The Year of Reckoning

What's coming next - and why we're following the thread of HOUSE OF SNOW.

Nine years ago to the day, I packed my bags, left behind my New York City apartment, and boarded a one-way flight to Thailand.

It was the very beginning of a nomadic journey that’s since swept me around the world. I often feel I’ve lived a dozen lifetimes since then.

For the first few years, I traveled carry-on only. I was light on my feet, but it came at the cost of the “nice-to-haves” - extra outfits, trusted toiletries, my climbing shoes.

What did make the cut was a banged-up Playstation 4.

It was the first gaming console I purchased as an adult, for one reason: to stay in touch with my brothers. Every week, we played Destiny, a “Mythic Science Fiction Shooter” developed by Bungie, the studio behind the original Halo trilogy.

Stumbled across the original box while stateside a few years back! Still can’t believe I lugged this thing across continents.

To say I loved that game would be an understatement.

Curious, I checked my time played statistics: 1,479 hours.

I wish I were exaggerating.

Against my better judgment, I couldn’t get enough. The game’s opening cinematic illustrates why (yes, that’s Bill Nighy and Peter Dinklage narrating!):

Unlike other games, Destiny delivered a sense of mystery, exploration, and wonder through its union of music, art direction, and innovative design. The tagline was literally “Become Legend” - fitting for a story not just about loss and longing, but about how we mythologize those things in order to survive them.

An act of co-creation

Bungie set the board to tell its tale of fate and space magic over the span of a decade.

It was a wildly ambitious undertaking with a legendary development budget, reportedly in the ballpark of half a billion dollars.

Destiny made that money back in twenty-four hours. It went on to win more than 180 nominations and awards, including The Game Award for Best Online Experience.

For me, a key part of the experience was the Thursday update, or “TWAB” (“This Week at Bungie”). It was a space for Destiny’s developers to share their vision, keep people posted on game updates, and chat with the community. There was a real sense of Bungie and the players co-creating an evolving world. The studio invited people into the story, teasing ideas that would play out over many months.

We’re going to do something similar here.

It’s a desire I’ve had for more than a decade, stemming from a fascination with narrative design, but I haven’t had a way to explore the potential - until now.

Because the response to HOUSE OF SNOW has been overwhelming.

There’s been quite a bit of curiosity around the (cursed?) journal I found in Nepal, its eerie connection to my own life, and whether or not there’s more story to tell.

There is.

If you missed the first part, you can catch up here:

---

---

Seriously, people have reached out via Substack, email, WhatsApp, and even in person, eager to know more. In fact, I’ve been surprised and delighted to see Part I quietly become my most-read piece on Substack since launching last fall.

I want to honor that interest - and my sense that this story demands to be told.

Our roadmap for what to expect

I think of story as a compass. It’s a powerful force that can help us reimagine who we are and who we’re becoming. Here at The Lighthouse, we explore how stories shape us, and how we shape them, through cinema, travel, and everyday life.

Part film journal, part travelogue, and part field notes.

Until now, I’ve more or less siloed these categories in my writing. One per post.

Which is why it’s been so fascinating to see that what’s most resonating isn’t a single film analysis or an individual anecdote from my time on the road or a standalone essay on identity and the creative process - but a story that weaves together all three.

We’re going to follow that thread for a season, wherever it may lead. Not indefinitely, but at least through the fall. To that end, we’re theming this season of The Lighthouse “The Year of Reckoning”, likely to unfold across 6 - 8+ meaty posts:

As I’ve already said, I could use your perspective in making sense of that little book. I’ve spent too long thinking about it, and maybe you’ll spot something I’ve missed.

Maybe, together, we’ll uncover details neither of us would’ve found alone.

I hope you’ll come with me on this journey.

In reaching its end, perhaps we’ll uncover a new beginning - and I hope you’ll be patient with me as we do, because I definitely don’t have it all figured out.

I think I know how best to honor Edmund’s and Samantha’s story. It feels as timely today as it must have when they lived it, some sixty years ago. I’ve spent the past month trying to map a compelling trajectory for us here, but it can still feel like I’m aiming at a moving target. Honestly, my relationship to the material keeps changing.

It’s hard to explain.

Sometimes I’m not sure if I’m following the story, or if it’s following me.

This will be my only post for the month of May, as I’m juggling a screenwriting assignment and currently on a trip through the Inside Passage. More about both in future dispatches, but for now - thanks so much for being here. Y’all are the best.

Much love from Alaska!