Can I Do Hard Things? Really?

First, I'm going to need a nap

Welcome to new readers! I write about all the ways we can embrace “it’s not too late,” along with a monthly roundup post on what I’ve read, what I’ve watched, useful resources about writing, and an update on how my “It’s not too late” novel project is going.

Bob bought Willa a coat. He thinks she likes it. What do you think?

I hope you are staying cool if you are affected by the heat and safe if you are affected by the fires or smoke. Be kind to yourself: the physical and emotional cost of climate change is harsh, and often unacknowledged.

I spent a week high in a favorite secret meadow, swimming in an ice-cold creek, hiking, and taking naps while it thundered and poured. I needed that beauty and silence so very much. Watching deer, fox, hawks, moose, clouds, and the meadows and mountains — the shadows, the colors. The fox’s thick coat!

And there were scores of dead trees, killed by the beetle infestation, along with many signs of the persistent drought.

It was a glorious restorative week tinged with loss. This is living with climate change.

NOVEL UPDATE

I promised I would finish the book in my last end-of-the-month missive.

I did! I did!

I also promised myself I would be ready to send the book to my agent by mid-September.

I’m not! I’m not!

I need another pass through the book.

I’ve had a handful of beta readers read it, and while almost all of them love the book and think it’s close, they all want different things changed. This is very confusing. Of course, some comments, I’m like “no, that’s wrong,” but other suggestions have given me ideas — I see places the book can be stronger. I see places I want to change, not because the beta readers want them, but because I know the book will be better.

At first, I was DEEPLY BUMMED and may have resorted to eating a bag of my favorite cookies….

But after a few days of very dramatic whining, Bob telling me (lovingly) to stop it, and reaching out to my developmental editor to tell him I wanted to give up, and Damien saying, “It’s a great book, please don’t give up,” I’m feeling… excited but not ready.

My emotional stamina is drained from riding the roller coaster of “this is great!!!” to “this needs more work.” I need a break. And thus Jennifer Marie Louden is going to take a break. Probably a few weeks, maybe an entire month. And then: I WILL DO HARD THINGS.

I hope sharing my novel writing saga helps you stay engaged with whatever “it’s not too late” endeavor you are exploring. If I can be of any help, comment below. It can simply be helpful to say, “I’m working on this and it matters to me and I’m scared.”

WHAT I READ THIS MONTH

It was a good reading month!

LAND by Maggie O’Farrell — This book works on every level: language, character, plot, and theme. I am haunted by her exploration of how our relationship to the land and family has been forever alerted because of colonialism.

NONESUCH by Frances Spufford — starts so strong, gets very muddled in the middle, and ends on a heartrending note to set up the sequel. WWII London, not usually my thing, speculative leaning toward fantasy, great writing.

TELL ME EVERYTHING by Elizabeth Strout — After reading The Things We Never Say, I needed more Strout. I loved this novel almost as much as Amy and Isabelle. Strout’s generous heart, especially for Bob Burgess’s character, helps me feel kinder toward my own considerable foibles.

THE RED QUEEN by Margaret Drabble — I’ve been reading authors I missed, filling holes in my literary bucket, and I don’t know what to tell you about this book except maybe don’t read it.

THE WINTROP WOMAN by Anya Seton is an excellent historical novel. Seton is another writer I’ve wanted to read and I started here because I found the book in a used bookstore in Taos. Elizabeth Winthrop was a real person who defied many of the strictures of her Puritan times. While reading about her life I thought, “I would have died the first week off the boat,” “Why did anyone ever want to be a Puritan?” and “This book explains so much about America.”

THROUGH A GLASS DARKLY and SUFFER THE CHILDREN by Donna Leon— I treated myself to two of Leon’s Brunetti mysteries on vacation. If you’ve never read any, and you love a smart mystery that wrestles with moral questions, has excellent food descriptions, and a wonderful marriage and family, and is set in Venice, you are in for a treat. Do read in order. Death at La Fenice is first.

I also loved this list of books by Kolina Cicero The 40 Books that Made Me — what would be on your list?

WRITING HELP (and marketing)

Matt Bell is a generous, wise teacher, and his book Refuse to Be Done has a genius list of weasel words that have been saving my butt. I found — take a deep breath - 744 uses of the word that in my manuscript.

Transitions seem easy to write, but not for me. This article is a goldmine.

How to Get Your Subscribers to Buy Your Book by Abigail Monti is a must-read if you want to sell books. So is everything Leigh Stein writes.

I pay for Karin Gillespie Pitch Your Novel because I will soon be pitching mine (because I can do hard things). She does an awesome job of researching the marketplace.

WHAT I WATCHED

NO OFFENSE (BritBox) I discovered this British police procedural one afternoon looking for something to watch when I was exhausted by my book shenanigans, and it’s so good. The writing is fast-paced, salty, and laugh-out-loud funny. Three strong female leads, twisty as all get out, and while there is no graphic on-screen violence, there are VERY graphic story situations.

TASTE OF MURDER (BritBox) is light entertainment with great scenery and food porn. Good if you need something slightly mindless.

LITTLE FOREST (rented on Amazon) is a soothing Japanese film about finding yourself after college, family, and friends. Enjoyed!

What I Couldn’t Watch…

MAXIMUM PLEASURE made me too nervous. STAR CITY is brilliant but too depressing and when the world is on fire, I can’t always take depressing. Both on Apple.

Wishing you a cool afternoon with a good book in a beautiful meadow.

Wishing you the courage to keep going on what matters to you even when you wobble.

Wishing you a perfectly ripe peach (or the fruit of your choice), a slice of homemade pie, and a long chat with a friend who loves you just the way you are.

Thanks for being here,

Jen