Lizzie Stark

Just wanted to alert you to crack web designer Daniel Quinn's excellent analysis of a recent House episode, using the Chaotic-Lawful Good-Evil alignments from Dungeons & Dragons. In other news, I'm abandoning the massive LARP calendar, not because it's unhelpful, but because updating it sucks up too much time for someone like me, who has about eight bajillion gigs/side projects. Instead, when I have a moment to breathe, you can expect to see an index of gamer jargon, and a list of some LARP resources coming at you after the holidays are over. And be warned: NaNoWriMo is over, so I should be starting to blog again soon. Happy web surfing.... Read More

Just a little note to say: I know I'm viciously late on my most recent flash, but it's for a good reason. I took last week off to start planning my novel for National Novel Writing Month, which began on Sunday along with the month of November. I'll catch up with the aforementioned Superlative exercise as soon as I've written my 50,000 words.... Read More

When I spoke to Ethan Gilsdorf about his new book, Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks, we couldn't seem to get away from the idea of gamer shame. Basically, many gamers feel guilty and ashamed of their obsession with LARP, World of Warcraft, etc. In my own research on LARP, I've encountered a couple cases of gamer shame -- a long-time LARPer who hides his hobby from friends he's known for years, for fear of ridicule; a woman who doesn't want people at her office to find out about her weekends in the woods, because LARP is hard to explain and at first blush, sounds like a child-like past time; gamers who treat other forms of nerdularity -- massive multiplayer online games, Cosplay, and Rennaisance Faires -- with ridicule.... Read More

When I discovered that journalist Ethan Gilsdorf had written a book about gaming and fantasy culture, my first reaction was to curse his name for beating me to the punch. But if anything, Gilsdorf's Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks proves that the topic of why people chose to inhabit imaginary realms is so meaty that a single book couldn't possibly cover everything.... Read More

It's no secret that people all over the country like to dress up in medieval gear and spend a weekend whacking things in the woods. But here's the proof. An esteemed colleague and former collaborator over at the Boulder Daily Camera sent me this excellent, respectful introduction to LARPing by Aimee Heckel.... Read More

Gamers have officially entered America's zeitgeist. World of Warcraft had more than 11.5 million subcribers -- the same number as the total population of Cuba -- at the end of last year. It's old news that Ted Raimi of Superman and more importantly, Xena: Warrior Princess fame is set to direct a WoW movie.  But more and more celebrities are coming out of the closet as hardcore gamer geeks. This Daily Beast gallery (full disclosure: I contribute to the Beast's Cheat Sheet) of famous gamers has a few surprise appearances -- Dave Chappelle, Robin Williams, Curt Schilling -- as well as well-known gamers such as Vin Diesel and Elijah Wood.... Read More

The inestimable Felicia Day, star of such fan-boy bait as The Guild and Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, recently put out a new music video "Do You Want to Date My Avatar?" And the answer to that question is, yes, Felicia Day, I do want to date your avatar.... Read More

If zombies roamed the earth, humanity's only hope would be to "hit them hard and hit them often," according to a team of Canadian mathematicians. "It's imperative that zombies are dealt with quickly or else...we are all in a great deal of trouble."... Read More

Move over Twilight. The underworld's Philip Marlowe is on the case. This piece looks at bestselling author/LARPer Jim Butcher's Turn Coat, the newest in the supernatural detective series the Dresden Files.... Read More

Check out this awesome story on the Jedi exercise routine from my buddy, the inestimable Vidya Rao. Well done, Ms. Rao -- a fine use of the force.... Read More