As much as I have procrastinated on it, I still hesitate to make this ask. In February I'll be attending my first writers workshop. In January, I’ll be traveling to Maryland to talk about my writing. I couldn’t have planned my budget for this, but I can’t say no. The opportunity for my career, for the craft, to connect with writers and readers is irresistible. And I can’t do it alone.

I initially applied to Tin House’s virtual winter workshop for nonfiction writing with little thought or research. My partner showed me there was a deadline for a scholarship, I had a vague idea that workshops are what real writers do, and I want to be like the real writers who’s few publications carry some affluent air of prestige. They seem like they can afford healthcare, at least. I applied with a draft I was working on. Since I was accepted in November sans scholarship, I have learned from friends and colleagues that getting accepted at all is an accomplishment and that — unfortunately — I should figure out how to make this work. I still hesitate to ask so much for something so intangible. There’s ultimately nothing I can offer to show you this was worth it. But reader, I must try before I’m done. Like many of the critics who have met today’s culture where it is at, my time is also running out. That I am still freelancing in 2026 feels less like an accomplishment of endurance than a failure to find something better. But I’ve only ever been able to call myself an essayist and critic because of the opportunities other self forged writers in our critical blogosphere have made. And so, I'm asking you, my friends and colleagues and followers and readers, to help me do this too.

As I was grappling with this matter, another opportunity with additional cost resented itself, and honestly? I just wanted to say I did it. I’ll be guesting on panel at Magfest! That’s awesome, imo. The panel, Critics RoundTable: Entering an Inner Weird World, also features Stuart Gipp, Luis Aguasivas, and Jake Steinberg. Our audience will get to here us talk the craft of creative nonfiction and how we do that work around games, and I personally will get to do something that makes all this work on my computer and journals feel grounded in the conversations among readers and writers that made me start doing this almost seven years ago. And to just be a fangirl about it: I’ve never been to Magfest, but I follow many of the artists, devs, and musicians who will be there and I'm excited to meet many of them. All that said, guesting on a panel does not cover any travel costs. The cost of this is much less significant since Maryland is just a train ride away, but I'll also need to cover a hotel, food, and metro costs while I'm there.

The workshop costs $800. My total travel costs will be at least $200. There are some transaction fees for using GoFundMe. I cannot make this happen without more firm external support. I don’t have a Patreon. Almost all of my writing is available to read for free online. And I can safely say, with love for the $20 bill we have all been passing around to each other, it has almost all been underpaid for the time I put in researching and revising the essays that I am known for. Can you help me continue to write?