It’s Pride Month and what better way to celebrate than to rewatch JMS and the Wachowski’s Sense8?** That’s our plan, starting tonight.

J. Michael Straczynski is active on Twitter so I went there to thank him again for sharing his brilliance with the world, as I do whenever I rewatch Babylon 5 or Sense8. While there I discovered that he has a Patreon now with special fan benefits. He also has a writers track where he will educate future writers. I wish I could be part of the writers track but it’s too rich for my blood right now at $100 a month. But you better believe that I joined his Patreon at a lower level in a hot minute and was grateful he provided a way to support his work.

I’ve loved him forever and he’s uncommonly open to fans and has always been. His Patreon comes with special fan gifts (bits of scripts, video, and so forth) as well as the opportunity to interact on a special Discord site.

I love most writers and my affection for them has only increased as I’ve begun seriously writing in the last few years. But some writers are special and JMS is one of the most special to me. I’m trying to figure out how the writers who speak to me at a visceral level do and what messages resonate strongly with me.

My favorite writers have a particularly hopeful view of the world. It’s a terrible place, they say, filled with tragedy and trauma. But with courage and empathy we can prevail together. It’s the opposite of superhero stories where one person has the power to stop evil. And it’s the opposite of a dystopia. These stories lead me to places of joy, exhausted, but triumphant. Evil has been stopped for now and we are mostly still alive.

I don’t know where to go with that for my own writing. I’m not even sure I can do that. But it is a worthy endeavor. As I watch Sense8 tonight I’m going to think about how it can speak through my own writing. I’m going to try to take a bit of it into my writers’ soul. And then I’m going to go to JMS’ special Discord channel and strike up a conversation.

I hope you are finding joy in your favorite stories as well. Be well, friends!

** A note for those of you tempted to watch Sense8 on my recommendation and who are sensitive to images of sex and violence. Sense8 has both. I strongly caution parents with children to preview it before they make a decision on whether it is suitable for their families.