Here and Now and Then

by Mike Chen

I told her the other day that I was thinking of double-majoring in Computer Science and Comparative Literature. When she asked why, I told her I wanted to make video games. You know, program something fun with a really cool story rather than making, like, accounting software. She thinks games are children’s toys still and she went on and on about so-and-so’s grandson who works for Apple and makes a gazillion dollars a year. But maybe she’s right. Double-majoring does sound like a lot to balance. Even though I won’t have soccer practice to worry about.

Miranda's interest in video games was a late-game change. Originally, she wrote fan fiction and moved forward to writing in college and after. My editor thought this was too meta for a book, so I moved it to a lateral creative path. The main thing was to give her something that ensured storytelling in her future, whatever the medium. Also, I love video games, so I'm very proud of her. :)