Halloween!

Hyun Sook and I are coming to Seoul for a completely free two day interactive art exhibition! @penguinteen.bsky.social

The Korean government is basically straight up announcing "Don't worry, we only gave Trump a golden crown because he loves gold and he'll back down on his threats if we make him feel like mommy's special king boy." The world is treating US diplomatic relations like a standoff with Goldmember.

One of my favorite Hollywood stories is Pigeon: Impossible's weird path from indie short to major Disney release. A Fox producer was trying to make his mark and find IP to adapt. He saw a fun short about a bird trying to steal a bagel and getting stuck in the nuclear football. He had to have it. 🧵

OooOOOoooh! THIRTEEN years ago, on HALLOWEEN, Hyun Sook and I got the most life-alteringly SHOCKING text of our lives. That we'd misunderstood the paperwork we'd signed the day before, and had been married for 24 hours without knowing it. That form was signed 13 years ago THIS VERY DAY! SPOOKY!

This comic is about the same spooky farm that eventually became the setting of Good Old-Fashioned Korean Spirit.

Here's my most seasonally appropriate comic... the true story of the Halloween costume so memorable that I can never take it off. ryanestrada.com/2024/The%20Permanent%20Halloween

The spooktacular continues! It's time for another free spooky comic! Read about the most terrifying night of my life. Plagued: The True Story of a Fake Apocalypse. ryanestrada.com/plagued/

How about another spooky comic? This one is short enough for you to read in a skeet! Beware the Mare is about a creature that feeds on your dreams and loves scrambled eggs. It was written by me, and illustrated by Aaron Cruz.

It's Spooky Month! I'll be sharing some free freaky comics you can read to get yourself in the mood. First up, my werewolf romcom graphic novel The Kind, which you can read free on my site OR as an illustrated full cast audiobook! ryanestrada.com/thekind/

Working on a new thing.

I'm back on one of my favorite podcasts to talk about one of my favorite Korean movies, The Attorney. Imagine if Saul Goodman's heart grew three sizes and he decide to fight book banners so hard it made him the president. Find it wherever you listen to podcasts!

Anyone recognize the junior graphic novel the arrow is pointing at? It's on the tip of my tongue. Yes, I've spent an hour mapping this shelf because if that book's author's name starts with E or F that mean that the orange spines next to it are my books appearing on Reading Rainbow.

It's almost Hyun Sook and I's 13th anniversary! I told her I was taking her somewhere secret. Plan was to hint it was a bike trip then tell her mid-air that we were on our way to Spain. But she figured out I was planning something international and said "18 hour flight? No way."

I finally saved up enough for a new computer that has a functioning keyboard and ports, but apparently, they don't make computers anymore? They make AI Copilot terminals?

ICYMI! Our Correspondents in Korea, @ryanestrada.com & Eric Plese, returned to the Draft Table to competitively / collaboratively rank the 7 best KOREAN HORROR films ever made! podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s...

We're so happy that @americanbookseller.bsky.social keeps showing Good Old Fashioned Korean Spirit so much love! We love indie bookstores!

I've been watching these two vines race to the river for a year now. They were neck and neck for a bit but each had growth spurts, and I freaking SCREAMED today when I saw that Right Vine finally made it. Is this what it's like to care about sports?

Today was Halloween market day supporting Busan animal charities. I donated my Del Toro-signed Frankenstein poster for the auction, and it netted ₩90,000 won. We also donated a spooky copy of Good Old-Fashioned Korean Spirit to the raffle with some original art and themed Garfield sketch covers.

"Willing to try" is the primary qualification for public office.

The entire Witch Boy series was banned for "gender chaos." Forget witchcraft. What scares this guy is a boy wearing nail polish and a kid with two dads.

How about Anya's Ghost? He got this one banned by saying "It ain't Casper" The funniest bit is that he was upset by a bit about "hallucinatory methane" which I assume is a more scientific take on the Scooby Doo "swamp gas" cliche that he thinks means meth?

Happy Halloween! Let me dig through my Florida book banning spreadsheet and see what spooky books are being banned and why. Beetle & The Hollowbones by Aliza Layne made the book banner so made a video review, and gave us THIS classic line.

This is how I found out Donnie was coming to my neighborhood. Y'all I live in Busan to get away from this jerk! Korea worked hard to imprison all our dictators, don't import us new ones!

I've been taking a life side quest as an extra in the Korean film and television industry and it's been a blast. I've never actually been given an NDA, but have a gentleman's agreement not to talk about anything until the film's released. So here's this week's on-set spoilers without context.

Logical rebuttals don't work on book banners, so I'll try using their own language against them.

Those who collaborate with fascists are fascists. Those who collaborate with nazis are nazis. Those who collaborate with monsters are monsters. When consequences come for them, let's not ruin the word "collaborator" again. It's too useful to waste on them and too gentle for the evil they do.

These are the coolest!

If you order Good Old-Fashioned Korean Spirit from @mainstbooksmonroe.bsky.social, they'll ship it to you with signed original art inside! www.mainstbooksmonroe.com/product/good...

Former kid-cartoonist talks to current kid-talk show host.

It's #bookbirthday Tuesday! Swipe and click to see some #teenreads from October that you really won't want to miss (1/2)