I used to blog, back when I had two tiny children and was kind of desperately seeking a regular creative outlet. Then I had a third tiny child, and (miraculously) a book deal, and then a couple of other book deals, and some new and evolving insights into my own comfort level with how much I am willing share about my kids online. So that blog is gone, and it’s okay.
But I’ve been feeling that pull again. It’s not so much that I need a creative outlet—I have one, and at the moment it’s a book that I am rewriting as slowly as humanly possible. (The first draft was fun. This draft is painful and digs into some very old grief. The book, on its skin, is about a girl who joins up with a group of kids to rescue their parents from a cult. But the muscle of it is that the girl and her mom are grieving her dead father, and that’s something I’ve had a whole lifetime of experience with. While the first draft only tap-danced around the idea of grief, and the things people do when they’re grieving, this one digs into it with bruising fingers.) But I do love the place where “creative blogging” meets “hey, I’m going to need to let people know when I have a new book out or when I’m at an event,” and I’m terrible at most social media these days, so a Substack felt like the right thing for me.
I have three kids, and my sixth book comes out in June. Being a mom and being a writer are the things I know and do best, so those are the things my Substack will be about—creative life, home life, and the overlap.
Maybe you’re reading this and thinking, “She has a sixth book! I’d love to hear more about that.” Well. This is just for you, then.
Dinner at the Brake Fast comes out in June (2024) from Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins. The cover is by Oriol Vidal, and I’m putting it right here because it’s gorgeous.
It’s a middle grade novel about a twelve-year-old girl named Tacoma Jones who runs a truck stop in North Bend, WA with her parents. She’s dying to get out and have an adventure, and that’s exactly what happens when she ropes a couple of unlikely sidekicks into helping her take back something that was stolen from her family. The book deals with mental illness (particularly depression and anxiety), big old themes of family and friendship, and so much good food. If you’d like to preorder Dinner at the Brake Fast, you can do that at Amazon or Barnes and Noble.
So that’s what I’m doing on Substack, and I’d love it if you would follow along! I’ll keep you updated with book stuff and writing stuff, and probably some parenting/home stuff, and definitely some duck stuff as well. (We have runner ducks, and don’t even get me started. I love them so much.
Thanks for reading, friends. This post specifically, and also reading in general. There’s just kind of nothing better than that.
Renee
Some Dates:
Saturday, December 9, 11-4: I will be at the Historically Hip Author Fair in Downtown Issaquah. My table is located in the library, so come say hello!
Tuesday, June 25: Book release day for Dinner at the Brake Fast! Info about my launch party is forthcoming.