I’m Going To Be On A Panel At SDCC!
San Diego Comic Con is happening next week, and I’ll be appearing on a SDCC panel called “Writing Nonfiction About Fiction: Coffee Table Book Writers Roundtable.” It’s happening on Saturday July 26th, 2025 from 4:30-5:30pm, in Room 29CD.
The panel will be moderated by Andrew Farago, and aside from yours truly, the other panelists will be Jerry Beck, Matt Murray, and Russ Burlingame. All of us are pop culture historians, and all of us have a lot to say. During the panel, we’ll discuss what it’s like writing nonfiction books about movies, TV shows, comic books, video games, toys, and animation.
Here’s the official description of the event:
Reading comic books and watching cartoons all day is hard work! Honest! Animation legend Jerry Beck, official Smurfologist Matt Murray, pop culture writer Russ Burlingame (Best Movie Ever), writer/comedian Arie Kaplan (From Krakow to Krypton: Jews and Comic Books), and A Minecraft Movie chronicler Andrew Farago discuss the perils and pitfalls of writing nonfiction books about movies, comics, video games, toys, and cartoons.
For more info, click HERE.
My “Superstitions” Book Is Out NOW!
What do weddings, Christmas celebrations, Thanksgiving dinners, and Halloween mischief have in common? They all involve rituals and customs that used to be (and in some cases still are) superstitious. Superstitions are woven into the fabric of our everyday lives, often in ways we don’t even realize. Why am I mentioning this? Because I wrote a nonfiction book that deals with that very subject. It’s called The Encyclopedia of Curious Rituals and Superstitions, and it came out TODAY from Quarto Publishing Group’s Wellfleet Press imprint.
This book is available at bookstores everywhere, as well as HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE!
Hey, want to read two glowing reviews of The Encyclopedia of Curious Rituals and Superstitions? Sure you do!
And here’s the official publisher description of the book:
The Encyclopedia of Curious Rituals and Superstitions sheds light on the impact that superstitions have on our global society at large, world history, the pop culture we consume, the art we create, and even the way we think about marriage, death, prosperity, self-protection, and luck, to name a few. No matter where on Earth you live, superstitions have always been the infrastructure of societies since ancient times. They can be found in social rules of etiquette, in the vocabulary we communicate with, in rituals performed during holidays, in birthing rooms across time, at funerals, or just in our everyday habits. These mysterious practices provide an essential source of comfort, safety, and control. Even more fascinating is that they have been used since time immemorial to explain the unexplained. Unpack the lore and origins of cultural superstitions and how they have persisted throughout many generations.
Discover how:
- Celtic fairies are behind our compulsion to knock on wood
• Norse mythology is responsible for our fear of the number 13
• Taylor Swift finds the number 13 to be lucky
• A quick death in Japan is thought to be ensured if you cut your toenails at night
• The evil eye is an important talisman in Jewish and Muslim cultures
• The meaning behind your birthstone can predict your personality
• Rabbits hold significance in some Asian and Indigenous cultures
• Finding a husband in Nebraska is as simple as 99 horses, a white mule, and a handshake
• Eating twelve grapes on New Year’s Eve in Spain and Central and South America can bring forth prosperity
Beautiful illustrations further challenge the images your mind may have already held about the beliefs you instinctively carry throughout your life. You will be continually surprised and delighted by how superstitions not only define the bedrock of a culture but also demonstrate the nuanced ways in which we are all connected.
Unlock a world of wonders in The Encyclopedia of Curious Rituals and Superstitions.
The Wonderpedia series offers comprehensive, display-worthy illustrated references on a range of intriguing topics, including archeological discoveries, world mythology, pop culture, global superstitions, and the fascinating stories behind signs and symbols. A cross-cultural exploration of what makes humans tick, this series magnifies the connective threads between us across time and geography and demystifies the surprising, confounding sides of life.