January, the bleakest of months. A hazy, gray letdown after the holiday season. I’m coming to you today with a raging case of cedar fever (what the hell kind of plant has sex in the winter???) and a headache the size of Texas. And yet! My spirits remain as high as the pollen count.
January may not be all that, but it is the month when my twins were born. They just turned 23, and we spent last Sunday celebrating with them in San Antonio. I talk a lot about creativity, but nothing I have ever done (or ever will do) creatively can compare to the act of gestating and birthing a couple of humans. They’ve become adults that I truly enjoy spending time with, and I feel extremely lucky to be the one who helped them into this world.
The other reason I’m undaunted by this milquetoast month is that I’m still riding high from the launch event for The Whole Enchilada this past December. My co-launcher, Ilene Haddad, and I spent New Year’s Eve together, celebrating our accomplishments this year. Despite everything 2025 threw at us, we made it – and with great flair and aplomb.
As 2026 kicks off, I’ve got several plates spinning. First, I’ve revamped my podcast website and added a video element. Starting with season four, you can now watch my interviews with creative people from all walks of life. Click the subscribe button over there and help me grow my YouTube audience.
I’m also starting to work on my next novel. This time around, I feel much more confident and in control of the process. Which is not to say that it’s easier. Writing – especially a novel – is an act of sheer will and self-discipline. It’s too easy to push it off or find other things to do. So send me those good writing vibes, won’t you?
Finally, I have the least fun part about being an author to tackle this year: promoting and selling my book. I’ve gone indie, which means the marketing is all on me. If you’ve read The Whole Enchilada, I would be eternally grateful for a review on Goodreads and/or Amazon, a share on social media, or a recommendation to your local library system. I’d also be thrilled to take part in any book-related events, media interviews, or other community-related events.
These little actions take only a minute or two of your time, but they make a huge difference for me in getting my name and title in front of strangers.
As we all build momentum in the new year, I’m wishing you great joy and success in all your creative endeavors. The world looks bleak right now, and in some ways, I think it’s always been like this. Most of us (at least in the West) have lived our lives in a state of blissful ignorance.
The lens of technology has brought many horrible things into focus. Each of us must pause and ask ourselves if we’ll turn away, bury our heads in the sand, and pretend we can’t do anything; or if we’ll have the courage to look at this world dead in the eye, recognize that we are part of the problem and the solution, and put our energy where it can relieve the most suffering. This is a job for creative thinking, if there ever was one.
If you have anything exciting going on in your world, leave a comment or send me a message through my contact form and let me know. I love to hear from my community.