And Everything Else (9/14/20)
Life updates you didn't ask for.
Hi, friends! Last Thursday, I introduced the first installment of Did I Tell You About…, my weekly pop culture rundown, and today, I’m debuting And Everything Else, my weekly update on, well, everything else going in on my life I want to share with the world!
Here’s what’s going on right now:
#1. I’m writing a book!
As you might’ve seen if you follow me on Instagram, I’m hard at work writing a novel. It’s a coming-of-age story set in high school, and while I don’t want to share too many details yet, it focuses on teen girls and female friendship in a way that I hope, at least, is reminiscent of Summer Sisters and Prep (two of my favorite books ever).
It’s on spec, meaning I don’t have an agent (agents, if you’re reading this… hello), but my goal is to get the manuscript written and edited by the end of December so I can submit it early next year.
I’ve been tracking my writing progress on Instagram, but I’ll be updating here, too, so tune in each week for more details! Feel free to ask me any questions you have about what it’s like to write a book, too.
#2. I’m teaching a Creative Nonfiction 101 class this fall
Did you know that in addition to my full-time job at HelloGiggles, my freelance work, and my book writing, I also teach writing classes? (I sleep too, promise.) I’m currently teaching my second installment of Intro to Essay & Opinion Writing with Gotham Writers Workshop, the largest adult writing school in the U.S., and this fall, I’ll be teaching a 6-week intro course on Creative Nonfiction!
Each class will explore a different form of creative nonfiction—memoir, personal essay, feature articles, profiles, reviews, and travel writing. It’s a great opportunity if you’re interested in nonfiction writing but don’t know where to start, and best of all, classes will be held over Zoom!
Sign up here, and reach out if you have any questions.
#3. I’m (verrrry slowly) planning a wedding
After over three years of dating, two pets, and one viral story about our relationship struggles (lol), Kurt and I got engaged in August!
He proposed while we were traveling for a weekend, and it was a sweet, low-key thing involving a very effective fake-out (he gave me a necklace at the start of the trip and said “this is all you’re getting this weekend.” #Rude) and a container of Ben & Jerry’s (because I am nothing if not on-brand).
Since it is a pandemic and all, though, our wedding planning is coming along very slowly. Right now, we’re thinking spring 2022 for the date, but we’re holding off on making most other decisions until we have more insight into what the future holds, as we want to be able to have a mask/social distancing-free event. Luckily, we were able to celebrate with a handful of friends and family a few weeks ago, but we’re looking forward to being able to do a bigger thing with everyone down the line.
If anyone else got engaged over the last few months and has some advice to share (or just wants to commiserate), I’m all ears!
#4. My pets continue to be adorable
Here’s Ellie giving serious face:
And Mim Mim doing… something.
She’s a weird one.
That’s all for this week! Thanks for reading, everyone.