Spring Into Nature Journaling, Reading-Adjacent Actions & Chipmunk Bodegas
Weekly Literate Love: May 9, 2025
Happy Friday!
One of my favorite podcasts to listen to is Sarah Hart Unger’s Best Laid Plans, a podcast all “all things planning and planning-adjacent”. In fact, I love it so much that I invited her on my podcast to talk all about it. I bet you’ll love that episode.
I’ve always loved her “all things planning and planning-adjacent” tagline because it perfectly captures how all-encompassing our passions can be: they touch everything.
This week, I realized how true that is for our reading lives, too. Sure, we must read in order to identify as readers, but what about all of the other reading-adjacent stuff too? Things like:
Browsing books on our favorite bookish blogs.
Listening to bookish podcasts.
Chatting with librarians and booksellers.
Creating reading nooks and cozy reading spots.
Organizing our bookshelves.
My son and I share a love of decorated bookshelves and while I take pride in how mine looks, there are books double-stacked and piling all over the place. I think it looks cozy and well-loved. =)
But this week, he decided to take his bookshelf to another level and created a beautiful showcase that had me speechless. Now, I want him to do mine. Here it is!
What reading-adjacent things might you do this weekend to boost your reading life?
Keep reading for your weekly dose of literate love and click the button below to share with a bookish friend!
Happy reading & writing!
Stephanie
P.S: My KidLit Love Summer Book Club experience is LIVE! Join now to read children’s books with me all summer long…..WITH THE AUTHORS! Click here for more information and join me for this exciting dream come true!
What I'm Reading:
Mothers and Sons by Adam Haslett
This was a deeply engrossing, almost haunting, book that captured the tumultuous and shifting relationship between a mother and son. The writing was brilliant and beautiful and I could feel every page, so much so that I had to set the book down periodically. Themes of identity, family and sense of self were quite evident as were ideas of authenticity, freedom, loss and love. Powerful writing, a powerful story and a powerful response.
Read Yourself Happy by Daisy Buchanan
You know that I love all things bibliotherapy and truly believe that reading can change our lives in countless different ways. So does Daisy. I am glued to this book and wish I could pour a cup of coffee, hop on a Zoom call and talk all things bibliotherapy and healing with her. For now, I’ll just devour every page, sticky note flags in my hand. If you love books, you’ll love this one.
The One That Got Away by Mike Gayle
This book is a story about exes and how to get over them. Or not. =) I adored Mike Gayle’s earlier release All the Lonely People and I cannot wait to sink into this short story of the weekend.
What I'm Writing:
This week, I created the most beautiful chart and honestly, I open the document on my computer just so I can admire it often. What kind of chart earned such admiration?
I created my podcast calendar for the REST OF THE YEAR complete with snazzy titles and bonus episodes. Here’s how I did it:
First, I created content pillars that I wanted the podcast to be known for.
Then, I brainstormed episode ideas in each of those pillars.
Once I had enough, I started filling in the weekly slots, alternating across each pillar and adding guest interviews and bonus posts.
Once I was finished, I reviewed the entire document and made slight changes to the title names that had me looking forward to the episodes even more.
Finally, I pinned the chart to my browser so I can quickly access it at any time and see where the podcast is heading.
So, on Tuesday when a new Get Lit(erate). episode is released, you’ll know it was the first brainstormed episode on the chart!
What I'm Learning:
I’ve realized I am at my happiest when I am working toward something new and recently, I started earning an additional yoga certification: Yin Yoga.
I knew that Yin was a slower paced class with poses held for 3 - 5 minutes alongside deep breathing and mindfulness. I knew it targeted the stiffer connective tissues for a different kind of release and relaxation.
But what I didn’t know was that Yin postures are more than sinking deeply into a stretch: they actually put pressure on the physical locations of the energetic pathways in our body and that pressure releases blockages and boosts energy flow.
It’s like giving acupuncture to yourself, kind of. =)
I’m blown away and LOVING everything that I am learning. My back and hip are almost good to go, so I’ll hopefully be back on my YouTube channel soon!
What I'm Loving:
I’ve been using tarot cards to boost my self-reflection and spark writing, too. That’s why I love these tarot stickers from Big Moods.
I didn’t know that this was a thing, but now I want a chipmunk bodega. Really.
Does anyone else need these bookish earrings? I do!
Keep scrolling for my latest podcast posts and updates!
Podcast Highlights From the Last Week:
Spring Into Nature Journaling with Karen Houlding
On today’s episode of the Get Lit(erate). podcast, I’m talking with Karen Houlding about the power of nature journaling and why we should all lean into this unique form of notebooking in the Spring season.
Come listen as we talk all about nature journaling: how Karen got started, how YOU can get started, the benefits that will come your way and much more. It’s time to slow down, savor what we see and capture it all.
From My Private Substack Community…
Every Sunday, I post additional content for my private Substack community to bring even more literate love to our lives. Here’s what I shared this week:
Create a Personal Florilegium: Picture a beautiful bouquet of words, just for you!
Be sure to subscribe and add them to your TBR stack. Click the button below to subscribe. It’s just $5 per month!
Let’s Work Together!
I love to connect with others around our shared love of reading and writing.
Here are some ways we can work together to create a life you love where restorative reading and writing is at the center of it all:
🩷 Join my private Substack community for themed book calendars, bonus posts, book clubs and events each month!
📚 Connect 1:1 for personalized coaching to unlock the transformative power of your reading and writing life.
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I'm such a planner, I'm going back to listen to the paper planning episode! It was such a delight to chat with you on this week's episode -- I love how our conversation flowed!🌱 Yin Yoga sounds very interesting to me -- it sounds like elements of Lucas Rockwood's Hip Opening sessions, holding for 5 min. So good that you are exploring this method!
A podcast calendar for the rest of the year!! I loved reading about the steps you took to make it happen - so purposeful and fun too! Yin Yoga sounds wonderful - here's to working toward new things. :)