I've Got a Feeling

First, WOW are we overdue for a Write-Along. To get back on track, and because I want to, I’ve decided to offer not one but three Write-Alongs in July. Note that the first is in only two days — let’s be spontaneous! The dates are: As a reminder, here’s how a Write-Along works: We meet on Zoom. You bring whatever writing tools you like best: a notebook and your preferred pen, your journal, a laptop, etc.

I hate being on Instagram, so I am very sorry to admit that without it, I might never have learned of one of my favorite books of 2026. The algorithm knows that I like horses, so it makes sure I see plenty of them, and one day this spring it presented me with a photo of a woman standing in a field between two furry black-and-white horses.

After picking up Silas at the bus stop last Thursday, we dropped by two of our nearby Seattle Parks and Recreation community centers to see what programs they’re offering this summer. On the basis of our non-exhaustive survey, I can hereby report that the people who staff the front desks of Seattle’s community centers are the friendliest, most welcoming people in the entire city. Truly, standout interactions! They made my week.

There was a time in my life, not even that long ago, when I did not read. Like everyone, I read in school, sure, but sometime in my mid-twenties, after graduate school, I stopped. I guess I’d come to associate reading with schoolwork. I hadn’t had the time or inclination to read for pleasure in years. I was so thoroughly not in the habit of reading that I didn’t even notice I didn’t read. It was my friend Sam, a terrific reader, who noticed for me.

I hereby present to you what may(?) be my favorite(!) of all(!) the interviews I’ve shared to date. It should come as no surprise that it’s with Rachel Khong, bestselling author of the novels Real Americans and Goodbye, Vitamin and the brand-new story collection My Dear You. I find fandom cringy and awkward, but I am a HUUUUUUGE Rachel Khong fan. I imagine many of you are too, especially if you’ve read Real Americans, her 2024 novel that took the literary world by storm.

We’ve got a Write-Along on the docket for this Saturday, March 28, from 8:00am to 9:00am PDT, and because you’re a paid subscriber, you’re invited to join us. Or, if you need it, the URL: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82853718714 RSVP is not required, but I appreciate it: This is a guided write-along, meaning I’ll give you a prompt, th… Keep reading with a 7-day free trial Subscribe to I've Got a Feeling to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.

Fun stuff below, but first — Paid subscribers: as you know, we’re scheduled for a Write-Along this Sunday. Unfortunately, I’ve got to move it to Saturday instead. And because many of us will be participating in No Kings events on Saturday, I’ve changed the time to 8:00am Pacific. Come write, then shout in the streets? Note: If people are interested, I’m open to sharing an audio recording of the Write-Along prompt.

I come to you today pleasantly tired, body-wise, from a water aerobics class at my local public pool, and also ALL fired up, brain-wise, from the conversation below with my friend Kate Schatz, bestselling author of a brand-new novel called Where the Girls Were. I met Kate in 2020, roughly when The Fixed Starscame out. She DMed me on Instagram to say she’d just read it, and she was living nearly the same story.

Good day from these cheap and cheerful ‘peony tulips’ from Trader Joe’s, which — hot tip! — seems to have really upped its flower game lately. My local TJ’s is the new Greenwood location, which also happens to have the most sunny, exuberantly queer staff of any TJ’s in this queer town.

It’s been in the works for a while, and today I am thrilled to announce: illustration by the one and only Hallie Bateman! This October, I’ll be leading a weeklong writing and sketching retreat in southern Spain, with two award-winning authors whom I’m thrilled to call friends: Hallie Bateman and Nadine Kenney Johnstone.