I spent countless more hours running outside alone or with my best friends, digging literal holes, pretending with leaves and berries to craft pretend potions, or just climbing any tree I could reasonably scale. And it struck me that my kids have been raised in an entirely different environment.
Going somewhat "off grid" for the last two months has made me really slow down and wrestle with my imposter demon. I realized that it's okay if I still haven't figured out the "business" of writing after a decade of paddling through this crazy market. What I'm best at is this. I'll never post a viral TikTok or Instagram and I don't think I really want to. I would rather write books, and write about books, and sometimes share something true and genuine with you.
We can't control every variable in our lives, no matter how much we plot and plan. And if you're like me, and prone to both fits of melancholy as well as fits of joy for the beauty in this world, the ups and downs are just a part of the life package.
Hello and welcome back to the blog (no one reads?), where I occasionally rant and talk about writing and life. Or more accurately, how I continue to make my way in the bookish world the hard way 😉
Hello friends, and welcome back to the blog that just won't quit - thirteen (thirteen???) years later. Yes, in the face of more popular social platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, and Substack (probably ten others I'm too old to know about) — I am stubbornly plodding along.
It's still May 2025 and I'm frankly baffled that I have actual writing and publishing news to share with all of you today. After such a long hiatus where writing was a struggle, and words came out in trickles, I am now beyond stoked to report the floodgates have opened, y'all. Hallellujah and all that jazz!
It's May 2025 and I'm doing my best to run back up that hill after a year of struggling to stay afloat. I won't bore you with too many pesky details, explanations, or excuses. I moved into a house about this time last year, and it's taken me a solid year to grow accustomed to the new "life as I know it."
At the beginning of the summer on May 25th, I gave birth to my daughter. I had planned and prepared and struggled through a difficult pregnancy. But nothing could have prepared me for the trial of these past couple of months.
I don't know if you ever completely shake the pressure or responsibility of being a parent. It has definitely changed my perspective on so many things. And it also makes me grateful for all the little moments in between.
Wherever you're at today, I hope and pray you are also seizing your good moments, and treading through the bad. If times have or continue to be tough, know there's always good coming ahead. Sometimes we have to reach for it, but sometimes good finds us.
Jennifer Silverwood 