As a neuroscientist, Joel Finkelstein studied mind control in mice. But when he realized social media was influencing human behavior, he set out to build an early warning system for hate. For PAW, my most ambitious feature to date.

Why are Greek movies so strange? It turns out they've been "weird" for a while, and not for the reasons you might think. My latest essay for the @LAReviewofBooks.

Without “At the Mountains of Madness,” we probably wouldn’t have sci-fi horror classics like “The Thing” or “Alien.” Read on for the spookiest chapter in The Usonian’s Narrative Architecture series.

Religious scholar Georges Florovsky lived an odyssey of a life, from the last days of the Russian Empire to New York City. He also really, really loved his Xerox machine. #History

Join The Usonian on my latest miniseries—CLANKER CITY—investigating the impact of automation on Los Angeles.

It was a thrill to speak with Ligaya Mishan about her singular path to one of the most interesting jobs in the world: co-chief restaurant critic for The New York Times.

Adobe builder, artist and chef Anita Rodríguez has lived a dynamic life from her home in Taos, New Mexico. Learn about her classic recipe for the “Chicana on the run” in “The Stovetop Enchiladas This New Mexican Grandma Has Been Making Her Whole Life.”

It was a joy to return to Taos, New Mexico this past summer and write about the dynamic changes to the legendary town, adding a new chapter to its historic, mystical place in the firmament of the Wild West.

Kirsten Bakis' "The Lives of the Monster Dogs" may be the weirdest novel I've ever read. A riff on "Frankenstein" and "The Island of Dr. Moreau," "Monster Dogs" shouldn't work, but does. Here's why.

“I've never seen so many trees in my life." Check out my travelogue of visiting the real-life inspiration for Twin Peaks (subscribe to Usonian+ to read the whole post). #TheUsonian

How should we package narrative time while writing fiction? Joan Silber has some answers.

Achille Tenkiang '17 has founded the Baldwin Institute to foster literacy and creative resistance through the work of James Baldwin.

Want to write for an L.A.-themed food zine? To-Go Zine is now accepting pitches till 8/25/25. Pitch guide here:

If J. Robert Oppenheimer knew that the Manhattan Project would result in transforming his beloved Los Alamos into a creepy strip mall, maybe he would’ve thought twice about building the bomb? Read my impressions in The Usonian+.

When I started reading Neal Stephenson’s CRYPTONOMICON, I had no idea that I was about to embark on one of the most exhausting and tedious literary experiences of my life.

It was an extraordinary experience to return to Taos (where I began my writing career) and be invited to comment on the "New Taos" scene. https://t.co/2YP2ANIrcO

Fascism is on the rise. But a classic YA novel from Greece may hold advice for how to resist. Literary translator Karen Emmerich on her recent translation of Alki Zei’s wonderful and transporting “The Wildcat Behind Glass."

People often ask me about my favorite novel. Since I couldn't decide—here are four good ones.

Like a strobe light throbbing in a red-curtained room, film and TV was forever altered and energized by David Lynch.

“Night Film,” Marisha Pessl’s 2013 thriller, is intriguing for its use of paratextual devices that deliver exposition and advance the mystery about an enigmatic, Brian De Palma-esque director.