Karina Briski is a web writer, journalist, and copy editor. She specializes in indie lit, women's health, lifestyle and entertainment.
Kio Stark: the people’s champion of not going to grad school
In the middle of getting a PhD in American Studies, Kio Stark dropped out after she realized how much she could be learning on her own. Now, she’s one of the leading evangelists for independent learning and, perhaps ironically, an adjunct faculty at NYU’s Interactive Telecommunications Program. She is the author of Don’t Go Back to School: A Handbook for Learning Almost Anything, featuring interviews with successful independent learners like Cory Doctorow, Dan Sinker, and Quinn Norton. We spo...
Review: Dora: A Headcase, by Lidia Yuknavitch
Reimagining a famous patient as the subject of her own story
Lidia Yuknavitch’s coming-of-age novel doubles as a feminist rewriting of Freud’s psychoanalysis, dropping his most famous case study into ...
I’m Not Saying I’m a Gold Digger, But You’ve Got to Be Able to Buy Your Own Beer
Not long ago, I accepted an invitation out for drinks with a guy I’d recently been introduced to via a mutual friend. He was unfamiliar with Brooklyn, so I suggested a spot midway between our two star...
10 Things to Love About Cold Winter Weather
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In case you forgot that an intant 20 degree drop in temperatures doesn’t actually mean the seasons have changed, winter is still a few weeks away. But we’re all feeling the chill. While I’m ...
The Vagi-Luxe List
Indulge yourself with the newest investment accessories: luxury sex toys.
3 Things to Remember for a Better Morning After
Unlike the mimosa’s that can sometimes (best-case scenario) follow, morning after’s don’t always go down easy. Depending on the number of hours you’ve known the person, and the amount of wine consumed...
5 Things to Keep in Mind When Your Friend Loses Weight
When it comes to an individual’s weight, our cultural logic is simple, if not deeply flawed. Weight gain equals dissatisfaction, letting oneself go, and even depression. Weight loss means we’ve gotten...
6 Life Lessons I’ve Learned from Wearing Lipstick
When I was growing up, no object contained as much high-powered feminine mystique as a tube of lipstick. Seeing a woman whip one of those things out was like watching a cowboy with a pistol. It was da...
How Should A Person Be? Like Sheila Heti at Powerhouse, that’s how
1. The birds-eye Powerhouse view. 2. David Shoemaker, Designer at Henry Holt; Szilvia Molnar, from Sterling Lord Lit; Tom Roberge, Publicist at New Directions.
It wouldn’t be unfair to expect a readin...
Love Lessons from Mariah Carey Songs
For the rest of the world, it’s just another Tuesday in spring. But for the technicolor Dream Lover, 90s pop music fan, today is a holiday. Get out your Casio cassette player from ’93 and slip on your...
Partying with Books, Literally: Mellow Pages Library Launch
The opening of the Mellow Pages Library and Reading Room last Thursday had a good dose of awesome: a pushcart filled with PBR and plastic crates acting as bookshelves. Maybe that sounds too Bushwickia...
Patti Smith: The Perfect Way to Watch a Sunset
1. Patti Smith was introduced as “a beacon to us all,” including the boats in the harbor. 2. Nathan Mondragon and Rachel Fletcher, of the Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy . “We’ve never had to turn an...