Preserving your mental health when the world is on fire — The spring house stood at the far end of the drive, halfway to the barn. It sheltered just at the base of a steep hill, like a tin-roofed entry to some subterranean domain. And in a way, that’s exactly what it was: a wooden shelter over great, granite stones the…

Medical systems are being hijacked for political gain, and the health of our children is at stake — Imagine that your child is suffering. They struggle every day, and you fear for their mental and physical health. There are ways to help them — but these methods have just been outlawed. You’ve packed up the car and are prepared to move your entire family, a sacrifice to protect…

The stigma surrounding weight gain has blinded us to the real problems of health care — You’ve heard it said, probably in hushed whispers: Don’t call her fat, it’s rude. And largely we acquiesce, don’t we? But why? Why does a descriptor like “fat” carry such negative connotations? If it isn’t rude to say “that woman is blonde,” or “that man is tall,” why is it…

The hardest part about writing is… well, writing. Here’s how to make it work. — This story is behind Medium’s membership paywall, which means the writer earns through our Partner Program. To become a Medium member, click here. Back in January, I sent out a call on Twitter: who might want some advice from #writersonwriting? The response was surprising. Today, I am following up with…

5 things I do at the start of every book project — This story is behind Medium’s membership paywall, which means the writer earns through our Partner Program. To become a Medium member, click here. I hate writing advice. Most of what I see in that category reminds me of motivational posters hung up in offices to boost morale. There isn’t anything…

A bizarre experiment in the 1970s proved this in primates —now an Italian surgeon suggests that are humans next — In 2013, an unusual paper appeared in Surgical Neurology International, a peer-reviewed medical journal based in the United States. The piece had been written by a surgeon named Sergio Canavero, of the Turin Advanced Neuromodulation Group in Italy, and it boasted an unusual title: HEAVEN, or the “head anastomosis [connection]…

The Makings of a Peculiar Writer of Unusual Books — I still remember the great Mouse Massacre of ’85. The rooms weren’t quite finished yet. There were walls, but no doors, and no real furniture. I had gone to sleep on a cot in the make-shift bedroom. Then I heard the snap. Followed by another. And another. A cacophony of…