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This is a short one.
I wanted to do more, but this is one of those periods of time where getting a few words on the page is better than none. Where showing up at all counts for everything.
Because this is where my own life is at the moment, I can’t help but think some of you might be in the same space. Kids are home for the summer. Family is gathering. Days are long and full (whether full of things you want to be doing or not). And it becomes easier and easier to fall out of the habit of showing up for your writing.
If you’ve been around awhile you know that I do not think anyone has to write every day; rather, it’s the consistency that matters. You make an appointment with yourself and you show up for it, whether it’s once a week or every day. Even if every week or every day is different, you carve out time for your stories and you show up for them.
Case in point: I’m in a hotel lobby with a can of House Wine chardonnay as I write this, sandwiched between a family reunion and a day going through my husband’s late grandmother’s belongings. The teens are upstairs; my husband has gone to get dinner.
I almost didn’t make it because a shower and pjs sounded a lot more appealing. This isn’t my best work, because I’m tired and sticky from the day. But I’m here, writing, because I told myself I would.
I made it fun by treating myself to bad wine in a can from the lobby shop. I am tucked in a corner where no one can see me, with The Great Food Truck Race playing quietly on TV to no audience. It’s just me and my laptop, and while I dreaded the prospect of this ten minutes ago, now I feel like I could stay here for a long time.
I don’t have an audio Pep Talk for you this week, because…well, see above. But if I can leave you with one piece of advice, it is this: you can write with a schedule that fits your life. Not anyone else’s life. Yours. A few words on the page is more than you had before.
It all counts.
How are you doing with writing this summer? Is it steady-as-we-go, or is it rough seas? Hit “reply” or the speech bubble above and let me know!
Just remember: whatever your answer is, it’s all okay.
In other news:
✍🏻 How’s my writing going? Thanks for asking! I’m so happy to be writing flash fiction. It’s as if I’ve returned home. That doesn’t mean it’s always smooth sailing, though! Here’s this week’s Writing Report! >>
💻 Essay: I’ve started a new series called The Accidental Bookseller, and decided to start with an origin story. Book recommendations will always be included! Click here to read. >>
📖 What I'm reading: I’m just starting Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk by Kathleen Rooney. This book has been on my TBR pile for so long that I don’t remember why I picked it up, but I’ll let you know what I think!
📺 What I'm watching: The Americans (FX). We missed the original run, but we’re enjoying watching it now. I’m invested because I know that the actors fell in love and married while on this show, and that makes me feel warm and fuzzy. (Even though they play trained assassins and spies. I mean, every relationship has something, right?)
🎧 What I'm listening to: The Final Revival of Opal and Nev, by Dawnie Walton. It’s a rollicking listen, structured like an oral history of a musical duo with a variety of actors voicing the multiple characters. It took a bit for me to get into, but now I dread having to turn it off. Highly recommend this audiobook!
What do you recommend? Hit “reply” or the speech bubble above and let me know!
Maybe it’s the can of wine, but I want you to know how much you and your stories matter to me. Even if we don’t know each other personally, I imagine you there at your desk or kitchen table or at the coffee shop, and wish I could stand beside you cheering you on. You aren’t alone. You have support and community. I’ve got you. Carry on, my friend.
Warmly, Stephanie
P.S. I'll be here when you're ready.
P.P.S. Love this newsletter? Please share or forward to a friend!
Book Club - Lincoln Highway? Am sure Amor Towles awaits our critiques!
The Americans - one of my all-time favorite series
Lillian Boxfish - yes!
“Days are long and full (whether full of things you want to be doing or not).”
This is true for me. I tried to give myself the space to ‘surrender to summer’ this year. I tend to have the required steam Sunday through Weds, and by Thursday I think “well, I got the time in those other days!”