My Big Fake Wedding is Rebel Readers' January 2024 Book Club Pick
It me.
Happy Friday, all! I've got a short one for you this week because, this holiday season, I've been eating, drinking, making merry, and generally being a nonproductive blob who doesn't write blog posts. (See attached self-portrait as Fraggle Rock monster >>)
(That said . . . I am this close to finishing a revision of a piece that has been on my to-do list for a while. This means hopefully I can turn to brand-spankin’-new writing projects in the near future and get rid of some of this backlog of ideas. Yee!)
(Also, also! As friends keep telling me whenever I mention my productivity shame spiral, it is important to have downtime and recharge, especially given how much we're scrambling to get things done and juggle all the plates in our hands or items on our plates or whatever metaphor you want to mix in here.)
ANYWHO. I am pleased and honored to share that My Big Fake Wedding is Rebel Readers' book club pick for January 2024!
For those not in the know, Rebel Readers is a phenomenal organization here in North Florida and southern Georgia, founded by two former educators, that installs and supplies Little Free Libraries with books that are banned in public schools for all manner of ridiculous reasons. (Here's a comprehensive list of books that are banned or pending investigation to be banned here in Florida. #Yikes)
In addition to their primary mission, Rebel Readers has merch and a monthly book club. I love that the founders, Casey and Kati, have picked My Big Fake Wedding for January’s club meeting because, though on the surface it’s your standard closed-door romcom, there are subplots about the performative aspects of wedding culture, especially as they relate to straight vs queer marriage, and about mental health, anxiety, and neurodivergence. I’m in conversations with Casey and Kati now to make an in-person appearance toward the end of their January meeting, and I can’t wait to discuss these themes with attendees!
More details will be coming soon for anyone in Jacksonville, Florida, who wants to come out for that. If you want to attend and you're not already a member of the book club, please be sure to follow Rebel Readers on Instagram or donate books or money to this worthy cause. I feel honored by their recognition, and I want to treat them with the great respect they deserve.
By the way, I'm open to Zooming into book club meetings or visiting the occasional book club in person for signings, Q&As, and so on. If you'd like to discuss having me in for an author visit, fill out the form below.
Hm. I guess this post wasn’t so short after all. Well, for now, I'm retreating into the remaining long weekend of my winter break, and I suggest you do the same, if the option is available to you. (If you—like my husband, who works in the service industry, or one of my good friends who is a nurse—haven’t had time off, I’m sorry, and I hope you get some R&R soon.)
Till next Friday, I’ll sign off with a list of what I’m listening to, reading, and thinking about right now.
Jessica xx
What I'm Reading Right Now:
Pucking Around, Emily Rath on audio (self-published version in advance of the Kensington Press repub)
The Parable of the Sower, Olivia E. Butler in paperback #IReadBannedBooks #ItsAlmost2024LikeInTheNovelAndImScared
What I'm Listening to Right Now:
Pod Meets World’s latest episode, in which three former Boy Meets World cast members discuss life after child acting with a mental health professional. FASCINATING!
What I'm Watching Right Now:
My brother visited this week and got me into Dimension 20, so I'm going down a rabbit hole of that and Critical Role and wishing it was my D&D group's night already. (If you’re as much of a Lord of the Rings fan as I am, Escape from the Bloodkeep is a good D20 campaign to start with.)
A comfort rewatch of The Crown. I got to the series finale, sobbed like a baby, and immediately hit ‘Play’ on season 1, episode 1.
Upcoming Events:
Rebel Readers Book Club January 2024 meeting. Details to come.
I'll be attending AWP 2024 in Kansas City, Missouri! Let me know if I'll see you there so we can grab some barbecue and complain about the midwestern coldness.
I'm interviewing the Emily Rath for Jacksonville Public Library's Lit Chat series on Galentine's Day 2024. You can register here, though be advised priority is given to library card holders.
The following Saturday, February 17, I'm hosting a Writer’s Lab event (also with the library system) called Not Your Mama's Romance Novel, about how the romance genre has evolved, especially in the last decade.
