My van is broken, but my dog is great! (Nov recap)
A monthly roundup of Scout news, van travel, reading, writing, and other tidbits.
Hello friend, pal, dog lover, cat lover, creatures-overall lover (and whoever else might be reading this nuance-letter),
I’m bringing back dedicated monthly roundups! I’ll continue to include a little “notes and news” section at the end of standalone posts when the occasion calls for it, but my priority will be making sure all those tidbits live in one place—here—at the end of the month.
The goals are 1) avoid exciting updates getting lost in the shuffle and 2) make it easier for you to sift through what interests you.
Read on for:
Scout shenanigans
Van life travels
Recent reading and book love
Writing life updates
A silly surprise
🐺 Scout shenanigans
Scout’s section comes first, because she still always comes first.
We met up with a friend and her dog in Los Angeles, and Scout was zero percent reactive (and also zero percent interested in going on a walk while Sean stayed in the van… oops). Sometimes I almost forget how far we’ve come, and then she reminds me.
She’s also been an absolute dream as we’ve navigated van maintenance. (More on the unusual amount of things breaking in our house below.) It’s always a little nerve-wracking when we have to vacate our home to let strangers drive it away, but again: She reminds me not to sell her short.
It’s been six years since an old coworker painted me the below portrait of her, and the photo flooded me with nostalgia. Look at that impossibly young dog.
Speaking of age: Embark offered us an Age Test to try with Scout. (I did her breed DNA test shortly after adopting her back in 2019.) Regarding the margin of error, this might not tell us much more than we already know—we’re pretty confident Scout’s age falls somewhere within a two-year range—but I’m anxious-excited to get the results regardless. Will share more soon!
🚐 Life on the road
We made it to California, which means we’ve officially been to 49 out of 50 US states in our yellow home on wheels! In November we crept (mostly) down the coast with a detour to Pinnacles National Park to see some condors.
We’ve also experienced quite a few van-related mishaps recently, including:
Our first-ever police knock in the middle of the night (not because we were parked somewhere we couldn’t be—I’m unduly proud that’s still never happened—but because the officers were responding to a nearby distress call… which made it an extra wild experience)
Our hydronic heating system still not working after multiple fix attempts (read: no hot water or heat)
Needing to replace our alternator controller after a torrential rainstorm shorted it out (and laughing through a whole post-office saga when we tried to go pick up the necessary part)
Our ceiling fan breaking for good measure, because at this point why not?
Even so, I continue to love living like this. We’ll be returning to the midwest for Christmas with family but can’t imagine “settling down” for real any time soon.
📚 Reading
Books I read this month
Reckless Girls by Rachel Hawkins: An engaging tropical thriller.
Nowhere for Very Long and Never Leave the Dogs Behind by Brianna Madia: I’ve long been critical of how Madia influences online—particularly the way she handles her dogs in shared public spaces—and felt it was only fair to finally give her books a chance. (If someone ever disagreed with me, I like to think they’d at least try to sit with my own work.) She can be a superb storyteller. I’d also hate running into her dogs while out with my own.
Users by Colin Winnette: I can’t remember which recent bookstore featured Users in their staff picks, but that’s how it ended up on my TBR. (I love staff selections!) It’s a strange little novel officially recommended for fans of Severance, but the ending felt like a particular Black Mirror episode.
Before and After the Book Deal by Courtney Maum: I never regret revisiting this gem for motivation! (And laughter. Much laughter.)
Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak: I picked this spooky story up from a Substack notes recommendation. (Thanks Shannon Black-Youel!)
The Arrogant Ape by Christine Webb: This book will probably stay on my “recently read” list indefinitely, because I am rereading parts of it every week. It. Is. So. Good. Have I mentioned how good it is? I fear you might not understand, yet, how good it is.
Books I’m cheering for this month
I just preordered Alan Opts Out, which hits shelves next summer. I am especially excited for this after getting to watch Courtney Maum’s process more in the last year. (I first subscribed to her Substack when she was in the early stages of sending this manuscript’s draft to her agent.) A fun full-circle moment and what sounds like a helluva fun book.
Maya Williams, the wonderful host of the weekly writing workshop I attended during our time in Portland this summer, published her latest poetry chapbook!
In case you missed it, Good Grief by E.B. Bartels is out in paperback! The books are gorgeous and E.B. is lovely.
Isabel Klee’s memoir, Dogs, Boys, and Other Things I’ve Cried About, is available for preorder. Isabel may be a social media powerhouse, but she is also generous and kind and so deserving of this milestone.
Sarah Kay has been one of my favorite poets since my mom discovered her while I was in high school. (It is thanks to both of these women that, at 17 years old, I performed a spoken-word poem of my own at Busboys and Poets.) Sarah is offering personalized inscriptions in her latest collection, A Little Daylight Left! If you order through today, your copy should arrive in time for Christmas.
And I keep thinking about (and noticing) feral cats more than ever after reading Poets Square: A Memoir in Thirty Cats by Courtney Gustafson. If you haven’t read it yet, I highly recommend!
Plus a few noteworthy essays and newsletters
I loved this piece called “My Friend Wrote a Book, and I Have *Feelings*” by Kelly Bunch here on Substack.
E.B. Bartels wrote a beautiful essay about grief and the sometimes-reality of living with a sensitive dog and the magic of Dog Mountain (which we have yet to visit in our travels but need to extra now).
I connected with Emma Vivian of Attempts at Optimism at a virtual writing workshop. She’s stellar.
My obsession for The Auntie Bulletin continues. (You rock, Lisa Sibbett.) I especially liked her recent post on not giving gifts.
My friend Allison Medina (who I worked with at Juniper before The Quality Edit acquired the brand this past summer) launched a new newsletter called Analog Baby.
I’m lucky to be a CNF reader for Months to Years, and the lit mag is ramping up on Substack! Their initial focus is grief-related reflective readings and writing prompts.
✍🏼 Writing life
Remember the Big Exciting Project I’ve been hinting at since July but haven’t shared publicly? Well, unfortunately today still isn’t the day. But I finished my very last round of edits at the beginning of this month—which was a milestone—and there will be much more to say soon!
I signed up to take “Generating the Personal Essay” with Brian Benson (a fellow Wisconsinite and UW-Madison grad!) through Off Assignment early next year. This was big for two reasons: 1) It’s the largest sum I’ve been able to set aside to spend on a writing course and 2) the topic could not be a better fit for my current hangups.
I had a great time at Juliane Bergmann’s workshop with literary agent Tess Callero, getting answers to a few of my lingering questions about book proposals. (Which means I have zero excuse to not go polish my book proposal for querying the Paws and Reflect hybrid memoir.)
I recently put a recurring task on my to-do list to send a “friendly writer note” each week. At first I was worried this would feel forced or fake, but it’s actually been wonderful.
And because of that commitment, I reached out to Christine Webb, author of The Arrogant Ape, in October via an email that was so long I felt compelled to include a “TLDR” version at the top. (Oops.) She not only replied but did so in the absolute kindest way you could imagine, and although I guess I could have seen that coming from someone who is wonderful enough to thank the birds in their acknowledgements… I was still gobsmacked and deeply touched. If I ever needed reinforcement to keep telling people I love their work (even when I am rather in awe of them and feel socially awkward) that was it.
For fellow writers
Calling those between 15-21: Roxane Gay wants your short fiction and essays! More info here.
In case you missed it
All of November’s posts here in the Paws and Reflect nuance-letter.
You’re the best!
Please enjoy one of my favorite silly photos of Scout as a thank you for reading 😉 Then go play with your own dog, if you’re able! (Or whatever creature(s) you share your life with.) And then maybe send me a photo of them.
