Book & Bramble - January 2025
A Letter from Caitlyn Paxson
Dear Reader,
I’ve missed writing to you. I needed some time at the end of 2024 to come to terms with what a momentous year it was for me, both in terms of loss and the fulfillment of ambitions I’ve held since childhood. I’m not sure that I did come to terms with any of it, but I feel like it's time to return to this practice of chatting with you.
It seems like we’re in for some very difficult days ahead. I hope that wherever you are, you are finding a balance between fighting against the rise of fascism, oligarchy, and genocide and taking care of yourself and your loved ones. I know I’m struggling to find that balance myself, so if you are too, you’re not alone.
Despite all the darkness in the world—or perhaps because of it—I want this newsletter to continue to feel like you’ve come over to have a cup of tea, pet the cats, stroll around the garden, and talk about books.
Bruce will not be getting up until conditions improve.
I get the impression that the cats love this time of year. Everyone is mostly working from home, laps are plentiful and covered in fuzzy blankets, and the heat vent blasts warm air directly into their beds:
Monty and Tess have the best seats in the house.
Crafting:
I’ve been thinking a lot about Wreath of the Month, and whether I ought to continue it in 2025. I’ve done it for four years, and I feel like it’s not lighting my creative spark quite like it used to. I tend to have seasons where I get really deep into a particular craft—and then move on to the next thing. At the moment, my hyperfixation is sewing. I had always wanted to make my own clothes, but I was intimidated by the idea of using patterns, since I’m very bad at following instructions. It turns out, once you get a sense of basic shapes, you can just wing it! I’ve been making lots of different garments, but my favorites are all flowy blouses and chemises.
Everything I’m wearing was made by me!
Regardless of whether or not Wreath of the Month continues in some form, I think I will keep taking and sharing regular self-portraits. It’s interesting having this record of myself as time passes, and it forces me to find beauty in the way I look even though it’s sometimes challenging to feel at peace with the changes that aging brings. And I just think there should be more art featuring middle-aged and older women!
Writing:
In case you somehow missed it, I have a book coming out in 2026!
What you may not know is that I also have a book coming out in 2027 – the sequel! Which I am currently writing! This is my first time writing a book to a deadline (which is fast approaching) and treating it like a real job. I have a whole system where I write a certain number of words a day and I give myself stickers on a calendar, and you wouldn’t think stickers would be that motivating but apparently my neurodivergent brain hasn’t changed much since grade school. Or maybe we were just trained back then to be sticker-motivated creatures? Anyway, the work progresses, though it is completely consuming my mind and making it impossible for me to read other people’s books right now.
Reading:
So far this year, I have read absolutely nothing aside from my own work! I hate it! But it’s necessary while I get Book 2 drafted. That said, I did read a bunch of romances in December, so here’s a super quick round-up.
Stack-o-romance
The Ladies Rewrite the Rules—Sweet and funny, not as socially radical or as spicy as I personally prefer my historical romance these days but I enjoyed it a lot.
A Dark and Drowning Tide—Definitely more of a quest-centric fantasy, genre-wise, but it has a very satisfying sapphic academic-rivals-to-lovers romance at its heart. I love a story where the worldbuilding treats folklore like science.
The Truth According to Ember—A fun contemporary romance by a Chickasaw author that tackles issues of identity and the ethics of hiding who you are to get ahead. Feels like it would work really well as a movie, so fingers crossed someone gets on that.
The Finest Print—I love a historical romance about working class and/or middle-class people instead of aristocrats, and this one is really fabulous. The characters are loveable, the situation is complicated, and the saucy bits are steaming hot! Highly recommend.
Musing:
We’ve been blessed with a lot of wildlife on the farm this winter. We have a flock of partridges who spend their days bustling around and digging in the snow, and for a couple of days, a fox took up residence in the tree stump next to my greenhouse.
Mr. Fox, partridge footprints, and the partridge family
Now I must go and earn my daily writing stickers. Until next time, wishing you the best books and the most berry-full brambles,
Caitlyn
I write this from the traditional unceded territory known as Mi’kma’ki, and I am grateful to call Epekwitk my home.