The multi-award novelist and 2020 Literary Guest of Honor John Scalzi was on the Main Events channel Saturday at 1PM. He was sitting in his office in Ohio, while the moderator, Brian, was in Oregon. Even apart, we are together during Dragon Con.

Overall, Scalzi’s days have not really changed since the quarantine. Being an introvert, he tends to stay home and work on his various projects. When he is not working on the latest novel, he can be found in his basement playing an array of instruments.

This past April, his latest book The Last Emperox came out. What was originally going to be an in-store book tour quickly changed to a virtual book tour. Scalzi signed and mailed out several book plates. Some of the book stores sent him boxes of books for him to sign, which he happily did.

Being a former AOL employee, Scalzi understands the stresses and time that it takes to become a full-time writer. His first novel, Agents of Stars, was self-published on his blog back in 1998. What started out as a let-me-just-post-this-for-people-to-read became a favorite among hundreds of new-found fans.

Not only is Scalzi known for his writing, he is also infamous for his “burrito philosophy.” In fact, after the short tour of his house, he and the moderator Brian made a burrito during the panel. There was no specific recipe (other than you have to be able to heat it up). You use a tortilla and whatever is in your refrigerator. This accomplishes two things: you get to use up food that needed to be eaten anyway, and you experiment. It may work. It may taste awful. But at least you tried. At least his lasagna-style burrito came out well. His philosophy is this: add what you have on hand, experiment, be bold, and don’t be afraid to fail.

If you want the recipe or to see how it looks, make sure to grab a streaming membership so you can watch the replay. Bon Appetit!