I started telling myself stories when I was little.  My mom (a 20-something ninth-grade English teacher with a brand-new house and two kids under 5) was a firm believer in naps and early bedtimes, so I filled the sleepless moments by spinning stories in my mind.

Marina, the mermaid from Stingray

My earliest stories were about being a mermaid, something I’ve yet to write about as an adult.  Instead, I’ve published stories about aliens from space, alchemy in Prague, vampires in San Francisco, post-apocalyptic Detroit, a succubus on the Sunset Strip, and a fox spirit in Tokyo, among other things.  All of them spun out of those earliest tales that bloomed behind my closed eyelids on a farm in Michigan.

I continue to be fascinated by travel and magic, fairytales and cemeteries, adventures and analyses.  I believe the most important human characteristic is curiosity. I believe there are no stupid questions, but if you think about a lot of things, you will find the answers without needing to ask anyone else. I believe you have the right to believe anything you like, as long as you don’t require me to share your beliefs.  I believe in the power of being polite, because it confuses people who would dislike you on sight otherwise. I believe we are here to love.

I started this Morbid Is as Morbid Does blog last January because I have been blogging for a long time and needed a real home.  I started on Livejournal 10 years ago this coming March.  I’ve blogged at the Red Room since January 2008.  My Cemetery Travel blog started on February 1, 2011. All of those had/have a sense of community that I adored, but I felt limited by the topics I chose to talk about through them.

The Temple of Zeus at Olympia

This blog will, I hope, blend together everything that fascinates me.  There will be a lot of talk about writing — mine and others — and a lot of consideration about what supports and encourages creativity in the world.  I want a place to think — and I want to hear your thoughts, too.  What are you curious about?  What do you like to read?  What makes you want to tell stories?

We’re all in this world together.  We’re all going to die someday.  Let’s make our time here magical.