This week’s 140 interview is with Spokane, Washington-based humorist and writer Terry Bain. He likes writing books, making t-shirts and eating bacon. Aah, the simple pleasures in life.
He’s also the writer of two books, You are a Dog and We are the Cat. that look at life, love and more through the eyes of our four-legged companions. Terry took some time to virtually sit down with me and chat about these projects what he’s working on now and more.
If you want to connect with Terry, make sure you read his blog or follow him on Twitter @TerryBain.
Ready for this? I’ll DM you a Q and you DM me a response until we run out of things to talk about! Q:Tell me about your most recent project.
Well, the project I’m working on right now is a bio of an inventor/ orthopedic sugeon from Spokane (where I live).
That’s certainly unique! What attracted you to that?
I know the family, and he’s an interesting guy. It’s quite a departure for me, but I need to challenge myself or dry up and disappear.
Let’s shift gears a bit. Tell me about your previous projects, YOU ARE THE DOG and it’s follow-up, WE ARE THE CAT.
Good. It’s a bit hard to know where to begin. The dog book was first, and sort of surprised me. But it was a great deal of fun to write.
Why did the dog book surprise you?
I had no experience in it. I was trying to sell a novel, which wasn’t going well, so writing short humor pieces cheered me up (mostly).
You Are a Dog was first a short humor piece that was so much fun, I started to wonder if I could make it into a book.
That makes me happy! Were the reasons for pursuing the cat book similar?
Well, when I started touring with the dog book, someone asked the question: “will you be writing a cat book?” “No,” I said, definitively.
I started taking “cat book notes” that very evening.
Perhaps not surprisingly, the title for the cat book came first. I just knew that if the dog book was “you,” the cat would have to be “we.”
That’s far different than your current project. What challenges have you faced with this new biography, compared to writing humor?
Biographies are about people, apparently. Also, actual people rather than those I make up.
Also, I find that I have to be far more disciplined about it, which is something I’m unaccustomed to being.
Finally, it can be hard not trying to be “funny” all the time. (Though I’m probably funnier when I’m not trying… alas.)
I know the feeling! 
What’s your working/writing schedule like?
Intolerably erratic, though less so lately. My youngest started preschool this winter, so I get 3 hrs most mornings, then a bit more aft.
Morning time is for composing. Flat out scribbling. Later it goes into machine form.
You’re pretty active using social media. What are the benefits and drawbacks of this as a writer?
The benefits: easy access to people. People are good. They buy books. They read. They tell me what I’m doing that they like, or don’t like.
Drawbacks: easy access to people. Messaging and twittering &c. takes time, which gets sliced up in micropieces and its easy to lose a day.
I sometimes use twitter to sharpen “funny” skills. Sometimes this works, sometimes it just turns me so far inward that it’s hard to escape.
Would you do another humorous book? We still have birds, fish and many more you could use!
I’m hoping to do a lot of funny. Maybe sea monkeys next. (More likely dogs again.) Or maybe even humans. Those animals is funny.
Please do sea monkeys!! If you weren’t a writer, what would you be doing?
Well, I have a degree in computer science, and I just cloned a Joomla extension for a friend, so maybe I’d do that. Cloning, I mean.
Sounds like a plan to me! I think I’m our of questions. Is there anything else you want to add?
Just one more thing the dog would like to add: “Beware the vacuum. The vacuum is evil.” That is all.
Oh, and if anybody is interested, they can follow my dogs and cat: @youareadog and @wearethecat . Blessing.
You are a Dog and We are the Cat are available at Amazon.
Last night, the designers paired up to create a two-look collection to complement the L’Oreal Paris spring 2009 looks. The winning looks would be featured in a promotion at Shoppers Drug Marts across the country. While the team challenge was a refreshing change of pace, it didn’t bring out the personalities and aesthetic conflicts I was hoping it would.
We didn’t see much of Adejoke last night, only that she wasn’t too pleased about being partnered with Brandon. Adejoke is revealing herself to be very mediocre – a mediocre personality and a mediocre designer. This is probably moreso the fault of the show’s format, which is limiting her rather than letting herself shine, but it’s still frustrating to watch because she isn’t adding anything to the show.
While Adejoke is mediocre, Baylor is good. He’s quiet and unassuming but can pull designs out with the best of them. He doesn’t have the creativity to really thrive on the show, but should make it far based on skills alone. He was also so genuinely pleased to have one a challenge, which was endearing. And his pants were impeccable. 
Now that Christie is gone, I expect Brandon to become the hot mess of the bunch. He just doesn’t have the skill set or maturity to do well here. He isn’t ready to be a designer in his own right. While he’s one of the few designers who showed personal evolution last night – holy fuck, this is a design competition, not a personality competition – it’s not enough to keep him around. I expect him to pul one brilliant challenge out of his ass before he goes down in a ball of flames.
It was more of the same from Christie last night. A complete meltdown and a subpar garment. While Christie was aware she was self-destructing. I find it hard to believe her design skills are as above and beyond as they’re being represented on the show as she claims. I’m glad she’s gone, she wasn’t adding anything to the show except tears.
Genevieve is emerging as this season’s dark horse. She’s calm and collected, knows what she wants and worked with Kim very well, even when there was clear disagreement between the two of them. Her dress was modern and fresh, showing she has a distinct style and point of view (which is very important on this show.) I think it’s early, but I’m calling a top-three finish for her.
I still don’t think Jason is a great designer. His color palette, immunity and partnership with Christie just made him look less worse than the rest of the crowd. Also, I find it weird his personal sense of style is so rudimentary. It would be part of his charm if I actually found him charming. 
Oh Jeff. I want to like you so very much. But it’s becoming very clear that why, after 20 years in fashion, still no one knows your name. You’re overly ambitious and seem to not know your own limitations, let alone the limitations placed upon you by the show. I like you, you’re sweet and funny and put up with Jessica’s suburban ghetto queen act wonderfully, but you’re so gone next week.
A few weeks ago, I predicted Jessica would become annoying and become a one-note designer. She’s not there yet, but boy is she close. If she could learn to inject that personality into her clothes, she would be at the front of the pact. But she seems more concerned about her ability to fist bump Jeff than she does about the poor construction of her garment. I’m losing interest and fast. Which is too bad, because Jessica Biffi is an awesome name for a clothing line.
Unfortunately for Kim, her narrative this week was exactly the same as last week. Time management! Oh no! I suck! This is over! Oh my god, my dress is so fresh, flirty and cute! Phew. I like Kim a lot, her dress last night was adorable, and she and Genevieve seemed to be the best team (Sunny and Baylor appeared conflict-free, whereas Kim and Genevieve worked through each conflict maturity and compromised when necessary), but the show needs to let her grow. I’m chalking this up to the editors and not Kim, but if it happens again, I’ll be disappointed.
Oh Sunny. You are wonderful and wonderfully unpretentious. Your designs are whimsical and unusual and your construction might be the best PRC has ever seen. You seemed truly overjoyed when you won this challenge (although we all knew it from the moment you picked Baylor). You’re going to win this show with a collection that is equally architectural and fantastical, then you’re going to cry tears of happiness and Canada will cry with you.
This week’s Twitter interview is with YA author Melissa Walker. Melissa is the author of the successful Violet trilogy, about a small town girl who gets scouted to work as a model in the big city of New York. The first book in the series, Violet on the Runway, was recently named a ALA Best Books for Young Adults!
If I wasn’t so sleepy last night, i would have stood up and cheered when Margarita was eliminated. Everything from her re-selecting her crappy model, to accusing Brandon of design-stealing then not letting it drop to choosing a fabric that’s really hard to work with and refusing to own up to her own short-falls to that mess of a dress she put down the runway, Margarita was no-way no-how likable, interesting or good at what she does. Get over yourself and get to work Margarita. Your portfolio needs it.
