Good News for People Who Like Bad News
Dear False Positive Readers,
This is Ashley Walton, Mike’s sister and editor of False Positive. I have really terrible, awful news and a tiny bit of good news.
You might have noticed it’s been a couple years since we’ve posted anything on this website. Well, brace yourself for the saddest update I’ll ever share.
The lovable, brilliant creator of False Positive, my brother, passed away suddenly and unexpectedly. Monday, January 22nd marks the two-year anniversary of his passing, and you can read Mike’s obituary here.
It’s taken me two years to write this update because I’ve been consumed by grief. I think about Mike and miss him every single day. He was my creative collaborator and singular best friend. The world is not as fun, bright, or delightful without him.
Reading comments from all of you has really helped me through this difficult time. Thank you for the support and enthusiasm you’ve shared for False Positive over the years. It meant the world to Mike, and it means everything to me, too.
I wish you all could have known Mike better. Stories flew out of him, and he always worked on more than one at a time, easily distracted and motivated by his own new ideas. His brain was always writing and rewriting stories, and he was always creating artwork. I’ve never met anyone who was such a constant, passionate, and consistent creator.
Mike was a brilliant artist and storyteller, and this website became a repository for some of his artwork and writing, and he lovingly, regularly updated it for over a decade.
Over 10 years, Mike and I discussed False Positive constantly. We regularly emailed each other drafts, dreams, possible dystopian futures, notes on our favorite final girls, links to must-read books, alternative story endings, ideas for stories, rants, puns, and commentaries.
Several times a week, Mike would call me to discuss potential story ideas and different possible endings to his stories. For every story he wrote, Mike would map out at least three potential endings, and we’d workshop them together, discuss the merits of each, and debate which one packed the most punch and had the biggest impact and why. We’d dissect, discuss, and debate. We lived in a bubble of artistic creation and collaboration– one I miss very much and haven’t been able to find again.
But there’s a bit of good news. Because Mike was such a prolific creator, I have so much more False Positive content to share with all of you: artwork, stories, alternative endings, process videos, blog posts, and more. Mike was his own harshest critic. He created so many things that he didn’t share, for fear of it not being good enough, and I’m here to tell you: it’s all really, really exceptional. He had a truly unique mind.
So, stay tuned. I’ll be updating False Positive, as well as sharing exclusive content on his Patreon, in the hopes of keeping his memory alive through his stories and artwork. If you’ve loved False Positive over the years, please consider sharing it with a friend. I’d love for as many people as possible to experience Mike’s work.
Thank you for following along, and thank you for the support in keeping this website– and Mike’s memory– alive.
Above all, I believe in the power of stories to connect us as humans and to help us through this life, which can be brutally difficult at times.
Thanks for being here. You make a difference.
In Gratitude,
Ashley
