Oh hiiiiiiiii! How are you? Feeling prematurely sad about summer slipping away even though it’s still July? Me too!

I’ve neglected this blog for awhile and I feel guilty about it. I feel guilty about a lot of things actually, perhaps because I was raised half Catholic, but that’s a story for another time.

For now, I figure I’ll fill you in on where my brain’s been since February, because surely you’re all dying to know.

The big thing: I finished a draft of my book! Yeah, remember? The thing I’ve been casually referencing for literally YEARS? Well it’s feeling more real now so I need to stop talking about it casually. I will talk about it formally. Imagine me in a ball gown and pearls reading my pitch aloud:

Right before she turns 23, Molly Cameron moves from her small New Hampshire town to New York City to "make it" in theatre. She isn't sure what "making it" looks like, but she imagines it will be like a movie montage where she’s glamorous and thin and full of self-confidence.

And then she gets hit by a Chevy Suburban.

Now, instead of “making it” anywhere, she’s stuck in the intensive care unit of St. Vincent's Hospital with eight broken bones, a third-degree chemical burn, and badly-dyed black hair that disappoints her mother.

This memoir follows Molly's forced return to her childhood bubble right after declaring independence from it. While relearning how to hold a toothbrush and walk upright, she revisits the anxieties about her body that she thought she’d stuffed down and the familiar strain of living with her parents. Throughout it all, the hope of returning to New York drives her to get better.

Does that sound like it could be on a book jacket? Do you know anyone who wants to print it on a book jacket and put the rest of my book on the inside?? Please let me know.

My draft is definitely just that: a draft (I’m fondly referring to it as “version 1.0" right now), but it is about the length of a real book and has a beginning/middle/end, which feels great considering where I started. I’m ready for the next phase of making it real-er!

The medium-sized thing: I’ve been doing a lot of storytelling shows! Sharon and I had a bunch of awesome Gems shows so far this year. We’re taking a summer break, but we’ll be back in September, so follow us on all the sosh meeds to be in the loop when we announce our next show.

I’m also so grateful to everyone who has invited me to tell stories on their shows in the past few months. I love being a part of other shows and performing with talented people! And as of this posting, I have a least a couple more more coming up — check ‘em out!

Another medium-sized thing: I’m now a co-leader of the NYC chapter of Women Who Submit! And no, sorry, it’s not an S&M thing, because I know that’s what you’re thinking. It is in fact a monthly meetup for women to submit their writing alongside other writers in a supportive atmosphere. The goal of WWS is to encourage more women and non-binary writers to submit their work to publications, so we also share tips and resources. At the same time, we’re not strict about how much work you get done or how many things you submit during the meetup, so it’s not a competition. Also there are snacks. :D

If you’re in NYC and think this is something you want to be a part of, join our Facebook group or drop me a line!

Some small things: I’ve also been having some regular ol’ fun times. Here are just a few things I’ve done for funsies since I last checked in:

Took a quick trip to Hudson, NY and stayed in a super cool AirBNB filled with books.
Got peer pressured into getting bangs again. I love/hate them, just like old times.
Hung out in the yard and planted so many herbs and little veggies. So far we have tomatoes and snap peas and basil and mint — and we can actually eat them, wow!
Saw Bikini Kill at Terminal 5 and sang loudly and had too much tequila.
Went to Los Angeles! Lucas and I have been trying to take a trip to LA together for even longer than I’ve been trying to write a book, so it was magical to finally make it happen. Venice Beach was especially wonderful.

That’s it for now, but let’s hope I can wrangle my brain to post again sometime soon. And don’t worry, there’s still so much summer left! (Right? Right??)