it's about the birds
as of yesterday, Edna has been out in the world for one month. I was hoping to do a newsletter with, like, reflections on my first month as a debut author. like, I could wait until the one-year mark, but I’m so very bad at celebrating things that I was like “why wait!”
but every time I opened Substack, my brain was filled with flies. which is pretty standard for me, lately, which is why it took me a thousand years to get line edits for Buried Things to my agent.
(more on that next month.)
also, it’s May, aka WARBLER MONTH. why would I talk about being a debut author when I could talk about BIRDS?
the biggest week in american birding
aka reasons I unironically love northwest ohio
first of all, in case you’re new around these parts and have somehow missed this about me: hi hello I’m E and I love birds.
second of all, the beginning of May marks warbler season here in northwest ohio. joke all you want about our state, but the warblers seem to like it. and they’re super cute songbirds, so why would you distrust them?
anyway, most of the warblers we get nest in canada, but before the long flight over Lake Erie, they stop off here in northwest ohio. for ten days at the beginning of May, birders flock here from around the country and even internationally to see the warblers. these ten days are known as the Biggest Week in American Birding and are a fantastic time to add to your annual bird lists, which I’m sure you all keep.
in my area we have a fantastic parks system, and you’re almost guaranteed to see at least one species of warbler no matter where you go. but for some really good birding, head out to Magee Marsh or Ottawa Wildlife Refuge on Route 2.
through my day job, I got to lead two different bird walks this month: one as part of a two-week course for our Lifelong Learning program, and one for our staff. several staff people who were off-campus that day would like to attend a future event, so I’m hoping that means more bird walks this summer, which, let’s face it, is my ideal work day.
you’re probably like “then E why don’t you simply work somewhere where that would be your whole job,” and the answer is (a) I don’t have a relevant degree and (b) I’m a very casual birder. as you can see. very normal about this whole birding thing.
exciting birds I’ve seen this year
I do actually keep a running bird list of species I’ve more or less positively IDed each year, which you can view on twitter (linked below). (I took “bird app” very literally.) but here are some of my faves so far this year.
other exciting birds this year, mostly because they’re birds I’ve never seen before (at least not clearly enough to get a positive ID): bufflehead, Bonaparte’s gull, and eastern towhee.
bird lists on twitter: 2023 (so far). 2022. 2021. 2020. 2019.
my book doesn’t have many birds in it, but you can buy it anyway
The Remarkable Retirement of Edna Fisher may not have many birds, but it has dragons, which are basically the same thing. only fierier. it also has found family, the real world-but-magic, and an 83-year-old protagonist who leaves the nursing home to pursue her destiny.
buy now, add to a TBR, or request a library purchase! we also have an audiobook in the works, so keep an eye out for updates on that. links can be found at my Linktree.
