Scratch Magazine
Ideas don't always become novels. Sometimes they become essays, reviews, observations, conversations, or simply stories worth sharing.
Scratch Magazine is the editorial home of Scratch Writing—a collection of articles exploring storytelling, hidden history, emerging technology, films, humor, and the creative process. Whether you're interested in the lore behind The Midas Files, the future of artificial intelligence, a great movie recommendation, or a laugh at the day's absurdities, there's always something new to discover.
Explore the channels, follow your curiosity, and enjoy the journey.
- Details
- Written by: Matt DeReno
- Category: Bingham's Notebook
Welcome back to Bingham’s Notebook, where we explore the hidden corners of the world surrounding The Midas Files.
This week, we’re looking at a shadowy organization that may help explain some of the more esoteric aspects of Dr. Lawrence Bingham’s research: the Order of the Crescent Star.
Read more: Bingham's Notebook: Inventing The Order Of The Crescent Star
- Details
- Written by: Matt DeReno
- Category: The Funny Newz
AUGUSTA, GEORGIA — As the golf world prepared for warm-up rounds leading into the Masters at Augusta National Golf Club, a group of troublesome women golfers reportedly snuck onto the famed course to test the latest innovation in women’s golfing accoutrements: Wilson’s High Heel Shoe Tee.
- Details
- Written by: Matt DeReno
- Category: Cool Filmz
“Ho. Ho. Ho. Now I have a machine gun.”
That is not exactly the kind of line you expect from a cozy holiday classic. It is not Bing Crosby by the fireplace. It is not Jimmy Stewart rediscovering the meaning of life in Bedford Falls. It is Hans Gruber reading a message scrawled on the body of one of his henchmen after John McClane has officially begun ruining the Nakatomi Plaza Christmas party.
Read more: CoolFilmz: Is Die Hard A Christmas Movie? Yes—It's Home Alone for Grownups
- Details
- Written by: Matt DeReno
- Category: Bingham's Notebook
Welcome back to Bingham’s Notebook, where we explore the hidden corners of The Midas Files.
For this entry, I wanted to take a closer look at Mortimer Vanterpool, one of the strangest and most dangerous figures in The Midas Protocol. This may not be the flashiest topic for longtime readers, but clarifying Vanterpool’s abilities helps me understand how he works as a character — and how best to use him as the series continues.
Read more: Bingham's Notebook: Mortimer Vanterpool’s Powers Explained
- Details
- Written by: Mustafa Aksoy
- Category: TechGnosis
By Mustafa Aksoy, University at Albany, State University of New York
Most CubeSats weigh less than a bowling ball, and some are small enough to hold in your hand. But the impact these instruments are having on space exploration is gigantic.
- Details
- Written by: Matt DeReno
- Category: Bingham's Notebook
As I worked through the world of The Midas Files, I found myself creating characters whose traits sometimes echoed real political figures. Not direct copies. Not hidden biographies. More like creative composites — fictional people shaped by recognizable fragments of history, personality, ideology, and public image.
Subcategories
The Scratching Post
The Scratching Post is Matt De Reno’s personal corner of Scratch Magazine, featuring author updates, creative reflections, Pittsburgh-rooted storytelling, house-project avoidance, writing life, book news, and friendly notes from the world behind The Midas Files.
Bingham's Notebook
Bingham’s Notebook explores the lore, characters, artifacts, hidden history, timelines, and behind-the-scenes mythology of The Midas Files, Matt De Reno’s Pittsburgh-rooted sci-fi thriller series about ancient power, impossible technology, and dangerous secrets.
Cool Filmz
Cool Filmz is Scratch Magazine’s movie and TV room, featuring essays, reviews, lookbacks, and story-minded reflections on sci-fi, thrillers, action classics, pop culture, character arcs, genre storytelling, and the films that shaped Matt De Reno’s imagination.
The Funny Newz
The Funny Newz is Scratch Magazine’s humor section, featuring fake headlines, sci-fi satire, UFO nonsense, cryptid chaos, ancient-alien absurdity, local parody, bad technology, and ridiculous reports from a universe that probably should not be trusted with advanced tools.
TechGnosis
TechGnosis explores strange science, future technology, space, AI, cybersecurity, fragile systems, hidden knowledge, and real-world ideas that sound like they escaped from a sci-fi thriller — all through the curious lens of Scratch Magazine.
