Simon Says... I'm Obsessed With Our Wedding Photos

To all the deadlines I didn't hit today: I'm sorry.

Welcome to Simon Says, a weekly newsletter from Rachel Simon all about freelance life—from the inside scoop on just-published stories to advice on how to pitch to what it’s *really* like to leave a cozy full-time gig for the chaotic, unpredictable world of invoicing (jk, freelancing, but IYKYK).

Here’s the thing: I shouldn’t even be writing this newsletter right now, because it’s 4:06 PM on Wednesday afternoon, and I have just finished one (1) of the three (3) stories I was supposed to write today. The reason? Our wedding photos came in, and I have spent the vast majority of today freaking out over all 916 of them. Oops.

I’d been dying to see these photos, especially because Kurt and I opted not to hire a videographer for the wedding (controversial choice, I know!), so the photographer was solely responsible for capturing all the big and small moments of the day. And thankfully, I was not disappointed. I mean:

They’re perfect.

So, yeah. I’m super behind on work today and haven’t even looked at half my emails, but I am surprisingly not stressed out, because I am choosing to Embrace Joy at this moment and spend some time reliving the best day/night/weekend of our lives. And that’s absolutely worth having to cram in work tomorrow/Friday and move around some things in my schedule.

(Will I feel differently tomorrow morning when I realize my to-do list has doubled in size? Abso-freakin-lutely.)

I could easily spend the rest of today going through photos over and over, but because I need to tear myself away at least every once in awhile (if only to save my eyes), I present to you this week’s non-wedding-related roundup:

Some Stories I Wrote Last Week

So many stories this week! Including…

This guide for Study Hall that explains how I keep my freelance master doc/home base organized.

This People review of a cast-iron skillet from Amazon that the mag deemed the best budget option on the market.

This People write-up of a bestselling beach tent that has thousands of five-star reviews and is on sale now.

And lastly for People, this story on a camping chair from Amazon that shoppers say is super comfy and portable.

For Better Homes and Gardens, I researched the best charcoal grills on the market.

Over on Real Simple, I rounded up the best fake plants you can buy right now.

Also for Real Simple, I looked into drawer organizers and rated the top ones available.

For Byrdie, I made a big list of the best, comfiest, and most colorful flip-flops for summer.

And finally, for Shondaland, I interviewed Dr. Dara Kass of the HHS about how to prepare for a post-Roe v. Wade world.

The Inside Scoop

Each week, I’ll pick one story I’ve written (new or old, if needed) and explain how it got from pitch/assignment to publication. This week, it’s the Shondaland interview with Dr. Dara Kass.

This story came about in a really cool way. My Lifestyle editor at Shondaland reached out asking if I was interested in trying to nab Dr. Kass, who’d previously gone viral for a powerful Twitter thread about abortion access and birth control, for an interview tied to the Supreme Court leak. Shondaland wanted both a written story and a video interview they’d post on the site, the latter of which made me nervous since although I frequently do Zoom interviews, I’m rarely on camera myself. But I said yes, reached out to Dr. Kass, and set up a time to talk.

That was the easy part, though—because she works for the HHS, aka part of the Biden administration, there was a lot of behind-the-scenes coordination of figuring out what topics were kosher, when/how we could do the interview, and so on. But eventually, it came through, and we had a really great, important talk over Zoom that resulted in the above story and a soon-to-be video!

Other Work/Life Stuff Of Note

Your friendly reminder that you can pre-order my book Pickleball For All right now from Amazon, Target, Barnes & Noble, and more. What are you waiting for?

Also, it’s not too late to sign up for a spot in my Creative Nonfiction class starting next week, if you live in the Triangle! It’s gonna be a good time.

Coming Up…

My class! Also, all those stories I didn’t do today. Uh oh.

Thanks for reading, friends! Talk soon.

-Rachel