Sunday Smatterings

Happy Sunday, friends. I hope this week’s missive finds you safe and well. It’s been an excellent week at Casa Ellison, because I finished and turned in the monster revision. With luck, the next stage is a quick line edit, then the book will go to galleys and we’ll do a simultaneous copyedit. Maybe it’s clean enough to go straight to copyedit. Hope reigns supreme! 

This is a glorious moment in time, though. I’ve written a COVID book, which is an accomplishment no matter that I missed an early deadline, and now, with the uncertainty of the fall in the headlights, I get to start something fresh! Yes, I know I’m supposed to take some time off, and I promise, I have. (I have a tan, if that gives you a clue.) But I do better when my mind is at work on creative issues. At least I get to reward myself with some fiction again! My list is so long, so varied, that I have to pace myself. 

How do you decide what to read next? Inquiring minds want to know.

I started watching The White Princess with Jodi Comer as Elizabeth of York and I am gobbling it down. WHY didn’t y’all tell me how fabulous it is??? After Killing Eve, I’d be happy watching Jodi Comer read a grocery list, but she’s wonderful in this, all simmering rage and fury in the most gorgeous gowns. The whole story is perfectly cast and acted. If you haven’t seen it, do!

I set up my bullet journal today, and actually had to start a new notebook, which is always an awkward time of year.  So many projects with ties to previous months, so many notes to refer to. So much planning to do for the rest of the year. Even though I have almost zero travel (I am going to go see my parents) I find there’s still plenty of planning to be done.

This is a perfect moment in time to revisit your plans for 2020, see what you’ve accomplished, what got shot to hell, and what you need to do going forward. I’ll admit, so many things I’d planned to do I’ve simply… let go. There’s no point. It’s very freeing, this revamping of the creative life, of creative goals. 

I’ve found any number of things that I thought vital before are no longer of importance to me. If there is a silver lining to the cloud of 2020, it’s permission to revel in what truly makes you happy, and letting the rest go. 

In the spirit of jettisoning unhealthy habits and thoughts and projects…Onward!

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THE LATEST ON THE INTERNET:

Now that it’s August, it means the countdown is officially on for GOOD GIRLS LIE releasing in mass market paperback max. Make sure you preorder your copy!

There were two episodes of A WORD ON WORDS this week. First, there was an incredibly special edition featuring Rep. John Lewis, taped in 2016 with LaTonya Turner in Nashville Public Library’s Civil Rights Room. Second, my cohost Mary Laura Philpott interviewed Brit Bennett about her lauded book THE VANISHING HALF.

19 of the Most Unbelievably Realistic Book Cakes. These are incredible!

Travel through a tunnel of books at this Beijing bookstore. Gorgeous design!

A New Role for Little Free Libraries: Little Free Pantries. Very cool.

In Southern Illinois, Cairo's first Black librarian celebrated as she turns 100 years old. What a remarkable woman!

Can literary talent be inherited? What do you think? I vote yes.

20 Books TED Speakers Think You Should Read This Summer. This is a remarkably diverse list.

Bookish Notecards, Sticky Notes, and Other Paper Goods. I love bookish goodies!

Boarding Schools, Ghost Stories & New Year's Resolutions ~ A Pen Pal Conversation with NYT Bestselling Author, J.T. Ellison. I loved this conversation with my good friend Heather Gudenkauf.

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BECOMING DUCHESS GOLDBLATT by Duchess Goldblatt

While I was finishing my revision, I decided I wouldn't allow myself to read in order to stay completely focused on the story. Yeah, that wasn't a great plan. I languished without a book. So I amended it to I wasn't allowed to read fiction. And maybe that was just an excuse to buy BECOMING DUCHESS GOLDBLATT. Duchess's book surprised me on many levels. It was sad. It was joyous. It was funny as hell. I was moved, and I am willing to bet you will be, too. Thank you to Blake Leyers for introducing me to Duchess's Twitter feed way back when. What a culmination. What a beginning.

What are you reading?

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That’s it from me. Stay out of hurricanes, let go of one thing you know you don’t want to do, take a deep breath, and I’ll see you next week!

Peace and hugs,
J.T.

Sunday Smatterings

Happy Sunday!

Y’all. Baseball is back, and this makes me obscenely happy. Any little bit of normalcy is welcome, of course, but I am a baseball fan, always have been, and there is something undeniably soothing about listening to a game whilst writing or reading. Granted, it’s surreal seeing cut out faces and empty stands, but it’s baseball, and I’ll take it. 

How are you holding up, friends? What’s keeping you sane and focused right now? Baseball? Books? Gardening? Cooking? The knowledge that you aren’t alone? There is something very comforting in the knowledge that we are all in this bizarre moment together. It would be one thing if it was just happening to us alone, or even to our city, or country, but that the whole world is buckled in and is trying to ride this out gives me great peace.

What are you doing to keep yourself happy and safe?

For me, in addition to watching baseball… I’m just working. I’ve been plowing through the  final revision of HER DARK LIES, and will be sending it to my editor this week. I’m in that strange moment in creative time when my mind has already shifted into what’s coming next, but I need to stay focused on the current title while it goes through the editorial process. It’s weird holding multiple stories and characters in my head at once, though. The next book is fighting to get out onto the page, but I must finish this one fully before I allow the next one any air space. That is what keeps me sane and focused, this transitory moment when one story leaves and another steps into its place. My process is intact. For this, I am so, so grateful.

And with that… onward!

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THE LATEST ON THE INTERNET:

“Hope cannot exist in and of itself. I can't just be hopeful for the sake of it.” In the latest episode of A WORD ON WORDS, cohost with the most Mary Laura Philpott interviewed Jenny Offill about her latest novel, Weather.

And in some throwback AWOW, John Seigenthaler interviewed John Lewis for A WORD ON WORDS when his book WALKING WITH THE WIND came out. It’s well worth watching. #keepreading

Clueless Is a Great Teen Movie. It’s Also a Satire. It is also one of my favorite movies…. which will surprise no one. (As if.) Please tell me how much you love it…

The delightfully brilliant Susan Orlean had a true COVID moment, and I haven’t laughed so hard in months.

Book Riot has 19 of the Most Unbelievably Realistic Book Cakes, which are quite incredible!

Hello, good movies as old books. People are so creative! I loved Gattaca… one of my faves.

Cozy Mysteries by Black Authors. A great list!

Harlequin Introduces Larger Mass Market Paperback… And oh, hey, GOOD GIRLS LIE is releasing in Mass Market Paperback Max on August 18! This article explains this exciting new size for paperback books. I can’t wait to hear what you think! I’ve read a book in the new format and really love it.

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This was a very colorful month of books on my To Be Read List. I’ve got a huge backlog of books building up — I can’t read any fiction while I’m finishing this edit, so my list is growing and growing and growing…

Which one should I read first?

And what are you reading?

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That’s it from me. Watch a few innings (Go Dodgers!), pluck a title from your backlist to read, send me some major editing mojo, and I’ll see you next week!

Peace and hugs,
J.T.

Sunday Smatterings

Happy Sunday! I hope you’re well this beautiful day. Smatterings had a nice little summer vacation, my well is almost full, and I’m getting back into my routine. Friday morning? Write up some smatterings.

I enjoyed my time away.  I’ve found it’s so vital to my well-being as a creative to take time to turn inward, to replenish my well. I read a lot of books, I wrote a lot of words, I got plenty of sleep and exercise and clean food and fresh air. When I get to the point where I feel it’s time to step away, it’s not only because my days have become unbalanced, my life has as well. The moment I realize I’ve gotten out of my routines, that’s when I take a break.

Routines are a creative’s best friend. Writing is a muscle, and must be trained and honed to work at its maximum potential. There is one thing every exceptionally successful author has in common—a writing routine. Whether that’s writing for 2 hours before the kids get up, 7am-11am, 4pm-8pm, after dinner until midnight, whatever suits your daily rhythms, giving yourself a chunk of time to be creative every day and sticking to it is vital for your growth. 

I know it’s become exceptionally hard to maintain these routines with the stay-at-home orders, the worry, the fear, but now is when routines are more important than ever. I encourage you to find a block of time that you can take for yourself and fill it with your gift. Breathe, and create.

There are a lot of links today, so off we go. Onward!

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THE LATEST ON THE INTERNET:

There have been some amazing stay-at-home editions of A WORD ON WORDS this season. I got to interview Emily St. John Mandel, Julia Alvarez, and Erik Larson. My cohost Mary Laura Philpott interviewed R. Eric Thomas and Lori Gottlieb. And if you missed the news: There are now transcripts available for Season 5 so you can enjoy our full conversations.

With Stores Closed, Barnes & Noble Does Some Redecorating. I am SO ready to get back to browsing in bookstores…

Raiding my Closet for Book-Inspired Outfits. Very cool to see some GOOD GIRLS LIE outfit inspiration!

Face masks from Litographs. Which one should I choose??

Yoga for Brain Fog: How Your Practice Can Clear Your Mind. It can make a big difference!

What’s Wrong With The Strong Female Character? Such a great discussion from Kristen Lepionka, Layne Fargo, and Wendy Heard.

Business Musings: Holes in the Economy. “We have no idea what the world will look like in a year. It will take a long time for all of us to figure out what’s going on outside of our little bubble of friends, family, and businesses. We have to assume that everyone is going through a rough time right now, and that their own prospects for a solid future—one they had imagined for themselves just six months ago—are bleak. We can’t keep track of it all, so we keep track of what we can.”

Awe-inspiring Book Tattoos for Literature Lovers. Very cool.

The July Newsletter went out last week, so if you didn’t get it, please check your promotions folder! Everyone who opens the newsletter the first week it’s out will be entered in a giveaway for a gift card to the bookstore of your choice.

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PRETTY THINGS by Janelle Brown

 This book, friends, this book. I will be raving about it all year, I’m sure; it’s already made it onto my best of 2020 list. A con artist gets in over her head when she tries to pull a fast one on a wealthy Instagram influencer – but it’s so much more: a perfectly paced gothic mystery, a searing social commentary, a case study in how to write rich, deep characters. This one’s a winner. I can’t wait to see it on the screen, it’s one of Nicole Kidman’s next projects.

What are you reading?

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That’s it from me. Make something special today, get some walking in, hydrate hydrate hydrate, and I’ll see you next week!

Peace and hugs,
J.T.

Sunday Smatterings

Greetings, salutations, and warm hello, friends.

The end of May is upon us. 2020 is at the hafway point, and it’s certainly got nowhere to go but up.

It has been a contemplative and difficult week here. We lost a close friend, one who stood by our sides as we married, as darling husband did for him. He was a good guy, and he will be missed. Against the backdrop of the loss that we’re all experiencing, it reminds me again of Ann Hood’s elucidating statement that we all suffer from our own personal earthquakes.

Even while the world feels unmanageable and wrong, every story is a singular one, and we can’t truly understand the depth of another’s pain. I know so many of you are suffering right now, and I send you peace, and love, and compassion. The pain and rage and injustices we experienced this week are unfathomable. It’s definitly time to take a breath, reach a hand across the aisle, and hold on tight.

The secret project is pretty well wrapped, and I’m waiting for edits on HER DARK LIES. I had a crazy moment on Thursday when I realized that for the first time in probably four years, outside of a few books to read, all of my projects are in a state of completion, or in someone else’s court. These moments are few and far between for me. It’s the good and bad part of being self-employed, there’s never a moment of rest, you have to hustle to feed the cats. When there is calm, you must seize it.

With that in mind, a wee bit of news: I had already planned to take my delayed sabbatical from the socials this month, but I’ve decided to go ahead and take a few weeks off from the blog, as well. I reserve the right to change my mind, of course, but I think it’s high time I took a little break. I will be refilling my well with books and movies and house flipping shows, and getting as much fresh air as I can manage in our humidity laden environs. I’m deciding what I want to write next, and that’s always a good time to sit with my thoughts and ideas to see what gels for me. Last time I finished a book, I started another one immediately. I’m sort of enjoying this sense of completion with nothing hanging over my head. A new phenomenon.

Worry not, I’ll be back at the end of the month! 

As ever, onward...

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TEAR ME APART is on sale!

If you’re in need of distraction, may I suggest TEAR ME APART? This book is the story of a mother willing to do anything to protect her daughter even as their carefully constructed world unravels around them. And right now, it’s on sale for $2.99! 

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THE LATEST ON THE INTERNET:

17 Thrillers That Will Have You on the Edge of Your Seat This Summer. Great list!

The 20 Best Audiobooks to Listen to in Quarantine. I’ve been looking for audiobook recommendations…

An Armchair Traveler’s Guide to Napa Valley Wine Country. Napa is one of my favorite places in the whole world.

12 Young Adult Books That Are Classic Lit Retellings. Buying. Every. Single. One.

Though I started by making my own, I've found I love these masks from Ugmonk. Soft, breathable, comfortable, washable — everything we need. I usually wear it over a surgical mask (Had a couple left over from surgery, hurrah!)

Photo Essay: Bookstores Are Opening, Cautiously, Across the Country. Such creative signs!

How to clean copper pots the easy way. What an amazing tip. I had no idea it was this easy.

11 Great Book Puzzles You Can Buy Right Now. I admit I haven’t gotten very far on my puzzle. Maybe one of these would go better…

You've probably been writing the letter 'g' wrong for years. How do you write your lower case g?

Looking for a Back-to-Basics Cookbook? Our Community Recommends These 5. With so many more people cooking these days, I’m sure this is a welcome resource.

How This Romance Novelist Connected Readers In All 50 States With A Galley Exchange Program. Very cool idea.

The May/June Newsletter went out this week, so if you didn’t get it, please check your promotions folder!

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THE GLASS HOTEL by Emily St. John Mandel

Quarantine is an interesting reading time. I either want to read something so light and fluffy I can’t help but feel good, or, I want to read darkly human, philosophically compelling works that resonate deeply and make me think about how life can be better lived or more impactfully. THE GLASS HOTEL falls into the latter category. A brilliantly structured book, it's a bit quieter than STATION ELEVEN, but it's beautifully written, wonderfully realized, and a thoughtful work of art. And I got to interview Emily for A WORD ON WORDS, which was incredible! A favorite author for me.

What are you reading?

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That’s it from me. Love your neighbors, take a walk in the wilderness (with your mask on, natch), take some old towels to the local shelter, and I’ll see you next month!

Peace and hugs,
J.T.

Sunday Smatterings

Hello, my dears. Memorial Day weekend and none of us can get together properly. These are odd times, aren’t they? Regardless, our hearts are heavy for those we’ve lost, that’s for sure.

It’s been a rather odd week. I’m feeling the intense need to remove anything from my life that isn’t serving me, to only have things around me that are beautiful and happy: soft and elegant fabrics, flowers, happiness. A need to purge the old, to declutter and clean and renew. But I’m too tired to do it. It’s been the month of deadline and Zoom, and you know how tired that can make you.

So I’m reading, instead. Yes, you heard me right. After last weekend’s debacle, I was finally able to let some of the chaos go and snuggle up with a good book. Or three. I read Hank Phillipi Ryan’s new one THE FIRST TO LIE, coming this summer, I read Julia Alvarez’s AFTERLIFE, a lovely, thoughtful elegy on grief and growth, and am well into Erik Larsen’s THE SPLENDID AND THE VILE (which is a masterpiece).  And I watched the entire Harry Potter series, and am listening to DRAGONFLY IN AMBER. And I’ve done the edges of a puzzle my BFF Laura Benedict sent me. (Um…puzzles are harder than I remember…)

It’s felt good to relax into story to address my lassitude this week, for sure. May is nearly over, and with it, many of my obligations. I have a month ahead of me that all I have to do is... well, edits and edits and a few online commitments, but it’s not nearly as busy as May, trust me. And that means... I’m going to take a sabbatical. Not right this moment, I think I’ll start the second week of June, when all my obligations are complete.

I missed my annual sabbatical this year because of COVID, and it feels rather odd to be planning to take one when that’s really the only way to communicate with so many of you, but I know you’ll forgive me a few weeks off. I’m going to crawl in a hole with the husband and the cats and exist for a little while.

I have been saving so many books for this moment. My TBR has grown so out of control! I really need to prune it back. Planning what to pleasure read isn’t my strong suit. I go with whatever strikes me at the moment. I have a couple of books that I agreed to blurb ages ago, and once they’re done, I have to decide where to go next. BEACH READ is definitely high on my list, as is CHOSEN ONES, STRAY, PRETTY THINGS, THE GIRLS IN THE GARDEN, THE WIFE STALKER...

Well, that’s not such a bad list to start thinking about...

And what a wonderful problem to have! I do so appreciate all your thoughtful responses to last week’s yawp about not being able to relax enough to read. Granted, I finished a book and knocked 10 more things off my To Do list, but I think I needed to hear that it’s okay to chill out a bit. So thank you, friends. You really do feed my soul.

As ever, onward...

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THE LATEST ON THE INTERNET:

Harlequin Introduces Larger Mass Market Paperback. What do you think about this new size?

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The Bestselling Audiobooks of All Time. How many have you listened to???

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The Essential Stephen King: If you’ve never read his books, here’s where to start. I need Jeremy Finley to weigh in on this. He’s guiding me through the King canon right now…

Caitriona Before Claire: Highlights from the Outlander Star’s Life in Fashion. So gorgeous!

1929 Michigan mansion has 2-story library with Sistine Chapel-like painted mural ceiling. Absolutely incredible.

BWG Library Picks of the Week - thrillers edition! Very cool to see TEAR ME APART included.

Lisa Berger & Sarah Penna’s Frolic Media Inks First-Look Deal With CBS TV Studios. Brilliant news for a great company — congratulations to the boss ladies at Frolic!

The Most In-Demand Productivity Tool You Need. Great advice on what really matters in productivity.

Heads up: A DEEPER DARKNESS, the first book in my Sam Owens series, is on sale for $1.99!

Bookish Care Packages To Get You Through Quarantine. So many neat options.

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THE WIFE STALKER by Liv Constantine

This is one of my most anticipated reads of the summer! Liv Constantine can't miss, in my view. (Photo credit: @livconstantine2.)

What are you looking forward to reading this summer?

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That’s it from me. Have a lovely Memorial Day weekend, and I’ll see you next week!

Peace and hugs,
J.T.