Sunday Smatterings

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Smatterings - February 7.png

Happy Sunday, friends! When the world gets too big, I try to take solace and comfort from the little things. Like how much I am loving my new washer and dryer. Or the camellias we just bought to be a privacy screen and windbreak into our back yard. Or taking four entries on my Day One, where I draft all my non-fiction, from #drafting to #final. Or brushing the cats. Or vacuuming. Lord, I love vacuuming. I need someone to send me a house elf to fold laundry in a timely manner, but the Dyson comes out all the time.

These tasks feel mindless but they are incredibly grounding. My friend Anne wrote about how the pandemic has given her the gift of enjoying doing laundry, and I couldn’t agree more. There’s something just so satisfying about housework. Sisyphean, yes. But comforting.

I’ve spent the whole week on non-fiction, and I am itching to get back to my manuscript. I’ve discovered a direct inverse correlation between my to do list and my fiction word count. The longer the list, the fewer words get written. So this week, I decided to load all the nonfiction I needed to do for the next month into these few days so I can get back to work on the book as quickly as possible. I’ve written essays, done interviews, the newsletter, plotted and planned some art work, and worked on a big side project that I hope will make you happy. Starting Sunday, I’m back into the fiction groove, and I can’t wait!

Since I have to draft one more essay before I shut it all down, off I go. Onward!

That’s it from me. Enjoy the Super Bowl (I’m rooting for Tampa Bay) drink some water, fold those clothes, and I’ll see you next Sunday!

Peace and hugs,
J.T.

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J.T. Ellison

J.T. Ellison is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than 25 novels, and the EMMY® award winning co-host of thJoss Walkere literary TV show A WORD ON WORDS. She also writes urban fantasy under the pen name Joss Walker.

With millions of books in print, her work has won critical acclaim and prestigious awards. Her titles have been optioned for television and published in twenty-eight countries.

J.T. lives with her husband and twin kittens in Nashville, where she is hard at work on her next novel.

Sunday Smatterings

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Smatterings - January 31.png

Happy Sunday, friends! So how did you do on last week’s homework? Any dreams found or realized? I hope so! I took my own advice and did some thinking about the changes I’ve made recently to my routine. One of the biggest is adding in more water. I drink a LOT of tea, which is water-based, natch, but I haven’t been drinking enough actual water. And as I was making this change, the hysterical and talented Sally Hepworth did a long series on her Instagram stories about her experiment with drinking three liters of water a day. I don’t know that I need to go quite that far, but adding in several glasses throughout the day is a must.

I also downloaded a new app I came across called Fabulous. It takes a loving, scientific, and holistic based approach to productivity and new habits. I took it as a good sign that the very first habit it started for me was—you guessed it—drinking a glass of water as soon as I wake up in the morning. 

I also challenged myself to write 2,000 fiction words a day this week. I was hoping to add 10k to the story I was working on. I'm at 7,300 so far before today’s writing session, so that's not bad.

Why am I working on this? Because the tour for HER DARK LIES is starting soon, and there are a LOT of events lined up. Which is a great thing. But an hour here and an hour there will definitely start taking its toll, so it’s a good time to start buttressing myself for the weeks ahead. I’ve also added an extra 15 minutes of exercise to my routine as well, which isn’t such a bad thing, I’m getting through more podcasts I’ve been saving! 

With that, onward!

THE LATEST ON THE INTERNET:

10 New Mystery Books You Might've Missed in 2020. Adding a few of these to my ever-growing TBR…though I started EIGHT PERFECT MURDERS and I have feelings….

The 40 Best-Selling Books of 2020, According to The New York Times Best Seller List. Have you read any of these?

J.T. Ellison Is a Bright Star on the Rise in the Suspense Genre. Such a nice highlight of my work - I’m quite humbled to think I have a home run streak! I feel like so long as I’m batting 300, I’m doing it right.

Ursula K. Le Guin Is Getting the Greatest of Tributes: A Stamp. Very, very cool!

43 Books By Women of Color to Read in 2021. Great list!

The 15-Minute Rule. Some good advice here, which plays into my new water habit perfectly.

Warner Brothers sent me a really cool box in the mail to celebrate their movie The Little Things and I shared this video of what all was in there. The movie is supposed to be along the lines of Silence of the Lambs and Seven so it’s totally up our alleys. I can’t wait to see it!

Beautiful Bookshelf Decor Ideas For 2021. So many great ideas!

After a conversation w/ a friend about how the distractions of the world affect our work, I reshared an old favorite for anyone else needing a booster shot: How Social Media Kills the Creative Spirit (aka mom says get offline and go write.)

Another oldie but goodie: Getting the Most Out Of Your Creativity and Social Media.

Ex Libris: A History of Bookplates. The more you know.

That’s it from me. I was asked to provide some kitten pictures — if you check out my Instagram feed, every Saturday there’s a new candid from one of the minions. And if you don’t have Instagram, just scroll down to the bottom of my Bio page. Don’t forget tomorrow is bunny rabbits! See you next Sunday!

Peace and hugs,
J.T.

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J.T. Ellison

J.T. Ellison is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than 25 novels, and the EMMY® award winning co-host of thJoss Walkere literary TV show A WORD ON WORDS. She also writes urban fantasy under the pen name Joss Walker.

With millions of books in print, her work has won critical acclaim and prestigious awards. Her titles have been optioned for television and published in twenty-eight countries.

J.T. lives with her husband and twin kittens in Nashville, where she is hard at work on her next novel.

Sunday Smatterings

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Smatterings - January 24.png

Happy Sunday, friends! Buckle up, I’m getting deep today.

“How often do you say no to the things that would interfere with your goals?”

After this fascinating prompt popped up in my journaling app, I’ve been thinking a lot this week about life dreams. How to create them, how to make them come true. And even more, how they change over time. It’s a very intimate thought process, obviously. It takes great introspection to discover what you really want from this life, and great will and character to put in motion the steps to achieve it. Trust me, it’s much, much easier to have a dream that you want to achieve “someday” and then feel dissatisfied and disenfranchised that you haven’t met that goal. But let’s be honest, why haven’t you met the goal, however big or small? Is it because you don’t want it that badly? Or you don’t want to do the work to get there? Do you sabotage yourself? Or has your resistance become a physical, tangible thing?

Or are you saying yes to all the wrong things?

I did a keynote last week and one of the questions I fielded was one I get almost any time I speak. 

I have a novel in me, but how do I make the time to write it?

I answered as I always do. If you want it badly enough, you will make the time. I know too many great authors who get up an hour before their family to throw down words before getting the kids to school and themselves off to work, or stay up late in order to make progress on their books, to indulge someone saying they don’t have time. If you want to fulfill your dreams, you will make the time. Full stop. 

I’m afraid that after all these years of making time to be a writer, I grow weary of this question. It seems so logical to me that if you want something, you go get it. I’m very spoiled that way, I know.  I was not overtly dissuaded from my passions and dreams (outside of my professor, but that’s irrelevant). My family didn’t subvert me. My husband supports me. I have an iron will—or perhaps we should be gentler and call it sheer stubbornness—that I will eventually achieve what I dream. (I also do a LOT of wishing upon stars, which I highly recommend. The universe wants to give you what you seek, after all.)

But here’s the rub. Just because YOU have a goal in mind doesn’t mean you alone can make it happen. You have to get other people on the bandwagon, too. I think that might be where many dreams are derailed. Nasty comments, snide remarks, implied and outright rejections, that person who always pops up to distract you from your goals at just the wrong time, perfectly curated social media feeds, all parade through our worlds every day. It’s finding a way to turn these annoyances off, finding a way to make your own interior voice stronger and more loving than any critic, that gives you the tools necessary to achieve your dreams.

I’m not one for giving homework, but today, I’d like to challenge you. Grab a piece of paper and a pen. Be honest. Be open. No one’s going to see this but you.

Write down your biggest dream. Then write down five concrete steps that will get you there. When you’re finished with that, write the five impediments to your goals. 

Once you have them in front of you, in print, not floating around in your pretty brain, it will help you see exactly what you need to do to take that next step toward your goals. 

I sign off my emails to writer friends—Write hard! So today, along with ever onward, allow me to say—Dream big. You’ve got this.

THE LATEST ON THE INTERNET:

Books That Predict Your 2021 According to Your Zodiac Sign. This is fun!

Calling all audiobook lovers! Enter to win A THOUSAND DOORS, plus 45 other Mystery & Thriller Audiobooks from BookSweeps.

21 Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2021. Adding a whole bunch of these to my TBR…

Blue Monday: Here's how to put a positive spin on 'the most depressing day of the year'. Such a wonderful idea!

11 Goal-Setting Apps That Will Help Keep You On Track. How are you doing with your new year’s resolutions?

For Sale: A Former Library To Call Your Own. So tempting…

15 Fascinating Books About Family Secrets. Great list.

If Famous Literary Characters Were Given Very Good Doggos. Hilarious.

Times New Roman, Arial, and Helvetica: The Font Favorites, But Why? So many font opinions. What’s your favorite font?

10 of the Best Books for Dry January Participants. Stay strong, Dry January folks! And for the rest of us - go hard into February!

21 Excellent Fantasy Books Coming Out This Winter. It’s hard to keep up!

11 Words That Don't Mean What They Sound Like. Any of these surprise you?

Don’t forget: Goodreads is giving away 10 copies of HER DARK LIES! (US only.)

That’s it from me. Dream big, start small, and love hard. I’ll see you next Sunday!

Peace and hugs,
J.T.

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J.T. Ellison

J.T. Ellison is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than 25 novels, and the EMMY® award winning co-host of thJoss Walkere literary TV show A WORD ON WORDS. She also writes urban fantasy under the pen name Joss Walker.

With millions of books in print, her work has won critical acclaim and prestigious awards. Her titles have been optioned for television and published in twenty-eight countries.

J.T. lives with her husband and twin kittens in Nashville, where she is hard at work on her next novel.

Sunday Smatterings

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Smatterings - January 17.png

Happy Sunday, friends! I hope you had a good week. It’s a nice, quiet day at Chez Ellison. Jordan is having a snack on my desk, Jameson is sound asleep in my reading chair. The sun streams boldly in my window—the new house is filled with sunlight, so much more than the old one.

It is deceptively calm at the moment. This week was wild, mostly anxiety driven, I think. I had a big lunch event that took a lot of prep, and have been on regular repeat/refresh of the websites looking for vaccination appointments for our parents. The cats had to go to the vet for their annual checkup, I got my first haircut in 6 months, and there are these crazy looming deadlines... on top of the chaos that is the last two weeks, it was a bit much. It’s amazing how stressful worrying can be. How just leaving the house becomes a study in epidemiological risks. How many layers of masks will make it safe to spend two hours indoors among people... 

I was talking with a friend about the correlation between lower vitamin D and higher anxiety levels, and looking back, I think we’re onto something.  I upped my Vitamin D and the second half of the week went much smoother. Something for you to think about if you, like many of us, get a little over-anxious in the winter months.  

Scheduling is underway for the HER DARK LIES virtual tour, lots of podcasts and bookclub visits ahead. The January newsletter is out, so if you didn’t receive it, check your promotions/junk folders. Lent is a month away, and while I have a book launching in the middle of it, I am going to try and take some time off the socials. Weekly check-ins, most likely. I have a lot of creative work ahead, so I’m gearing up!

And with that, grab your cuppa. Onward!

THE LATEST ON THE INTERNET:

42 Books Everyone Will Be Talking About in 2021. Are any of these on your TBR?

The Bomb That Struck the Heart of Nashville. A heartfelt and important piece from Margaret Renkl. Waking up Christmas morning to the bombing was shattering for us all. After the year we had in Nashville, it was a surreal capper.

CBTB's Most-Anticipated Early 2021 Crime Books. So honored Abby from Crime By The Book included HER DARK LIES on this awesome list!

Literary Characters Who Would Make Great Librarians. This is fun to consider. Who would you like recommending books?

These Precious Days, By Ann Patchett. Lovely, and long, essay.

In honor of the start of A Discovery of Witches season 2, I thought I’d remind you I got to interview the divine Deb Harkness for A WORD ON WORDS four years ago. Such a blast! I'm already in love with Season 2 and Elizabethan England!

27 Debuts to Look Forward To in the First Half of 2021. Fresh crop of new authors to support!

This Little Free Library at the South Pole is the First in Antarctica. Very cool!

Don't Sleep On The Best Romance Novels Of 2020. Because sometimes you need a happily ever after.



Don’t forget: Goodreads is giving away 10 copies of HER DARK LIES! (US only.)

The Best Crime Shows of the Decade. See any of your favorites?

That’s it from me. Take your vitamins, don’t forget to floss, and for heavens sake, wear your masks, and I’ll see you next Sunday!

Peace and hugs,
J.T.

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J.T. Ellison

J.T. Ellison is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than 25 novels, and the EMMY® award winning co-host of thJoss Walkere literary TV show A WORD ON WORDS. She also writes urban fantasy under the pen name Joss Walker.

With millions of books in print, her work has won critical acclaim and prestigious awards. Her titles have been optioned for television and published in twenty-eight countries.

J.T. lives with her husband and twin kittens in Nashville, where she is hard at work on her next novel.

Sunday Smatterings

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Smatterings - January 10.png

Happy Sunday, friends!

Welcome to 2021. We certainly got off to a rocky start. I’ve gotten very little work done since Wednesday. Like many of you, I watched the events unfolding this week with absolute horror. I think when you’ve worked in DC and walked the hallowed halls of the Capitol and the chambers, seeing them desecrated is especially hurtful. I don’t know what the next ten days will bring, but as I said on Facebook, I truly hope this was the climax of our collective dystopian novel. 

On to better things. The Annual Review is in the books. I debated long and hard about bothering with one this year, as I spent half the year deleting the plans I had in place and replacing them with the word COVID. 2020 was such an anomaly, and I took so much time away from writing, but in the end, since I do these for my own records, I pulled one together. I hadn’t even decided on a word until nearly midnight New Year’s Eve. But that was par for the course last year, everything got delayed and pushed off.

There’s a lot to come in the next few months as we gear up for the release of HER DARK LIES, so I’ll leave you with this thought, and onward we go.

“Do not let the behavior of others destroy your inner peace.”
—Dalai Lama

THE LATEST ON THE INTERNET:

36 of the Most Anticipated Mysteries and Thrillers of 2021. So excited Goodreads included HER DARK LIES!

Goodreads is giving away 10 copies of HER DARK LIES! (US only.)

28 Books To Read Based On The Shows You Binge-Watched This Year. Great suggestions. What was your favorite binge of 2020?

The Ultimate Cozy Books for Cold Winter Days. We all need cozy right now, and man, is it chilly here in Nashvegas today!

The 2021 Word Trackers are in!!! Let's get writing! Thanks to Svenja’s art and illustration for helping me stay accountable year after year.

How (and Why) to Spring Clean Your Digital Book Clutter. Great idea. Might as well clean up your desktop and declutter all your unused phone apps, too.

Their Publishing Imprint Closed. Now They’re Bringing It Back. Pay attention to this. Major shifts afoot...

6 Famous Libraries That Were Tragically Destroyed. Such a loss.

It's Okay If You Didn't Read This Year. If you had a hard time reading in 2020, you’re not alone.

New Year's Poems to Bring Hope to the Beginning of the Year. Lovely.

That’s it from me. Let’s all take a nice, deep, collective breath, and I’ll see you next Sunday!

Peace and hugs,
J.T.

/ /
,

J.T. Ellison

J.T. Ellison is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than 25 novels, and the EMMY® award winning co-host of thJoss Walkere literary TV show A WORD ON WORDS. She also writes urban fantasy under the pen name Joss Walker.

With millions of books in print, her work has won critical acclaim and prestigious awards. Her titles have been optioned for television and published in twenty-eight countries.

J.T. lives with her husband and twin kittens in Nashville, where she is hard at work on her next novel.