Hello Beth, I just lost a long message to you saying I ordered KOKORO from Blackwell. I live in Tasmania and at 80 am writing a memoir. My lineage is Japanese, so your book is an exciting prospect.
I was writing to join your 36 day journaling day session and would like to catch the earlier prompts. Today is Friday 13 in Tasmania, the hidden gem south of Australia, an auspicious day to crack into a journal. Looking forward to your book, the prompts back to the 9th if possible, and life✅🥰🥳🌺
Your reflection on "There is no rush, but there is a window" and balancing urgency and patience resonated deeply with me! I’ve highlighted this in Sunday Scroll. My readers will love your beautifully written piece.
This is certainly true about blackberries - they have a limited season, after which the devil spits.
But you're also discussing the long tail. I was lucky enough with one book to have an editor who believed my book would go on selling for years, no matter how it began. And he was right - it's still selling well after 50 thousand plus sales and nine years.
I mention this because I think it's so important that writers know that the initial rush and reviews are not the whole story. The 'window', if that's the right idea, could extend for many years. A book is not a newspaper for last night's fish and chips.
What a beautiful reminder - thank you, Beth! A window of opportunity… I’m 45 and have led an interesting life packed with adventure and lacking in any kind of stability. I think it’s the fate of many third culture kids who never grow roots in one place, or who do (like myself) but due to visa restrictions can’t ever make their soul home their forever home. So they keep moving. My window for stability began at 40. I haven’t been on a plane in 6 years - unthinkable in the past, I was practically born on one - and I can’t blame it on Covid. It’s been a digging of heels into an earth where there is no sense of belonging. I’m mindful this window is perhaps only a decade. I don’t want to spend my 50s as a wandering dervish. It’s a decade for rooting myself down, creating stability, and building a foundation for the second half of life. Then taking to the skies again but hopefully only for short trips!
This beautiful and profound reminder is just the nudge I need. Time to continue on that novel I left in it's online drawer after the devastating feedback I got from a youngish writer who's books aren't that good to be honest. But her critique of the 10 pages I gave her to read kind of crushed me.
Thank you, I woke antsy and unable to settle, I read this and returned to the essay I was writing before the Bank Holiday - it is now published (though slightly out of date already!). There is a lot of change to deal with but this has been a step forward, thank you 🙏
Beth, this touched my heart in so many ways. Dreading the return to work and missing my daily writing ritual, I know which window I’m looking at and what I need to do. 🙏💫
Because of the timing of finding an author I adored years ago, and her opening of a 10 month writing exercise to prep and draft a novel, it feels like the window is open for me to work on my 4th after a seven year drought.
I really enjoyed reading this and am now heading to the library to find your book to read at my yoga classes this week! Well done on the success of your books, and inspiring people to move a little slower through this wild, beautiful, precious life.
I so enjoyed hearing some of your journey, and those words that returned to you - thank you for sharing, they’ve reinforced a sense of timeliness I’ve had, which I hadn’t quite put into words for my own window that’s opening.
To write and illustrate my own poetry book has been a dream for years. And it’s ripe now.
I’m going to create a separate Substack to support a consistent poetry and illustration journey.
A dedicated Substack feels like a beautiful way to keep a rhythm as well as work my poetry muscles and develop my illustrations, while taking readers on the journey from zero through to publication.
I just really loved this and needed to hear it. Thank you so much! 🙏🏼💜
Hello Beth, I just lost a long message to you saying I ordered KOKORO from Blackwell. I live in Tasmania and at 80 am writing a memoir. My lineage is Japanese, so your book is an exciting prospect.
I was writing to join your 36 day journaling day session and would like to catch the earlier prompts. Today is Friday 13 in Tasmania, the hidden gem south of Australia, an auspicious day to crack into a journal. Looking forward to your book, the prompts back to the 9th if possible, and life✅🥰🥳🌺
I love windows..the more the better^^
Your reflection on "There is no rush, but there is a window" and balancing urgency and patience resonated deeply with me! I’ve highlighted this in Sunday Scroll. My readers will love your beautifully written piece.
This is certainly true about blackberries - they have a limited season, after which the devil spits.
But you're also discussing the long tail. I was lucky enough with one book to have an editor who believed my book would go on selling for years, no matter how it began. And he was right - it's still selling well after 50 thousand plus sales and nine years.
I mention this because I think it's so important that writers know that the initial rush and reviews are not the whole story. The 'window', if that's the right idea, could extend for many years. A book is not a newspaper for last night's fish and chips.
What a beautiful reminder - thank you, Beth! A window of opportunity… I’m 45 and have led an interesting life packed with adventure and lacking in any kind of stability. I think it’s the fate of many third culture kids who never grow roots in one place, or who do (like myself) but due to visa restrictions can’t ever make their soul home their forever home. So they keep moving. My window for stability began at 40. I haven’t been on a plane in 6 years - unthinkable in the past, I was practically born on one - and I can’t blame it on Covid. It’s been a digging of heels into an earth where there is no sense of belonging. I’m mindful this window is perhaps only a decade. I don’t want to spend my 50s as a wandering dervish. It’s a decade for rooting myself down, creating stability, and building a foundation for the second half of life. Then taking to the skies again but hopefully only for short trips!
Wonderful! I just ordered a hard copy of Kokoro so I can scribble in it and very much look forward to Autumn Light, Cx
I love the sound of the autumn classes too and would love to know more! Xxx
Simple, beautiful and timely. Thank you Beth. I'm pondering my windows right now....
This beautiful and profound reminder is just the nudge I need. Time to continue on that novel I left in it's online drawer after the devastating feedback I got from a youngish writer who's books aren't that good to be honest. But her critique of the 10 pages I gave her to read kind of crushed me.
There is a window indeed, time to re-open it.
Thank you, I woke antsy and unable to settle, I read this and returned to the essay I was writing before the Bank Holiday - it is now published (though slightly out of date already!). There is a lot of change to deal with but this has been a step forward, thank you 🙏
Beth, this touched my heart in so many ways. Dreading the return to work and missing my daily writing ritual, I know which window I’m looking at and what I need to do. 🙏💫
Because of the timing of finding an author I adored years ago, and her opening of a 10 month writing exercise to prep and draft a novel, it feels like the window is open for me to work on my 4th after a seven year drought.
I really enjoyed reading this and am now heading to the library to find your book to read at my yoga classes this week! Well done on the success of your books, and inspiring people to move a little slower through this wild, beautiful, precious life.
My window to start a business just opened when I lost my job recently and I love thinking of it in these terms
I so enjoyed hearing some of your journey, and those words that returned to you - thank you for sharing, they’ve reinforced a sense of timeliness I’ve had, which I hadn’t quite put into words for my own window that’s opening.
To write and illustrate my own poetry book has been a dream for years. And it’s ripe now.
I’m going to create a separate Substack to support a consistent poetry and illustration journey.
A dedicated Substack feels like a beautiful way to keep a rhythm as well as work my poetry muscles and develop my illustrations, while taking readers on the journey from zero through to publication.
I’m nervous and excited ✨