Nothing to Tell

Some Updates + Housekeeping

“I have nothing to tell you, save that it is to you that I tell this nothing”.

—Roland Barthes, A Lover’s Discourse

Roomie’s peach cream cake, 07/16/24

Dear Reader,

Summer in the city is driving me insane.

I blame the humidity. Yesterday, my sister and I—both desert kids who moved to wetter climates—lamented on the phone about how easy we’d had it growing up. Turns out “dry heat” does make a difference. Put me in an oven over a sauna any day. I feel like I have mildew growing not just in my bathroom, but in my brain.

That is to say, I’m not operating at full mental capacity.

I have nothing to write to you, save that it is to you that I write this nothing. Keeping up the habit, etc., etc. So, here are a few things I’ve been thinking about/working on:

I. PublicATION Service Announcement

As promised in my last post, I now have the publication date for my poem “Upon Seeing an Unflattering Photo of Myself”. It will appear in the Orchards Poetry Journal this Saturday, July 20th! You will be able to find it on their website, where you can purchase a print copy or download a free PDF. Consider donating a dollar with the latter!

I’m really excited for people to read this one! I wrote it almost exactly a year ago, and to have it published when the hydrangeas are in bloom again feels like fate.

II. Novel

One of the members of my writing group joked at our last workshop that every draft of your novel feels like it has to be the last one. This feels particularly true now that I’m back at it with my middle-grade fantasy—code name: BBGAS. I have started sharing it with the group, one of whom has read multiple previous drafts and two of whom are brand new to the world. It’s a great mix in terms of feedback!

BBGAS has been simmering for a while—read: since my last bout of querying in January—so I didn’t really know what I would find when I re-opened it. To my pleasant surprise, there is a lot of great stuff in there. I’m happy with many of the revisions I made last time around. That could change as I move into the quagmire that is The Middle, but right now I feel good about feeling good. I missed these characters and am glad to be hanging out with them again.

III. Poetry/Substack

In the last couple of months, Loose Baggy Monsters has become something I did not expect: a place to share my poetry. I would like to start sharing one poem per month. (Maybe even the occasional short story if I continue to work in that medium.) When I started this Substack, I thought that I would only share my reflections on my writing, not the actual writing itself. Now, that seems silly. I still rely too heavily on outside authorities to determine whether or not my writing is valuable—whether a journal will publish it, or if it will win a contest. Formal publication will always matter to me, but I want to share things just because I love them, too.

You can read current and future poems of mine in the “Poetry” section of Loose Baggy Monsters. If you’re subscribed, you’ll continue to receive them in your inbox, probably on the last Saturday of every month. I might also write corresponding “Behind the Monster” analyses for each poem. All of this in addition to the regular “Backpage” posts every other Wednesday. If that’s too many emails for you (which I totally understand) you can manage which sections you want to receive by clicking unsubscribe at the bottom of one of the emails.

IV. Readers

Finally, I want to extend a big, overdue, warm-and-fuzzy thank you to everyone who has been reading my words for the past several months. Whether you’ve read every post or just one or two, I genuinely appreciate you. Thank you for the likes, comments, and supportive texts. Thank you also to everyone who has generously contributed to my tip jar—some of you several times! You have motivated me to keep submitting my writing even when I don’t feel like it. You know who you are and you are the best <3

Stay cool out there! Thanks for reading.

Yours,

Jane