The Report—July 7

I am minimally Canadian and maximally festive on Canada Day, and I spend a few weeks every summer holded up in a cottage in rural Ontario. Despite technically being a travel writer—and being extremely lucky on that front with the spots I've already been able to visit—this lakeside spot is my actual favorite place in the world. I'm working up here, not entirely vacationing, but it's still just about the only time I ever fully feel entirely loose. Plenty of reading, swimming, tanning, etc,. A handful of siblings' toddlers to add some pizzazz in case you were feeling too complacent.

Here's a small peek into some of what I've been up to. The R.E.P.O.R.T. is a popular social format, and I find it works moderately well for this!

Reading

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In July, I appear to be reading either dense philosophy or classics (one leading to the other leading to the other) or Kindle Unlimited-style BookTok picks I can call market research—but also satisfy the knock-'em-out beach read category.

And then, of course, some titles that have been on my to-read list for forever that I occasionally tell myself I will get done up here. Despite still maintaining a heavy to do list, something in the lakewater up here magically makes me inhale at least a book a day. In normal years, it would be three.

A sampling, but I owe y'all my read in June list too because I posted that to my social media yesterday.

Figuring by Maria Popova

I've repeatedly said I want to essentially model my career—and content creation style—after Maria Popova, founder of The Marginalian, and her book reminds me why. Figuring is much more flowery than the site, to be honest, so I’m not sure whether I find the prose too sentimental or abstract. Overall, I adore her curation and the book traces various influential figures (Ralph Waldo Emerson, Johannes Kepler, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, etc,.) throughout revelations and profound moments. I even love her bio: "Maria Popova is a reader, and writes about what she reads."

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez

I had this magical realism pick from the library as an eBook, and got lucky in that I stumbled across a used copy for $4 at the secondhand shop in town (Port Hope, Ontario.) Despite bringing maybe fifteen books apiece to the island, Hannah and I stocked up on bargain finds there, because we will tear through all our reading material. Márquez feels like he should be read in paperback, and I'm partway through my preferred format.

The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli

I obviously read a ton of psychology, so frequently think about the Mach scale i.e. how likely you are to manipulate others. But, of course, I hadn't yet read Machiavelli himself. I've been on an old books kick, so kind of going back to the beginning to fill in classical knowledge I only read in Latin classes and my European History major and the like. Oddly enough, The Prince is somewhat refreshing to read in the current political climate and my disappointments in the landscape, but I'll veer into that reasoning if I end up reviewing it.

The Listeners by Maggie Stiefvater

For once, it wasn't actually me buying a Maggie Stiefvater title; it was my mother. I'm nervous for her adult debut because it's historical fiction—not normally my forte—but I usually read Stiefvater for her stunning, playful prose control anyway. I haven't loved her latest, Call Down the Hawk and similar, but I absolutely worship her entire body of work.

And Lord, I could keep on going with everything I'm reading at this exact moment—but I'll restrain myself. Think: a mix of heady existentialism, some cowboy romances, and Alice Munro.

Eating

we make giant batches

I've been more into cooking this year, like I said. But! Admittedly, part of the reason I've put off mastery for so long is that I'm spoiled rotten by having a mother who's a truly excellent cook. I'm currently reaping the benefits of not fending for myself every night while with family. We sign up for dinners, and my culinary contribution highlight was a colorful beet pasta.

Nowadays, I'm deeply affected by caffeine (the joys of adulthood) so really cannot have more than one coffee without feeling it too abruptly. Recently, I've started to feel jitters even on my first cup (even with l-theanine) so might have to give it up entirely. For now, I look forward to suffering through a Tim Horton's Maple every morning, because I'm a cliché.

Playing

Normally, I'd use the playing category to talk about hobbies and whatnot. Previous Reports have included notes on swimming, my ballet classes, figure drawing in town, rock climbing, etc,. I may or may not have spent a solid hour this morning scouring needlepointing kits.

Today, let's focus on literal games. I haven't participated much yet in the evenings, as I've been opting to read or write instead, but we do have some Black Island staples that appear.

Admittedly, there's something nice about even playing games at all versus being on phones or what-have-you. The structure can feel nice.

Last year, we got into Ransom Notes, which is based off a similar premise as Apples to Apples or Cards Against Humanity: a judge and prompts. You don't have much room to respond to the question (as it's based off of fridge magnets) so results are often hilarious.

We also have an annual tradition of games with a neighboring cottage. Loser keeps the Chartreuse Goose. Last year, one of the toddlers burst into tears because we had to give up the goose (meaning that we won.) This year, we got the goose back and she also cried—having recently, apparently, developed the competitive instinct. We cheered her up, but the goose has no mercy when it comes to wreaking emotional havoc. The five- and three-year-olds also recently discovered Nerf guns, so the games are a-plenty (and participation is sometimes involuntary.)

Obsessing

looking in

Is it silly just to say everything about being in Canada again? Favorite place, favorite time of year, favorite routines and rhythms. Our time here is coming to a close, but it always restores me.

In a more tangible sense, I've been building out an author site on ReadyMag, which is fun! Words Like Silver is custom and self-hosted, so I never touch the design; I make any requests through my fantastic developer.

But since Mountain Sounds and my other books (media kit, etc,.) will just have their own landing page, it's a little fun to play around with a portfolio-style setup elsewhere. If my Squarespace hadn't just renewed on my rarely-updated journalism site, I'd move that over because the visual style works a little better for me.

I don't think I'd love ReadyMag for sites that have a live element updating (like the blog), but just don't know enough about it; for static content, it seems great.
Aside from that, like I said: I'm hoping to
force myself into Internet growth. Also trying to start my zero draft, but haven't made much progress on writing my next book.

I've also been playing around with Words Like Silver merch! Definitely been wanting to build that out at some point because the last time I had t-shirts were in maybe 2013. (They're light blue, with a typewriter on them and a horrible font.) So I'd love to update some memorabilia as WLS scales, if only just a mug for myself. We’ve been expanding, y’all.

Recommending

the highlighter

In my product reviewer capacity, some items I've been testing and enjoying lately. No affiliate links, just a quick note or two:

Joeur Molten Glow Face + Body Highlighter

I don't experiment with makeup too often—or wear it much in Hawai'i, really—but this golden highlighter is extremely pretty texturally. It's easy to use without getting everywhere or looking like too much: subtle enough that I actually might become a highlighter person.

Laurel Denise Planner

I'm a brat about planners because my brain works so longhand, and I've been swearing by the Laurel Denise planners for the last few years to house all the scraps of my brain and organization. I'm still wired to start "my year" with a school season, so I love a fresh layout for entering the fall. I'll write about it in more detail.

More to come, but I owe y'all a Love Letter anyway.

Treating

The Remarkables.

I have a flight voucher that expires in September and so I'm trying to figure out if I can justify an actual solo trip away "for fun." Flights, absolutely. Time off and lodging costs? Maybe not. That feels overly indulgent, but I did promise myself an actual vacation after [redacted.] If I'm not forced into it now, I'll keep putting it off "for the right time"—which is the same trap I fall into for many categories. Deservedness. (I did accomplish a life dream this year.)

My jaunt to Europe last fall for a wedding in Paris was supposed to be my time away, but I ended up pretty stressed during that time because I got sick, hadn't finished my book revision like I planned, and then ended up having hurricane scares back home for two weeks. Life happens! I was excited to be there, but neurotic the entire time—not the point. So my last real, full break was in Costa Rica in 2023, also because of a flight voucher.

But this year is different. So much less stressful. 2025 is much more even or “normal.” 2024 was everything hitting at once, for better and for worse.

Any trip would be solo travel, for sure, which I love. I've considered going skiing in New Zealand using my voucher and trying for a funky hostel. I definitely think I could try to make this work around September if I can justify the living expenses of the week away, but I just got back to meaningful stability again after the time and contracts I sacrificed to the last revision. The unspoken cost of pursuing a book deal—all the little tradeoffs you don't consider.

The voucher is "use it or lose it," which tends to be the only situation that pushes me into taking genuine, logged-off time away—but I do feel guilty maybe traveling after being off-island in Canada already. Despite being an avid traveler, I'm really bad at always being half-in even when out of the picture. I'm trying to remember á la Four Thousand Weeks that I do not constantly have to be pushing myself towards my goals, but that’s easier said than done.

But most studies show that people find more joy in planning a trip than actually taking the trip itself. So at least daydreaming is making me giddy. Japan, Alaska, and the Pacific Northwest (maybe Vancouver?) are also on my "soon" bucket list. Can I justify a vacation? Hm. I tend to end up just working in beautiful places, which suits me fine for now.

Other Snaps

kiddo and a moth

moody read

Teddy as a teddy.

reviewing in the sun

A celebration. If you look in the corner, you can see me depicted as a ballerina and the semi-haunting words “these human drawings” in uneven toddler letters.

friends on Black Island!