Katrin's Newsletter #34: Gratitude
This brief missive is a way for me to make connections with people interested in art and creativity (sign up here). I'm an author and editor, always on the lookout for inspiration.
thanksgiving, God and love by e. e. cummings
love is more thicker than forget
more thinner than recall
more seldom than a wave is wet
more frequent than to fail
it is most mad and moonly
and less it shall unbe
than all the sea which only
is deeper than the sea...
I've always loved e.e. cummings because of his playfulness. I'm sending you all hugs during this time of thanksgiving, and wishing for us all that we can be playful once again, joyous and generous and trusting. We need to look out for each other. Click here for the full poem.
The big news for me is that I'm writing again. It's been a slog—for many reasons, not least of which is that the world has been imploding. But I caught a groove and I'm damn close to finishing a first draft of novel #3.
I don't have a great title yet, but here is my preliminary description of the story:
As her marriage crumbles, Nanette Bowman spends the long, hot summer of '67 in Ibiza. Increasingly drawn into the island’s Bohemian subculture and obsessed with her work translating Madame Bovary, she takes a series of risks that put her family in jeopardy, but are her choices irrevocable—like those of Flaubert's ill-fated heroine—or will she get another chance at happiness?
This Terrible Beauty continues to find its readers, and I'm delighted to have nearly 2,000 reviews on Amazon. Lots of great ones that make me proud ("I appreciate how this beautiful, compelling love story was embedded with such brutal political truths") and a few real doozies (like #1: "Intense, well-written, but not compelling"). Ouch! Such is the life of a writer.
If you read it and liked it, would you consider writing a review? And with Christmas coming up, you might consider giving it as a gift... You can order from my favorite bookstore here (Judy Blume's store in Key West!).
I've been on a tear reading again and have been so happy to find some books I've loved. I highly recommend The Sea Wife, which not only has the best cover of any book I've read recently, but is moving and thoughtful and taught me a ton about the sea and sailing. It's a complex book that is easy to read—my favorite combination. "Stunning... Amity [tows] you to tragedy with the graceful crawl of a poet and the motor-boat intensity of a suspense author.” —New York Times
I also fou
nd the mini series We Are Who We Are to be incredibly inspiring, visually but also in terms of its themes. Directed by Luca Guadagnino for HBO/Sky Atlantic, it's full of wild, youthful energy, atmospheric settings and great music. A group of multi-racial teens on an American army base in Italy explore life and identity. It's unique and moving and profound (and definitely not for everyone). Review here.
I'd love to hear from you—during isolation, what strange or inspiring activity/ thing have you discovered? Email me here.
Big hugs,
Katrin