July News!

The second monthly newsletter for those who value intuitive courage, wellness/writing, and creative practices

Hi! It’s been an exciting month, getting all things Ruby Finch Books up and running and out into the world. I’ve kept my tagline of “intuitive courage” very much front and centre in my mind and heart as I’ve launched this new company. Before I began, I decided that how Ruby Finch Books operates is as important to me as the end result of whatever we publish. I wanted to start as I meant to go on, and I’m pleased to say the first month has been a resounding success by that measure!

I’ve been dreaming up my zoom writing classes (and people are signing up which makes my day every single time but don’t worry - there’s still room in both the novel and memoir classes starting in September!), planning my two new workshops for teachers’ conferences starting this August, reaching out to undergrad Creative Writing Chairs to say “hi I’m Julianne and I have my MFA and a new book coming out this fall and I’d love to teach a class or two at your university” and amazingly I’m getting positive responses in return (one even said “you seem like an incredibly accomplished individual” which I’d like to put on my CV!), and getting Jamesy Harper’s Big Break ready for the printer.

I want to thank each and every one of you that subscribed to my first newsletter in June. From the bottom of my heart, I’m grateful to you. I’ve decided that I’d like to build this publishing imprint slowly and carefully. I’d like to invite readers in, and create a space where we can engage together about the big and important and fun things in life together. No hard selling here. No pressure. Just messy humans, having a messy human experience, but together. I cannot thank you enough for being part of this adventure with me.

One-Word Feeling Check-In

We’re going to Europe this summer, for nearly a month, which is a trip we’ve been planning for more than a year as a blow-out celebration for a number of milestone events - our 25th wedding anniversary, our daughter’s high school graduation, my fiftieth birthday, and my MFA graduation. We decided we have a lot to celebrate together, and our kids are 17 and 20 now and might not want to travel with their old parents for the rest of their lives, so we decided to make it count with 11 countries and a lot of fun things planned.

Travel is exciting but it also makes me feel anxious. I like predictability and routine. I prefer to understand what people are saying to me and have them understand what I’m trying to say to them. I worry about getting overtired and hungry and crabby. I will miss my cats (Teddy in particular but don’t tell Flower as it might hurt his feelings).

In looking ahead to our big trip, my main feeling is enthusiasm, followed by a chaser of low-grade panic. I’ve been meditating and trying to picture myself embracing the adventure of international plane and train travelling. I try to envision myself laughing, making memories with the 3 people I love most in the world, and taking time out for myself to rest and read. I think about how many delicious food and drink items I will sample and enjoy. I’m determined to find the beauty in the everyday, and not to rush through moments as they are happening.

How are you feeling in one word (or two, like I did in my typical rule-breaking style above)? What tips do you have for me on travelling in Europe as a family?

Book Corner

Last month, I forgot to mention my fave book I’ve read so far this year, which I think everyone else in the world is also reading because…OPRAH….but I also adored Dear Edward so I was one of the first to request Ann Napolitano’s newest book from my local library and Hello Beautiful was such a luxurious reading experience. I sank into it, utterly living in her fictional world, marvelling at how she can create such emotional depth and complexity out of thin air and make me believe it so thoroughly. If you haven’t read it yet, you’re in for a huge treat.

My friend Toby suggested the author Kia Abdullah to me, so I’ve been enjoying her legal mysteries. So far I’ve read Take It Back and Next of Kin (both excellent) and in my TBR pile from the library I have Those People Next Door and Truth Be Told.

Another really enjoyable summer read is Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld. So smart, funny, sweet, romantic, and observant. An ideal beach or pool read.

Writing/Wellness Idea

You might wonder why I call this section writing/wellness. It’s because I believe those two things are permanently linked. To write without considering your own health and wellness is to be irresponsible with your energy. Writing is a giving pursuit. It requires something from us. There’s an emotional cost, and we pay it when we plumb our psyches and our pain and our fears in order to build stories on the page.

When we give of ourselves, we must replenish that energy. I think the best way to do this is to use a variety of creative practices to fill our well. I use journaling, deep breathing, reading, stretching and yoga, walking, rest and alone time. Many people love to exercise or cook or knit or paint. I imagine creative practices as a big fun grab bag of ways to replenish depleted energy. What helps you recover once you’ve given of yourself?

Jamesy Harper’s Big Break!

I’m SO CLOSE to being able to share my new book cover with you! My designer and friend Dani Compton is currently designing it for me and it’s amazing. We’re still in the fine-tuning stages, but tune into this space in the August newsletter to see it in all of its old Hollywood glamour. Dani is so very talented and I couldn’t love my Ruby Finch Books logos more (which she designed), and it’s been such fun collaborating on this cover project.

More info coming in the next newsletter about the book, including fall launch events at public libraries (my favourite places and spaces!), as well as pre-order info on the book itself. But for now, I can share that the book is a contemporary comedic YA novel about a sixteen-year-old actor in Vancouver who wonders if it’s selfish to pursue her big acting dreams when her parents don’t support her ambitions. It’s fun, snarky, sweet, and hopeful. The story is loosely inspired by my daughter Ava’s experiences in the film industry and I can’t wait to share it with you!

TV Recs

I signed up for AMC+ as soon as I saw that Happy Valley’s final season was there. Monday nights have been my favourite for the last little while as Jason and I savoured each of the six episodes in season 3 to bring Catherine Cawood’s brilliant story to an end. One day I aspire to write something this gritty, and real, and emotionally layered.

The performances are stellar, but the writing is scaffolded and built in a way that astonished me. They never once took the easy way out. Each character is faced with an impossible set of circumstances, and when they argue I could so clearly empathise with both sides. That’s some top notch writing right there. It’s a dark and heavy series, but I felt bereft when it ended because I was so deeply invested.

For something a little lighter, we enjoyed Lucky Hank with Bob Odenkirk, shot here in Vancouver, and we’re giggling our way through Detroiters on Crave.

Zoom Writing Classes

I was SO THRILLED to get my first email from someone asking about my novel class starting this fall. I’m really hoping to find 10 writers for Write Your Novel and another 10 for Write Your Memoir (which doesn’t have to be a memoir - it can be any form of Creative Nonfiction which is such a flexible and big genre).

I’m planning to run these classes on Tuesdays for 5 weeks at a time, followed by a 2 week break, and then another 5 weeks. When you sign up, you only commit to the first 5 weeks (Plan Your Novel/Memoir) and pay for the first 5 weeks ($125 Cdn) and if you like it enough and find it helpful for your longer writing project you are welcome to sign up for the next section (Start Your Novel/Memoir).

The hope is that we build a fun, encouraging, and supportive literary community together, but it’s a low pressure situation. If you’ve ever had an inkling to write, or you’ve been writing a long time but it feels lonely, come and join us! We’d love to have you. Please reach out with any questions you have, and I’d really appreciate it if you’d share the word so we can fill up both classes. Thank you!!

Flower & Ted

Here’s your monthly dose of my two adorable cats. Flower had his tummy shaved last fall for an ultrasound and it’s still all pink and hairless which maybe helps him cool down a bit on these hot summer days? And Teddy is as handsome as ever, enjoying a beam of afternoon sun in our kitchen.

Libraries forever,

Julianne and Ruby Finch Books