September: Return of the Mack-intosh Apple
Sugardaddy Pluto, be kind; Poetry release tomorrow; Books, music & more
A brief word on September
(a better, brighter berry)
It’s September and everything’s already coming up apples. Stores have dusted off their fall decor and candles festoon the shelves of every TJMaxx and Homegoods. But, fair Michiganders (and readers abroad), I’d dare argue there is a superior fruit to celebrate this time of year.
I offer a case study: “Pie time, time for pie”, repeats mercilessly in my head like nature’s alarm, and it’s all I can do to stave off the urge to bake a wild blueberry pie from scratch. But tradition demands certain conditions be met; and I want to enjoy every act in making the perfect pie.
I am the little red hen, and I will:
shop for the ingredients by hand (I normally just have them delivered),
craft its innards lovingly from scratch,
remember the twisted leaves of bygone blueberry bushes and the smell of wet pine groves, creating the perfect acidic conditions for the sweet, lapis berries as I roll out a giving dough,
sit by the oven while it bakes,
read something great by it as it cools,
and I will enjoy every bite.
(Nothing beats a warm wild blueberry pie in the cold late summer breeze of the ocean in Acadia, with homemade vanilla ice cream melting beside it. But we haven’t the luxury in this landlocked frontier.) So patiently I wait. It is September after all, and despite climate change the dog days dare not rear their heads in magical seasons.
A brief word on the sky
(astrology)
Speaking of macintosh (apples), and quintessential comeback/karmic song of the mid-nineties, Mark Morrison said it best: “All this pain you said I'd never feel / You lied to me”. And yes, Capricorn placements feel the mire of a sinkhole swallow them back into the realm of the subterranean god for a final period of transformation à la The Descent, from tomorrow until November 19. I bet I can hold my breath until then.
A brief word on my poetry collection
(Swiftly Woven Wings: Old Poems)
It’s out tomorrow, in eBook, paperback, and hardcover. That is all. xoxo
A brief word on music
(lord of the flies, lit girl fall X, indie)
The indulgent traipse down memory lane about pie aside, I’m a firm believer that fall is a great time for punk, metal and grungy rock.
Here’s some music for the transition; This playlist’s heavy on doom and stoner metal but I still think some of you will enjoy these darker gems from lesser-known artists as the weather cools. Maybe you know someone to whom ye should preach thine goode word, and we can expand their audience a bit.
There’s another really solid playlist of sad white girl music (not disparaging, just describing) appropriately dubbed lit girl fall x over on the ‘Notes On’ Substack, if you’re feeling more mellow: Like you want to wrap your cardigan around you on the set of Practical Magic. 🍂
And I’ll be back on my indie sleaze and jazz schtick for the next playlist midmonth. I’ve already started feeling the vibe out and have a couple bangers queued up for you.
A brief word for writers
(submit, subscribe, short story marketing)
You have GOT to follow Rumble Writes (above). If you’re someone who has a body of work you sit on, if you’re looking to transition to paid work, or add another resource to your repertoire, this is a good one. Some of the best-paying opportunities are at the beginning of the month — but hey, that’s the beauty of subscribing, right? You could know as soon as the round-up is wrangled.
What I loved to see are some horror and darker gothic/macabre prompts. ‘Tis the season.
Want to be part of an anthology of weird fiction and art?
Want to be paid? Want to have your work understood and appreciated? Want to work with an experienced, empathic, eccentric, esoteric editor? 😇 Then check out the post above!
Short story marketing: An intro to your larger world
Interestingly, there’s a title released this month from Naomi Novik: Buried Deep & Other Stories. From a writer’s perspective, a set of short stories to either introduce readers to the world you’re penning or provide fans of an already published world a retrospective is a ‘novel’ idea.
A brief word for readers
(TBR, a Poll, New Releases)
I am almost finished with The Priory of the Orange Tree (it’s so long, I love it so much I’m drooling). I had to squeeze in a couple of other titles for a boost of confidence and to participate in a social book club for work (The Institute, and The Berry Pickers). So the hunt continues.
TBR (to be read) this month:
The Mysterious North Shore of Lake Superior, by William Mayo & Kathryn Mayo
Yankees in Michigan, by Brian C. Wilson
The Body, by Stephen King (perennial favorite author)
The Witches of Eastwick, by John Updike (another favorite author)
& a re-read of selections from Edgar Allen Poe (a third favorite author), with my sights set on Berenice (tops ‘in my book’ as it were), as well as Mesmeric Revelation, and of course, his poems
Help-me-read-my-Kindle Poll:
And I’d like to read one title from among the many on my kindle from gracious friends and family members who know I love to read, but aren’t aware that I’m absolutely horrendous at reading ebooks. 😭 It makes me feel so guilty to leave them to linger so long. If you can help me wade through the pile by choosing for me, I know it will help me slowly worm my way out from beneath the vicious digital heap:
Keep your eyes on/forthcoming this month:
And then there’s the matter of all the new books coming out which I try to really limit, because one simply cannot keep up (blame the overlap of the resources: time & money). But a fairly quick couple of reads (for me) are at least on my radar. The ones I think are really interesting (Scorpio Midheaven with a 12H stellium, read: darkness & institutions as themes) are listed.
Out TOMORROW (seriously, I hope you called out of work tomorrow to be at a bookstore):
Immortal Dark, by Tigest Girma (comps: The Cruel Prince meets Ninth House — a fav);
Colored Television, by Danzy Senna (a dark comedy about second acts, creative appropriation, and the racial identity–industrial complex)
Bright I Burn, by Molly Aitken (about the first woman in Ireland burned as a witch)
Creation Lake, by Rachel Kushner (Booker Prize finalist, two-time National Book Award Finalist; spy-for-hire infiltrates a commune of eco-activists in rural France)
Sept 10th:
Nexus: A Brief History of Information Networks from the Stone Age to AI, by Yuval Noah Harari
Sept 24th:
The Empusium: A Health Resort Horror Story, by Olga Tokarczuk (set in a sanitarium on the eve of World War I, it probes the horrors that lie beneath our most hallowed ideas; penned by a Nobel Prize winner)
A brief word on my life
(A bit about me tucked away at the end)
Oh my god. If I knew, or if it had been adequately conveyed to me (damn the paternalistic medical system), how much the surgery I had on my jaw was going to impact my life, I would have better prepared — mentally and literally/in my day-to-day. I have one more procedure for the other half of my face mid-September, so I get a do-over, as they say.
ALWAYS ASK MORE QUESTIONS.
But I’m so glad it went well and I’m on the mend. I hope you’ll wish me the same luck mid-month!
It just occurred to me that perhaps this is one of those Plutonian lessons I’ve been brought back to my knees to learn. Astrology really isn’t funny. 😐
Until next time,
Nico
brb booking a flight for this blueberry pie 🫐🥧
Hope you enjoy GEN! ⚡️