Monthly Fun Stuff!
A round-up of good things, from me to you.
My Book
Frankly, not much happening on this front and there won’t be for a while AND I’m okay with that. There is so much going on in other areas in the next few months that I gave myself permission to pause rather than open my Scrivener file and stare at it while filling with resentment. My plan is to jump back in sometime in March, and I’ve enlisted the help of the fabulous book coach Dani Abernathy to keep me present, accounted for, and diving deeply and thoroughly into my protagonist’s character and arc.
What I’m Reading
I’ve been reading a lot (come find me on Goodreads!) but this month I particularly liked Saint X by Alexis Schaitkin. This book was on a lot of ‘best of’ lists in 2020 but I am only just getting to it.
As someone who loves vacationing in the Caribbean, the setting and characters in this book were familiar (and made me long for the sunshine and beaches).
But Schaitkin’s narrative is not warm and fuzzy like a rum drink! She uses multiple POVs and a non-linear chronological structure to tell the story. Despite its premise (a teenage girl is murdered on her family’s vacation to Saint X), this is not a murder mystery or a thriller and someone looking for that kind of story will be disappointed. The focus is on the aftermath of the crime, especially around the younger sister and one of the men originally accused, who encounter each other in New York City many years later. Schaitkin deftly weaves themes of class, privilege, race, family and more through the narrative. This one has stayed with me.
Stuck? Frustrated? Take this prompt for a spin…
A storm chaser is living in a drought-stricken place. To pass the time, they call in to talk radio shows but they are constantly interrupted by their new violin-playing neighbor. One day they decide they can’t take it anymore and knock on their neighbor’s door. What happens?
Last but not least….Hedgie of the Month!
As noted in my bio, I love hedgehogs and though I don’t have one (they are delicate creatures!), I do follow oh-so-many on Instagram and I wanted to share some with you all. If you think they are half as cute as I do, please give them a follow - I promise they will brighten your day.
This month’s hedgie is Theo (@theodorable_hedgie on the Insta). Theo and I live in the same town and I keep my eyes peeled whenever it is warm enough, hoping he might be out and about. And that little grumpy face! I hear you, Theo, these single-digit-degree days are bumming me out too.
Theo the hedgehog. Photo credits: @theodorable_hedgie