Hello from my corner of Medium! Hello, friends! My name is Penny and I’m a writer, college professor, and mom. (I’m also a great friend — loyal while not being up in your business too much, not to toot my own horn or anything.) Writing is what I have always…

More exciting new books coming out in 2022 — Before 2022 started, lists of most anticipated books seemed to appear everywhere. I love these lists more than you know. As a reader of mysteries, thrillers, literary fiction, historical fiction, and narrative non-fiction, here are the five books published (or to-be published) in May 2022 that I am most excited…

Earn 10% of purchases through the Bookshop Affiliate Program — Writer/reader friends: Have you all heard about Bookshop? Since I know that all readers and authors love to support local or independent bookstores whenever they can, Bookshop should be on your radar for two big reasons: Bookshop supports independent bookstores (and is shoppable online) If you also write about books…

A recap of the books I recommend from last month — Did March seem long to anyone else? Maybe it’s just that after the zoominess of February, I’m not ready for a full month of days. Except that it gives me more time to read. Not complaining. Somehow I read six books in February and I’m still tired thinking about it. …

Why I’m spending more time on Substack lately — I haven’t been able to stop talking about Substack lately, but that’s because I’ve fallen for the platform. Past the point of mild obsession. Deeper than infatuation. I’ve got it bad for Substack. I’ll tell you all the reasons I love the platform as a reader, but first, as a…

More exciting new books coming out in 2022 — Before 2022 started, lists of most anticipated books seemed to appear everywhere. I love these lists more than you know. As a reader of mysteries, thrillers, literary fiction, historical fiction, and narrative non-fiction, here are the five books published (or to-be published) in April 2022 that I am most excited…

The value of rereading — I recently started rereading a book that I declared one of my favorites: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel (which many people might recognize from HBO). Surprisingly, I had forgotten much of the plot and many of the characters. I remembered loving the book so much that I frequently…

Shareable online links for writers from the last week or so — How do you feel about articles, threads, or posts that consist mainly of other links, a recap of online content all in one place? I personally love it. As I start to notice more and more recap posts, I’m thinking about how regular weekly or monthly roundups could be helpful…

There’s a reason I write fiction instead of nonfiction — Brene Brown says, “Vulnerability is the birthplace of love, belonging, joy, courage, empathy, and creativity. It is the source of hope empathy, accountability, and authenticity.” If you’re like me, this vulnerability/empathy/creativity thing sounds very nice in theory. In practice, though, I am not that person. Anyone with me? Raise a…