Instead of participating in the Monthly Rewind meme, every three months I’ll update the world on my life from the previous season. Enjoy the Seasonal Rewind!

Through the Lens

Happy birthday to Harry Potter! I’m not a Funko Pop collector at all, but when I saw him (and Voldemort), I couldn’t help myself. Also, Amanda got married! Here she is in all her stunning, prairie fairy glory, dancing with her father. Late in September, my mother and I went on a trip around Oregon together. This particular shot is from Yaquina Head Lighthouse in Newport.

Life Highlights

While I could go on and on about the wonderful things that happened this summer (Amanda’s beautiful wedding, being featured in Writer’s Digest, my first anniversary with TriadaUS, traveling to Oregon with Mom for a mother-daughter trip), the best and most wonderful thing ever was receiving the most perfect surprise from my amazing friends. They raised money to help fund a trip to England so that I could see the British Beau before June 2016!

It was a complete surprise. On Wednesday nights, my med school friend and I get together to study (her) and read manuscripts (me) at Starbucks — creatively called Starbucks Wednesdays. When I showed up on September 2nd, I was surprised to find a couple of our friends there as well. “We have something to give you.” They handed me a fat envelope filled with money and cards and letters of love, including one from British Beau. Obviously I burst into tears and made a scene (of joy! OF JOY!). We had to leave and take a walk on a nearby trail so that I could process this. My family knew about it, the beau knew about it, and I was completely overwhelmed. The next day, I booked my flights for a December visit.

I can’t thank them enough. Hugs and kisses to all!

Tunes on Repeat

Shut Up & Dance (With Me) by Walk the Moon. Do I really need a reason? It doesn’t matter what mood I’m in, I will dance to this song anywhere at any time. Plus, the video is super cool.

Hannah and Maggie’s The Land & the Sea, or really anything by them that crops up when I listen to Spotify. They remind me of The Wailin’ Jennys.

Thunder by Jessie J is an excellent shout-and-dance, blast-your-eardrums-out song. Add to your running playlist!

Bookmarked in the Community

1. Slut-Shaming, Relationships, and Feminism in YA @ Bookmark Lit — Lauren wrote an excellent post on the difficulties of being a feminist (especially agreed with the line about objectification and feeling hypocritical), and portraying feminism and sexism realistically in YA literature. Girls are bullied and harassed on a daily basis, but when does it become too much in the span of a book? Can characters really learn quickly the consequences of their actions? Do authors need to spell things out? Give this great post a read!
2. How to Manage Your TBR Like a Boss @ Belle of the Literati — I’m just gonna say it: Kelly really is the TBR Boss of TBR Bosses. She’s ruthless. She’s the Marie Kondo of TBR bookcases and Goodreads lists. If you need to tidy up your TBR, look no further. Kelly’s got your back.
3. Reconstructing the Victorians @ Clarissa Harwood — Shortly after the Vox article appeared, about a couple living life as if they were Victorians, one of my clients discussed the extremes in reactions to it as well as the couple’s lifestyle. An interesting read for anyone who read the article and/or are interested in the Victorian era.
4. Perception, Reality, and Our Super Reader Community @ Perpetual Page-Turner — Jamie, like Hannah, always has some of the best discussion posts. I thoroughly enjoyed this one, in which Jamie discusses the echo chamber of the blogging community. Are we all reading the same things, and whether or not we are, are bloggers discouraged from promoting a book because “the author already has a lot of buzz”? The situation works in reverse as well, with books “lesser known” in the blogging community. Buzz is buzz, and every little bit helps an author. As Jamie said, the community doesn’t reflect sales. It’s the enthusiasm. Give this a read!
5. A Brief History of Dickens Bashing @ Journal of Victorian Culture Online — Along those same lines, how do we perceive authors and/or their works now or from the past? Emily Bowles discusses all the good things Dickens revealed in his work, his social contributions and the positive things he did for Victorian society, juxtaposed with his rather sordid personal life. How do we judge an author: by their lifestyle, by their deeds, by their work? How does it alter our perception of them/their work? A post for nerds!

Popular Posts on Scribbles

1. Top Ten Tuesday: Hyped Books I’ve Never Read — This was posted before Go Set a Watchman came out. And I think that’s what did me in…
2. Book Review: Uprooted by Naomi Novik — Uprooted was an excellent and unique fantasy. I read this shortly after all the major buzz hit newspapers and magazines, after several bloggers read and flailed over it.
3. Top Ten Tuesday: Take My Money! — One of my favorite TTTs, featuring authors I will follow to the ends of the earth. As I wrote the post I had difficulty stopping at ten! Automatic buys, all of them.
4. Book Review: Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy — No surprise here that this was a hit post. Dumplin’ deserves all the attention. I cannot get enough of this book, and apparently neither can you!

Cherished Reads

The Doldrums by Nicholas Gannon ★★★★

The Lake House by Kate Morton (review to come!)

Beastly Bones by William Ritter ★★★★

Dumplin‘ by Julie Murphy ★★★★★

Cherished Quotes

“Mom, I feel good.” My voice starts out even and calm.
“This dress makes me feel like someone I didn’t know I could be.
I’ve never owned anything like it. But if when you see this —
when you see me — you think it’s a pity, that it’s a shame
I didn’t lose a few, then screw you, Mom. Try harder.”
—Dumplin’, by Julie Murphy

Progress Update on Reading Challenges

Library Books: 6 / 10
Odditorium || The Wollstonecraft Detective Agency || Emma
Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? || The Girl With the Glass Bird
Murder is Bad Manners

#ReRead2015: 3 / 10
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire || Fangirl
Anna and the French Kiss

Overall Challenge: 53 / 60*
*yes! I up’d my challenge another 10 books!

Random Obsessions

On TV: Poldark. If you didn’t watch it, do so now. It’s like Outlander and Downton Abbey had a baby in Cornwall and this masterpiece arrived.

On Film: After finishing Gilmore Girls, it felt strange not having a show or movie to turn to to ease out of a constant marathon. When this happens, I turn to either 10 Things I Hate About You, Love Actually, or About Time. This summer, it was About Time. (I love it so much, I dedicated a whole blog post over on Lindsey’s blog!)

In the Shopping Bag: Oh, ModCloth. I caved and broke my buying ban. Whenever they send out sales emails, I’m suckered in. Thankfully that meant snagging the best cardigan on the planet (I’m wearing it now!) and my new favorite purse!

Miscellaneous: That coloring book craze everyone is into these days (as if art therapy was never a thing) piqued my curiosity. But I didn’t want to buy a coloring book if I wasn’t going to devote time to it. Andi @ Andi’s ABCs offered a solution: Colorfy app! Free, fun, like a coloring book but for your phone! // In the midst of my Gilmore Girls replacement, I was looking for something to watch or listen to while taking a break from agenting. British Beau offered some BBC Radio 4 shows (Book of the Week, Book at Bedtime, I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue, The Infinite Monkey Cage). Nerdtastic, which means it’s up your alley, too. // Whittard tea. DIVIIIIIIINE. Oh my gosh. Toss all other tea out the window. (Also, thank you to British Beau! What a life-changer.)

Looking Towards the Future

Now that the holiday season is fast approaching, there are plenty of things to look forward to October through December! First, I’ll be attending the Indiana Writing Workshop again this year in late October. November is Thanksgiving, which is always excellent because the house smells wonderful and family comes to town! Now December…December wins everything. I’ll start off the month in England visiting the British Beau, come back to a flurry of Christmas concerts and activities, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s — it’ll be the best December ever!

What have you been up to this season / this month? Any new obsessions or good reads or great music? Share some of your favorites here, and let me know if I should check out any great blog posts!