Mark Wooden's Blog
September 15, 2025
Music That Inspires: The Cure – “Burn”
Welcome back to #MusicMondays, where I talk about music that inspires my “Shadowdance” action urban fantasy saga! This week it’s all about setting a mood with The Cure and their song, “Burn,” off the soundtrack to Brandon Lee’s The Crow. Who are […]
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August 24, 2025
Music that inspires: The Birthday Massacre – “Destroyer”
Welcome back to #MusicMondays, for which I talk about music that inspires my “Shadowdance” action urban fantasy saga! This week, let’s look at the Birthday Massacre and their song, “Destroyer.” Who are the Birthday Massacre? The band that became the Birthday Massacre […]
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August 14, 2025
Jason Bourne Is Back: Universal to Revive the Action Franchise
Jason Bourne is set to return as Universal secures the rights to the franchise. What’s the best way to continue the series? Jason Bourne and the birth of an action movie franchise According to Deadline, Universal has officially snagged the rights to […]
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July 31, 2025
Building a Better Vampire Story: Thralls and Salvaging the Past
Writing a vampire story — or any story, really — is rewriting and knowing when to throw things away. Almost as important is knowing when to reach back into that trash can and save that pearl you accidentally threw out with the […]
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July 28, 2025
A writer’s blog on how to Write Urban Fantasy, fanfiction, and Pop Culture thoughts
Welcome to writer Mark Wooden’s all-new (mostly), all-different (definitely) “Thoughts from the Shed” writer blog. Here you’ll find pop culture news and commentary, fanfiction, and updates on my “Shadowdance” action urban fantasy saga. All served with a side of snark — and […]
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July 3, 2025
Kevin Spacey Wants a Comeback—Does He Deserve One?
Kevin Spacey made a not-so-subtle dig at all the people who dropped him like a hot potato when his numerous sexual misconduct allegations came to light. Now he’s ready to get back to acting. Should we, the audience, take him back or […]
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June 23, 2025
Wrong Time, Wrong Franchise: “Ballerina” Fails Ana de Armas
Ana de Armas entered the world of John Wick not with a bang, but a whimper at the box office. Let’s look at why that is, what could have been, and where the John Wick franchise goes from here. I dug “Ballerina.” Then again, I’m a sucker for waif assassin […]
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June 10, 2025
Still Writing, Dammit: Urban Fantasy, AI, and Fighting the Funk
Hey, Mark! You still writing? What you been up to? Well, like to hear it, hear it go! Urban Fantasy writing Been a while since I gave a writing update because, well, haven’t really been writing. General funk brought on by the general funk the world’s in. Hard to hold […]
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June 5, 2025
Luc Besson’s Waif Assassin Legacy: From Mathilda to Colombiana
With Ballerina hitting theaters, y’all need to put some respect to the man who popularized the “waif assassin” trope – Luc Besson. Here’s the story about two potential waif assassin sequels he could still pull out. Y’all remember Luc Besson, the man who practically created the “waif girl assassin” trope […]
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May 27, 2025
“Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning” – All Stunts, No Substance?
“Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning” dropped last weekend and… I have issues. Now fam, I love me some action movies. You know this. And I love me some “Mission: Impossible” movies. I even love the second one that John Woo made, which had so many plot holes, because Woo […]
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