Hello Friends, The day before the big US election, I went for a walk as usual. A flash caught my eye. It was a quartz crystal, resting on the sidewalk, autumn sun shining through it. The crystal cast a shadow that looked like a stretched out crescent moon. It was beautiful. After snapping a photo, I thanked the crystal—yes, I’m more than a bit of an animist—and settled it against a bit of moss, figuring it would be safer there. I keep thinking about that crystal. I keep thinking about how it...
13 days ago • 1 min read
Hello Friends, This newsletter is going out on Dia de los Muertes, just after Halloween and Samhain. I hope that however you honor this season you are well, and not feeling too overwhelmed. A lot of people are overwhelmed right now. I know that my own focus isn't the best, though I'm enjoying the rain that just arrived, and the novel I'm currently working on, as well as the two non-fiction projects currently on my desk. When I find my attention fracturing, or the doom scrolling beginning, I...
20 days ago • 1 min read
Hello Friends, This week, I’m thinking about where we end up. One day, you’re a cheerful turtle, spouting water for kiddos in the summer heat. The next, it's rainy autumn, the kids are older, and you’re left on the sidewalk, hoping some other family picks you up and takes you home. Or, one day, you’re twenty years old, living with four friends, trying to figure out your life, and the next, you’re heading toward seventy and wondering what happened to your knees. Now, I doubt anyone reading...
27 days ago • 1 min read
Hello friends, This is one of those very occasional extra newsletters! I wanted to let you mystery lovers know that today a bunch of historical, contemporary, and paranormal cozy mysteries are FREE! You can click the image above or go here: Cozy Mystery eBook Blast. I hope you find a few books to enjoy! best wishes - Thorn
28 days ago • 1 min read
Hello Friends, I’m back from several days away, camping and teaching at an event with friends I rarely get to see. It was nice to get away from my usual work, and spend time in Northern California, making magic, listening to music, writing, and walking among the live oaks. It was not completely out of my experience, but was the slight shift in perspective that I needed. No earth shattering revelations appeared, rather, a few quiet voices confirmed some things I already knew, and highlighted...
about 1 month ago • 1 min read
Hello Friends, This week, I'm thinking about scarcity and generosity and how those two things are often set up in opposition. That's partially true, of course. On the large scale, a lack of generosity creates scarcity, as wealth and resources are hoarded by a few. However, it is often those with the least who are the most generous of all. This is reflected in the old quip about poor people passing around the same twenty dollars. Sometimes one person's need is greater in the moment, and the...
about 1 month ago • 1 min read
Hello Friends, Humans are storytellers. Whether around fires at night, or in the village square, in books, streaming over the internet, over cups of tea, or via small clips posted to social media, stories are all around us. Stories are how we make sense of ourselves and the world. But this week, I'm wondering: where are we in those stories? Are we the central hero, larger than life? Do we skulk around the edges? Are we even present at all? I'm thinking about all of this because I'm revising...
about 2 months ago • 1 min read
Hello Friends, If you’ve read my newsletter for any length of time, or follow me on social media, you already know I’m all about going for walks and the small gifts I encounter: A rain drop on a rose petal. A friendly cat. Street art. Crows in flight. A fallen leaf… Well, a couple of weeks ago, the streets gifted me with lamps. One thing you may not know about me is that I love art and color and that is reflected in how I design interior spaces. I’ve collected art since I was a teenager, and...
about 2 months ago • 1 min read
Hello Friends, September 22nd is the equinox this year. That means it is autumn here in the northern hemisphere, which is my favorite time of year. I love both equinoxes, actually—the solstices, too—but autumn is special. First of all, I was born around this time of year. Second, for a nerdy, bookish, neurostrange child who read their way around the Summer Reading Challenge board at the library multiple times, it meant school supplies! More books! Studying things! As an adult, I love the...
2 months ago • 1 min read