Even granting every bad decision made by a handful of twenty-somethings and their families, it is still unsettling to watch people cheer on HYBE. Corporate power does not need a fandom, y'all.

Less than two weeks until *Critical Approaches to Transmedia Storytelling in K-Pop* is out—and I just hit “send” on the follow-up volume, *The Cultural Politics of Transmedia Storytelling in K-Pop.* Editing overlapping collections was intense, but 2026 is the year of transmedia scholarship in K-pop.

My edited collection *Critical Approaches to Transmedia Storytelling in K-Pop* is out soon (January 8!) with @bloomsburyacad.bsky.social and available for pre-order now: rebrand.ly/kpop-stories. This volume grew out of years of thinking with (and teaching) K-pop storyworlds. #CriticalKPop

I had the privilege of teaching Paige during her first year at #WashU, and her work ethic in class certainly matches what is described here. Super proud of her! #VicariousBragging

When I stepped away from higher education about five years ago, I had no real sense of what it might mean to be a scholar working in a K–12 world. I knew the move was right for me and my family, but I was not sure whether I would even keep writing.

Really looking forward to this book!

Excited to share that *Critical Approaches to Transmedia Storytelling in K-Pop* is now available for pre-order from @bloomsburyacad.bsky.social! This collection brings together an international group of scholars explores how K-pop reimagines narrative across media. www.bloomsbury.com/us/critical-...

Behold the gatekeeper of productivity. She allows no edits to pass. It seems my plan to review page proofs has been thwarted.

My sister and her family attend the church in Michigan that was shot up and burned down today. Thankfully, they are safe—but deeply shaken. I’m struggling to hold it together myself, just two weeks after experiencing my own active shooter scare.

A little late in posting, but my daughter and I had such a great time at the #VIVIZ concert in Kansas City! It was wonderful to step away from work for a night and enjoy K-pop live. Next up: #ARTMS in St. Louis this November!

I figured this was coming, but the #PurpleKiss news still hits hard. Their debut MV remains one of my all-time favorites, and I am not sure we will ever see another track quite like "Sweet Juice."

Can we please stop calling certain words “GPT words”? They show up because LLMs were (unethically) trained on REAL WRITERS using ACTUAL LANGUAGE—including em dashes—that serve legitimate functions. These stochastic parrots do not get to claim ownership of the written word.

Completed a huge task today. Tomorrow’s reward: sleeping in, then a long, unplugged walk to give my eyes—and my brain—a break from this screen.

Editing is fun—until citation formatting comes for your soul.

Me: "I can definitely fit more clothes into this load." Also me: "Why are my clothes always so wrinkled?"

Feeling incapable of processing world affairs today (i.e. the stupidity is just too much). So, I have buried myself in reading the brilliant work of others and now have edited and proofread ten of the eleven chapters in our forthcoming collection on transmedia storytelling in K-pop. #LittleVictories

Looking for a comics-focused read for #Pride? Sequential Scholars has put together a thoughtful thread on my 2017 article in *Inks* about asexual representation in visual narratives and canonical orientations in #comics. Give it a look!

ICYMI: My latest essay makes for a great read on the first day of #Pride! 🏳️‍🌈

Thrilled to contribute a short essay to the My So-Called Life cluster in @atpost45.bsky.social! My piece reflects on Rickie Vasquez's iconic dance scene, the affective politics of Brownness, and the persistence of racial and sexual hierarchies. Check it out! #MySoCalledLife #Post45

Sigh. #tripleS has done it again: another 'la la la' waving a lightstick somewhere deep in my brain. They are not even trying to be original—just devastatingly effective. I have not been this involuntarily loyal to a 'la' since #GilmoreGirls, and that came with a side of caffeine and codependence.

Stop preserving plantations as relics. Start investigating them as crime scenes.

It turns out my prose style is basically just a long string of "not X, but Y" sentences. Parallelisms all the way down. Sigh.

I love editing, but I hate editing my own work.

Made it through another birthday yesterday. I really think we need a cool German word that captures the essence of the "birthday blues" but sounds way cooler. In other words, something a little more Weltschmerz and a little less Eeyore.

What I miss most about higher education is geeking out over colleagues’ research. Thankfully, the incredible work coming in for my edited collection is scratching that itch. Just read a chapter so compelling I had to make a detailed table to map out my thoughts—always a sign of great scholarship.

Just read another gorgeous chapter draft for our forthcoming volume on transmedia storytelling in K-pop. I feel so lucky to be working with such amazing and brilliant contributors.

Elementary school principals going where university presidents fear to tread...

Delighted to discover that my 2017 article on asexuality in comics, which I distinctly remember writing myself, was apparently authored by AI. Who knew ChatGPT was ghostwriting for me five years before it existed?

I have not slept much, but I taught three great classes today, hosted our first K-Pop Club meeting since spring break, and coached my first JV soccer game (the girls won!). Trying to live the fullest life I can right now in the face of *gestures toward everything.*

#TransDayOfVisibility #TDOV

Thoughts before bed: Joy will not solve systemic injustice, but I still believe it is a vital form of resistance. It cannot replace activism or organizing, of course, but I am committed to making space for it—and sharing it with others whenever I can. Those small moments allow us to breathe.

I am BEYOND excited for this sub-unit debut. My bias, my bias-wrecker, and what looks like an amazing concept. GAHHHHHH. #Billlie #MoonSua #Siyoon

HeeJin performing "ViViD" for the first time outside of Korea was exactly the right energy to kick off an amazing concert last night. So good. #ARTMS #LunarTheory

Let's do this! #ARTMS #LunarTheory

😡😡😡😡😡

Sigh...

Calling anti-racism racism is pure gaslighting. It is not clever. It is not a debate. It is a calculated ploy to protect white supremacy.

Coaching soccer is weirdly helping me to cope with the state of the world right now. There is something healing about watching a group of amazing young women work together as a team—while having way too much fun in the process. Small moments of joy matter so much right now.

OMG. World tour announcement for #BIBI! So much for that extra money I was making by coaching soccer this season.

The dancers who work with #ChungHa are always excellent.

Don't read the news right before bed. Don't read the news right before bed. Don't read the news right before bed. Don't read the news right before bed. Don't read the news right before bed. Oops.

I have once again taken the scenic route—23,000 words for a 7,000-word project. Now to slash and burn until something coherent remains. Brevity is *clearly* my strong suit.

My friend @nayoungbishoff.bsky.social is once again showing off her scholarly expertise with this entry in The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Global Shakespeare. I love seeing K-pop studies appearing in such diverse academic collections—and seeing the brilliant @thekpopprof.bsky.social in the citations!

Just finished reading another fantastic essay draft from one of my contributors. While there is still plenty of work ahead before the first volume is ready, these early drafts have been exactly what I hoped they would be! So excited to see this collection taking shape.

Honestly, the daily absurdities of middle schoolers are an unexpectedly refreshing escape from the weight of national and global news. I never thought middle school would feel like a place to decompress, but here we are.

Happy thought as the day winds down: I absolutely LOVE reading these early drafts from contributors and feel incredibly fortunate to work with such brilliant scholars. These volumes on transmedia storytelling in K-pop are going to be fantastic!

I guess I was too quick to celebrate our children's performance of *The Prom* this weekend. It seems the theater director is now resigning due to pushback and a lack of support from district administrators.

Just watched my son and his peers deliver a bold, beautiful performance of #TheProm at their school, with my daughter leading the makeup crew. Honestly, the show feels even more powerful when performed by high school students.

Did I *need* to spend money on this right now? Probably not. Did I do it anyway? Absolutely. Spring break road trip! #ARTMS #OURII