Matthew Arnold Stern's Blog, page 4

No, we can’t “disagree and still be friends”

Years ago, I declared I wouldn’t unfriend people because of the opinions they shared on social media. I also said you can have characters in a story whose opinions you disagree with. (I have one such character in Christina’s Portrait.)  I even tried to reach out to folks across the aisle. I could understand if […]Related posts:Can you still write a sympathetic character you disagree with?Writing a sympathetic character you disagree with2016 Parody: All We Talked About Was Trump

Taxes and the social contract

I’ve been preparing tax returns since my first regular job out of high school. I was a volunteer tax preparer in college and worked for a few years as a bookkeeper for a CPA. I know my way around a 1040. More importantly, I understand the contract I’m making with my government. If I’m going […]Related posts:Why community service is now more important than everCivics 101What Reseda could teach Lake Forest

The war of art

If art is unimportant, why is it the first thing totalitarians seek to control? A couple of events last week show the importance of art. The first was Kendrick Lamar’s brilliant Super Bowl halftime performance, and the other was Trump’s takeover of the Kennedy Center. The latter seems as arbitrary and ego-stroking as his renaming […]Related posts:Uncertain times need artWords and musicI Got Germanized, all right…

Five must-haves when writing romance

What makes for a good romance in fiction? We can all think of our favorite romances, but you need to break them down to write them well. Romance has always been a part of my books. My work-in-progress, Trevor and the Eight of Swords, is the first one where romance (albeit a dark one) is […]Related posts:Tips on writing in first-personFun a Day Reseda – Day 16: James at 16 (or Why Does the Media Get Teenagers Wrong?)How to find true love

The Poverty Diet

Getting to a healthy weight requires making permanent lifestyle changes over time. That hasn’t stopped Americans from looking for easy ways to drop extra pounds fast. Now thanks to the president, we have a way that is guaranteed to help you lose weight. It’s called The Poverty Diet. It’s hard to resist those high calorie […]Related posts:Interview with Karen E. OsborneThe language of healthDiets don’t work

How to fight back

We’re almost a week into the new administration, and it is as bad as advertised. We’ve been hit with a barrage of executive orders, threats, and outrageous actions. The first of their grossly incompetent cabinet members have just been confirmed. It is natural to feel hopeless and powerless in the face of this. This is […]Related posts:Why I’m voting for Kamala Harris for presidentFreedom, consequences, and responsibilityTo fight for freedom there, fight for it here

The TikTok ban

Yesterday, January 17, 2025, the Supreme Court ruled the United States government can ban any app for any reason. Today, it was TikTok. Tomorrow, it can be any app, even the ones Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk own. The United States has stripped people of their rights, property, and livelihood many times before. But the […]Related posts:In defense of TikTokWritersUA 2014 Day 3: “What do I do now?”Why I’m voting for Kamala Harris for president

Your last good day

How would you spend your time if you knew today was your last good day? We know it may be the last good day for a lot of people. Immigrants, members of the LGBTQ+ community, TikTok users. It may be the last good day for the rest of us, but we don’t realize it yet. […]Related posts:How to pursue your dreamsWritersUA 2014 Day 3: “What do I do now?”You weren’t welcomed either

What gives me hope

Something strange has happened these first few days of 2025. I feel hope. I know there is no objective reason to be hopeful right now. As I write this, the city where I grew up is being ravaged by wildfires. A number of my friends had to evacuate, and at least one of them lost […]Related posts:Wars of attritionLessons from 2020: “Next year, all our troubles will be miles away.”Even now, we must hold on to hope

The Eight of Swords, captivity, and freedom

On November 6, I despaired that I wouldn’t be able to write the type of stories I believe in. But here I am on the day that election was certified working on a novel I thought I wouldn’t be allowed to write. It has all the things that would make Speaker Mike Johnson ask his […]Related posts:How to predict the futureOf human bondageWhat do you say when you talk to yourself?