One of the central motifs of this blog — perhaps its heartbeat center — is noticing. Paying attention to life in its filigree and finest-tipped. Being a watchful, joyful witness. Resisting the desire to imprint ourselves and our plans onto the world and instead submitting to the here-and-now, which, for me, is the chirping of my son as he finishes the puzzle sitting on top of our dining room table, the buzz of football in the living room, the syncopation of the branches outside my studio as they surrender to this steady Sunday rain.
What is calling for your attention today? What is making you lean into this particular Monday in October?
For me:
+Madeline Miller’s Mestra — just received in the mail and it is the most charming pocket or purse book, and of course bears Miller’s signature propulsive, nearly-imagistic prose. Miller begins, per Carson, in the exquisite middle of things, with what I am now considering “the red-tailed hawk effect.” (You almost never see raptor in wait — you instead see it as a confusion of feathers, once in pursuit. ) Mestra starts with a confusion of feathers. I am only a few pages in and how fantastic is this line (just after Mestra has been sold off as a wife to a poor merchant for a few roast chickens): “Seven chickens,” he said to me. “You better be worth it.”
+The poet’s cabin I just learned about in Middleburg and fully plan to use for a writing retreat later this fall;
+”Charaxos and Larichos” — I’ve been in a Sappho mood this weekend; this one is not translated by Anne Carson, though. “As for Larichos, that lay-a-bed lives for the pillow.” What a burn! Belongs with Bronte’s best in Wuthering Heights.
+The stalwart tree in our cul de sac, now dressed in October’s orange and crimson — an ending can be beautiful!;
+The craft of writing an ending, especially in relation to Anne Carson’s counsel to “start in the middle”;
+Why Taylor Swift released those four songs the way she did? I talked with a Swiftie at one of my book events and we were examining this and the collection’s overall negative reception. I am typically firmly in the camp of the generative — release early and often — but this set’s launch seemed commercially-motivated and a little slapdash, half-baked, with reheated themes?
+The concept of success in a creative field — how to define;
+Who to dreamcast in The Pirate Queen (Kerry Condon as Grainne Ni Mhaille?);
+The use of asterisms in The Pirate Queen;
+The ungainliness of the term “dinkus” — so deeply ill-suited for its definition, it almost feels like the English language came unbracketed from its door hinges there;
+Epistolary form — its popularity in the 18th century and its reprise in Emma M. Lion, The Correspondent, etc. The idea of intimate, private spaces for communication with self or loved ones, especially for women. Space in general, especially in Emma M. Lion, where architecture (Lapis Lapizuli) and the private journal inform the text’s central preoccupations.
+How to write about physical space without drowning the reader in dry-as-dust details about dimensions and decor. Too much table-setting and you’re toast.
What’s on your mind?
Post-Scripts.
+Take comfort: we are in constant rewriting.
+Living room confessional.
Shopping Break.
+I just found the coolest tailored dressy pants. Come in a petite inseam and you can get in a cargo-style (a bit more personality / perspective) or without the pocket. I just ordered the navy. I feel like this will look insanely chic with a button-down or crewneck cashmere sweater and great flats for a polished meeting / Sunday best type moment. Obsessed.
+Love these chunky lug sole rain boots! Chic alternative to Hunters!
+You all are loving the sherpa finds right now. Two topsellers from this category that I’ve recently shared: this entire collection from The Great and Marea’s birdseye fleece jacket (use code MAREA10).
+I ordered a couple of sets of Hot Toddy Mix and Mulling Cider Mix for little hostess gifts for the season ahead. I actually think I might make the hot toddy on Halloween night for any interested neighbors. How cute? I also like the idea of giving hot chocolate bombs or fancy hot fudge (<<the peppermint one always sells out the closer we get to Christmas; a great gift for neighbors wrapped up with cello and a big ribbon).
+Adorable alt to The Great’s statement sweaters, and selling fast.
+A fun splurge I’m eyeing for myself. BTW, if you’ve been loving Kujten but have avoided because of tariffs, it is now carried by St. Bernard and most of it ships free (orders over $199). Their cashmere bandana scarves are iconic!
+And if you like a wool/knit scarf but aren’t interested in the prices of luxury versions from Kujten or Hermes, Tnuck has a great option for under $200. Already sold out in a few colors, but the navy is perfection.
+While you’re at Tuckernuck: this reversible (!) bomber jacket is a great buy. One side is sherpa and the other is a sporty nylon. Great for athletic wear.
+Spectacular top coats: Alice Walk’s newest design, this Veronica Beard, and — swoon swoon SWOON — this Ulla. Trust me, you do not need a navy or black topcoat. A lighter color will make an entire season one big fashion statement.
+Speaking of Ulla. I wore her Charlotte camera bag to all my book events last week and she is just such a special piece. Interesting shape and texture, can work for day or night. I have her in a kiwi/chartreuse color that worked with my navy/brown suede/olive/green palette but I think her new brown suede is also fetching and highly versatile. Finally, OMG. Her new embellished-collar knits (long-sleeve, short-sleeve) are…perfection. Imagine with a pair of dark rinse jeans or a faux-leather skirt or trousers! SPECTACULAR!
+Warby Parker is offering 20% off extra pairs of glasses in case you’re wanting to buy a pair and get a spare at a discount. How cool are the shape of these aptly-named Brontes? I love them in that cranberry color. These remain my favorites for a petite face.
+Have heard great things about the fit of these affordable barrel cargo pants — currently on sale for $40!
+I shared a photo of an evening cocktail hour in Landon’s study and got a lot of questions about this little cocktail table. One tip a designer shared with me: make sure there is a place where all guests can easily put down their drinks. This little guy is repositionable; we’ll put it by the game table while we’re playing or bring it into the formal living room, family room, or even Landon’s study when need be.
+A best-seller for good reason. I love these sets! But the sweatshirt alone is fabulous. You can mix and match with everyday wear. Layer over a striped button-down! Tie around your waist while wearing a denim dress. Etc.
+Obsessing over this cord top.
+I saw a few of you picked up these light-up ghosts for your front stoops…how HILARIOUS is this light-up ghost dog?!
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Re: The Encore… I feel quite lukewarm on these songs and yet, I feel I need to zoom out and trust the right of the artist simply to make what they’ll make. I think about this a lot as different music/writing/film/etc, works for some audiences and not for others and the concept of universal reception is a unicorn.
Looking at the TS canon, folklore is the only release that comes close to this and this reflects to me again how much context drives reception for the creator, for the audience, and for the artistic canon. Even just a few years later, some people were still sitting with folklore while others held the album close but were still asking for a return to pop and even different producers.
If I look at creative peers in the public sphere right now, I can only really think of Christopher Nolan as having the same influence as TS (of creatives that are consistently putting out work and have a wide-reaching vision that’s singularly their own). Nolan is an artist whose work is now an automatic yes for people in the way TS’ is, and this makes me wonder if this also skews how we engage with it.
I am struggling to coherently get my ideas out, so I will just also say that where I continue to land with the Showgirl project is that the closest explanations for it are:
1. It was an album she always wanted to make
2. The intent lies in the name
I think the project — both the original album and the deluxe — are as close to a snapshot of create + release as we’ll ever see from her quite like this. I think the layer of confusion lies in it being an album she made in the throes of Eras and she emphasised how exhausted she was by the end of the tour. A bit bored, as she explained about the European leg, and tired.
With this in mind, I think the project encapsulates what the life of the showgirl IS and ironically, one could look at the performance art as the creative act during tour and then interrogate the musical art as being affected by it. I do think she wanted to make the album and put it out so there was a direct capture of the Eras Era that wasn’t solely TTPD. This makes sense to me with how TTPD was made both before the tour and during it — but still only 6-12 months into the U.S./Americas leg.
I’m curious about this side of creative process and especially the question of creative burnout when her work involves the dynamic left- and right-brain rigour of touring, plus running a business and performance fitness and continually turning everything around with the show having to go on.
She said once that she was able to make folklore and evermore because she had way more energy/capacity when the world stood still in the way it had to. Perhaps Showgirl is the other side of that coin and demonstrates what it’s like to make the work while doing the tour/recovering from it, As someone who’s really interested in burnout and the alchemic delicacy of managing our kinetic energy, I’m so intrigued by the contradictions of something that looks so glamorous yet demands total lock-in for months and years. So, even if the music doesn’t have the place in her canon/legacy that might be expected, there’s still a lot to chew on and I really enjoy that! xx
LOVED this deep dive – thanks so much for sharing it. Your thoughtfulness and insight here are so impressive and stirring! You really made me think, especially your observation of the album as a “create and release” experience for her, sort of processing the Eras Tour while performing it. I love the idea of it as a kind of performance art.
xx