Welcome to the 4th edition of The Weekly W(h)im! Aka the Weekly What (H) I Made! The H is silent, after all.
This is a weekly series reflecting on the act of creation beyond just what we might see as “creating”.
While it’s well and good to talk about our writing, what about the smaller, daily creations? A meal, a playlist, even the way we make the bed?
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I’ve been on vacation most of this week. Instead of creating, I’ve been consuming views of the mountains, delicious barbecue, and slowness.
Consumption has developed a negative connotation these days. I’ve been meditating on what it means to be a consumer when you’re a creator.
My w(h)im this week is focused more on what’s building my next acts of creation than the acts themselves.
In my lens…
What I’ve been photographing.
I’m not a photographer whatsoever. But how can one prove they’ve been in the mountains if they don’t share pictures of said mountains??!
I’m here with my folks and my boyfriend, E, who sadly had to leave early to make his rehearsals for a production of Twelfth Night.
Despite this being my fourth visit to the Smokies over the past 7 years, I am never at a loss for what to do. There are always new views, new hikes, new forks in the road. We took a hike to Spruce Flats Falls and the Look Rock. For our last day, we’re hoping to make it out to Kuwohi (formerly Clingmans Dome — Clingman was apparently an expelled US senator and Confederate general so…yeah).
A visit to the Smokies is incomplete without mentioning the wildlife. We were visited by a bear at our rental one morning. He was unbothered by our presence and gave my dad an annoyed glance when he tried to get his attention.
In Cades Cove, a drive I’ve done a few times but never with such aplomb, we saw two more bears: one youth and one cub (the cub was far too small and agile to get a picture of amidst the shadowy forest).
Cades Cove is known for its horse riding and I’ve never been there when the horses are out grazing. We were able to pet one and feed another. Such gentle giants!
On the page…
What I’ve been writing.
Despite my hot and heavy writing sessions last week, I’ve slowed down. Not because I don’t want to write but because I’m allowing vacation to take the lead meaning I’ve been going on hikes, eating food without worrying about my diet, drinking too much, staying up too late, enjoying a hot tub, photographing blurry images of animals.
There’s been a lot of long winding car rides, plenty of time to think.
I’m now nursing three new projects in the back of my mind.
A short story about a family of women called The Deadlies who are actually descendants of The Fates of Greek Mythology.
A potentially sexy (?) short story about a Chicago transplant trying to transform her grandmother’s cabin into something she can rent out to support her career as an artist. But her car isn’t made for the mountains and a handsome biker has to help her out on a rainy, car trouble filled night.
Reexamining a story I conceptualized as a teen: a romantic suspense set in a similar cabin area (probably up north instead). A woman returns to a lake town after inheriting a cabin (listen, an inheritance is a compelling trope!) from her uncle, maligned by the town as a criminal. She has to clear his name, solve the crime, and fall in love with a childhood friend in the process.
My notes app has been getting a workout lately and if you know me, I hate using my notes app so this is huge.
In the Kitchen…
What I’ve been cooking.
As I mentioned, I’ve been eating more than I’ve been cooking. But! Before I left, I made a scrumptious peaches and cream tequila frappe. Is that a thing? Maybe it could be called a daiquiri.
Anyways, I have been using my Cuisinart Fast Freeze machine to make cocktails and this one was no different: peach juice, a spoonful or two of Cool Whip, and a shot of tequila. The results? Priceless.
From the Library…
What I’m reading.
I’ve come to a conclusion: I am a better writer and reader when I don’t strictly read romance.
Before I became a romance ghostwriter, I didn’t narrow my scope as a reader to romance. But as I forayed further into the genre, I realized how deeply underread I was.
I overcorrected, as I am want to do, and spent most of 2022 and 2023 reading every romance I could find time to read.
And, similarly with my writing, my reading dried up. I’m either the most voracious reader you know or haven’t picked up a book in 6 months. This is my cross to bear.
Lately, I’ve been leaning into other genres to balance out the romance of it all and I had a perfect memoir for this trip.
Get your copy of Raising Hare
Amazon | Bookshop.org
Raising Hare is Chloe Dalton’s memoir of her time during Covid Lockdown during which she worked remotely in the English countryside. During that time she stumbled across a leveret, a baby hare, in the middle of the road.
Hares notoriously frquently die in captivity due to fright. They will refuse to eat or succumb to shock. Fascinatingly, probably in great part to this fact, hares have never been domesticated and there is precious little information on raising them.
Which is how this memoir sings as we follow Dalton learning to care for this hare, through poetry, historical texts, and her own observations on caring for a wild animal and preserving its freedom.
I’m about 100 pages in (it’s a short book, under 300 pages) and I’m delighted by the prose, the storytelling that comes along with watching a leveret grow into a hare, and ultimately enchanted by a creature I had never taken the time to understand deeply, one more akin to us than many humans would ever know.
On Repeat…
What I’m listening to.
Between the bluegrass and country songs playing here in Tennessee and the Official Love Island playlist on Spotify, I’ve been set with some bangers. Of course, I have compiled the best 10 for you to enjoy this week.
This selection of songs are as rich as the mountain humidity, rushing as a waterfall after a night of rain, and rich with the history of ancient mountains.
On My Mind…
What I can’t stop thinking about.
There’s an important distinction in the conversation of consumption. Creatives are often told to create more than they consume. However, all creation and no consumption makes jack a dull boy.
Consumption feeds the artistic process. No, not the endless scroll or the latest reality binge (both things I’ve been known to enjoy). It’s the consumption of experiences that build an artist and prime them for their next phase of creation.
I’m privileged to be able to travel and now and then and, being my fourth visit to the Smoky Mountains, I was well-assured this would be a rejuvenating trip.
Creation and consumption aren’t wholly divorced as buzzy articles might lead you to think. In fact, consumption is an engine for creation.
One that can easily be misused.
What have you been consuming lately that’s been fulfilling your creative well rather than taking from it?
On Substack…
Posts you may have missed.
A lot of people missed my Thursday offering, a meditation on how to be a good critique partner. I highly recommend you check it out (paid subscribers also get a companion resource).
you don't know how to give feedback
I’ll be honest: just thinking about giving my manuscript to an editor or even a beta reader is giving me heart palpitations.
And, of course, last week’s w(h)im!
chocolate strawberry latte
Welcome to the 3rd edition of The Weekly W(h)im! This is a weekly series sent on Tuesdays reflecting on the act of creation beyond just what we might see as “creating”.
I’d love to know what you created this week. Let me know down in the comments or share this post!
This time next week, I’ll be back to the city grind. For now, I’m going to savor the mountain air, keep trying to spot black bears, and feeding my bucket.
Until next time, w(h)im!
All subscribers receive The Weekly W(h)im on Tuesdays and a romance-centric post on Thursdays.
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