A cold front pushed through Nashville this weekend, and Friday, at dusk, the geese started south en masse. It’s not a sad sound, exactly, but it is poignant. A harbinger of change, and very fitting for our lives. Maybe this moment in time portends positive change ahead.

I’m having a quiet morning, the first in what feels like weeks. Finally sorting a couple of months of email (bad J.T.), managing my To Do list, and reading a few magazines I’ve been saving. I’m a full three weeks behind on my non-fiction pleasure reading, (aka the WSJ Grapevine, Lithub, CrimeReads, Apple+), and let’s not even talk about the books that are piling up. I’ve had exactly enough time to read about a paragraph or watch 15 minutes of a show or movie before I fall asleep in my chair. I’m still in a fiction slump, but right now it’s due to time constraints, not apathy. I’ve got October 1 as my goal date to have all this external work behind me so I can settle back into my routine. 

And wow, do I miss my routine. It’s so vital for a creative to have some sort of pattern to their days. It helps the mind settle when you habitually sit down at the same time every day to do your work. Without mine, I get fratchetty.

On another topic...Since my trip to Colorado, in a point of great personal pride, I haven’t been as nervous about getting back into the real world. I spent January to March pretty well obsessed with the virus, freaking out because no one else was freaking out. Then we shut down and everyone finally freaked out, which was such a huge relief. It made me calm and focused. I stayed home, finished my book, wiped down my groceries and my mail, and lived the hermit life. I stayed home through the first round of reopenings, and the second, and the surge that followed. 

But flying to Colorado shifted things for me. Being in a state that wasn’t in the midst of a terrible outbreak, seeing people wearing their masks but living their lives, really, really helped. As a result, I’ve started to reengage with my Nashville world. The fear that has been thrumming through my veins and drummed into me since January has shifted to wary acceptance. I’m still taking precautions, but it’s time to start living again. I know most of you have been already, sending kids back to school and working hard, and for that, I salute you! I am firmly convinced masks work—and with that, life can be lived/enjoyed again.

And maybe, in a couple of weeks, things will be even more back to normal in my world. I sure hope so. Onward!

THE LATEST ON THE INTERNET:

Mark your calendar for this Thursday September 10 at 11:30 ET: GOOD GIRLS LIE will be featured on First Chapter Fun! Tune-in LIVE as Hannah Mary McKinnon & Hank Phillippi Ryan read the first chapter of GOOD GIRLS LIE. More details here.

Your Fall 2020 Book Preview. My TBR just got bigger! So many amazing titles coming out.

Related: 12 Books You Should Read in September. Are any of these on your radar?

The Inside Story of the 25-Year, $8 Million Heist From the Carnegie Library. This story is wild!

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Habit Tune-Up: Productivity System Indecision, Embracing Boredom, and Craving Depth in a Shallow Job. Every creative who wants to be better needs to listen to this podcast.

When COVID closed the library: staff call every member of Victorian library to say hello. Above and beyond.

Bookish Stationery for Your Quarantine Pen Pals. It’s a good time to send a card or letter and remind people you care.

That’s it from me. I’ll see you next week!

Peace and hugs,
J.T.