Happy Sunday, friends! 

It’s hot and steamy here in Nashville, akin to stepping outside into a steaming hot wet washcloth. It reminds me of the summers we flew to Florida from Colorado, the same overwhelming wetness in the air. Southerners refer to this air as “sultry” because sultry sounds a lot better than suffocating and miserable and disgustingly gross and dripping wet. Ah, words. What would we do without them?

Thrillerfest was great. Crutches in New York at a conference? Not so much. I am forever grateful to everyone, from Lynn and Valerie Constantine to Kevin in the Grand Hyatt bar and everyone in between who offered help, succor, and good humor (and complimented my shoes. Thank you, Effortless Style!) I felt quite cherished, which, I admit, was awfully nice. A good time was had by all, even Maurice the Hawaiian Giraffe, may he forever rest in peace. 🦒

One of my favorite parts of Thrillerfest is the bar. Not for the drinks, because they’re ridiculously expensive, but for the camaraderie. There is an “us against the world” mentality, and it’s so much fun to grab a table and linger for a while, because inevitably, everyone makes their way to this gathering place. You can learn a lot just by sitting back and listening.

Soon, you’ll be able to purchase a download of the panels, and let me tell you, it will be worth it. I had to miss several and I will be grabbing them, because there was just so much incredible content.

Maurice’s unfortunate demise aside (don’t ask…just follow the links and buy the book), I loved getting a chance to meet and linger with so many folks. Can’t wait for next time.

It’s always a rough week post-conference for me, which is why I don’t do too many anymore. It takes me forever to get back into the swing of things. I’ve gotten a lot of business work done this week, but not as much writing as I’d like. I’m distracted, out of my habit, spending too much time online. And you know what that means. It’s time for a social media sabbatical. 🥳

It’s been a while since my last one. I think a couple of weeks offline (because when I say social media sabbatical, it’s really a whole-Internet sabbatical) will do me good, help me settle back into the story. I’m behind on my reading, too, so it’s well-timed. 

It’s funny, when you’re a writer, and you carry your office in your head,  getting offline is really the only way to take a vacation. 

Well, I did manage to get a few things accomplished this week. The newsletter went out Thursday -- are y’all getting it? There’s a super recipe in it this month. If you’re not already signed up, you can join us here.

A blog post is coming this week with a fabulous cover reveal, so keep an eye out.

And with that, I’ll bid you adieu and let you look at the links!

Here's what happened on the Internets this week:

The Sandman, Catch-22, Cloud Atlas ... is there such thing as an 'unfilmable' book? What do you think?

A Harry Potter Book, Bought for $1 at a Yard Sale, Could Sell for More Than $37,000 at Auction. This is wild! Makes you want to start doing the yard sales, eh?

The Future of Ebook Pricing. In case you’ve ever wondered about how your library decides what digital books to buy. This is something to keep an eye on. We’re still in a disruption, no matter what people say.

Fall In Love With the Written Word at These Literary Themed New England Hotels. I want to go! Right now. Come on!

Licensed to fill out: from Stranger Things to Star Wars, the tie-in novels continuing the story. Fascinating. There are a lot of fun, interesting things about publishing that I’m still learning.

14 Pieces Of Advice From Self-Help Books People Actually Found Useful. What’s your favorite self-help book? Mine’s Twyla Tharp’s THE CREATIVE HABIT.

Writing About Synaesthesia and Face Blindness: Bee Larkham’s Murder. I'm looking forward to reading this book! I wrote a fun character who has synesthesia, and I know three people who have face blindness. Should be fascinating.

Top 10 books about cults. Something I will forever be interested in.

Wine of the Week at The Wine Vixen!

What I’m Reading:

Look at this amazing stack of galleys I brought home from Thrillerfest! I don’t know which one I should start first. See any you’re excited to read? I’m trying to decide which one to read first on sabbatical…

That’s all for now. Read a good book, watch some of the British Open, put some fresh food out for your hummingbirds, and I’ll see you next week—hopefully chill!

peace and hugs,
J.T.