Hello, Friends!
How is it already July?! Happy Belated Midsummer, the turning point of the year! And Happy Belated Pride Month and Happy Belated Juneteenth, and Happy Disability Pride Month! I love that summer is a time to rejoice in the value, culture, history and beauty in diversity. We must keep working to create a world where all are welcome.
It’s finally actually sunny and warm here in Duluth. I have spent many hours outside lately, reflecting on the months that have gone and the second half of the year that awaits. To be honest, after the book came out I went through an unexpected period of low energy. I’m not sure if one can develop a form of minor depression after birthing a book, but it kind of felt like that to me, at least. So many months of intense planning and dreaming followed by the joyful whirlwind of the book launch tour and then we got back home and what was waiting for us? Regular life! Only now my book exists.
None of that diminishes the gratitude I feel for all those who helped me get the book out in the world or those who have read it and shared it with friends... All of this warms my heart! But an artist’s creative life is a bit of an emotional roller coaster — I happened to come upon an unexpected dip, and I don’t want to pretend otherwise.
Luckily, I suspected that if I didn’t panic (and got myself some counseling) things would level out eventually. And sure enough, in the last couple of weeks, I could feel my usual enthusiasm trickling back in, and my creative wheels creaking and moaning as they slowly returned to motion. I wrote out a plan for the months ahead to keep spreading the word about the book, I started building out Creative Living Coaching (more coming soon!) and I wrote the rough draft of my next book proposal cover letter!
So I guess I am telling you this because sometimes we artists get derailed by our bodies and our brains and it feels scary not to know how long we’ll be down... Or if we’ll ever feel creative again. Just know that, if this happens to you, you are absolutely not alone in this. It seems to me that even the tiniest act of creativity is a step on the path back to your True Artist Self, who is constantly evolving: sometimes dreaming, sometimes creating, sometimes laying dormant until the Spring, when the tiniest idea borrows into your heart like a seed and sprouts when you are ready (no sooner or later).
Anyway, I am wishing you well on your own creative journey, wherever you find yourself at the moment, and I am sending you gratitude for letting me slowly recalibrate after the book launch! The last half of 2026 is officially here, and it is my hope that we can create conditions for the things we value most to manifest.
It’s going to be a fun summer and really busy Fall! I am currently finalizing a Fall Tour with the amazing band Wheelchair Sports Camp - I’ll let you know when those dates are all confirmed! In the meantime, the my currently confirmed shows are listed here:
July 18th - Disability Pride Party @ disAbility Connections in Jackson, MI at 2pm ET
August 9th - Zoom Book Discussion and Q&A with Emily Ladau at 2pm CT
August 18th - Two Harbors Public Library Book / Music Event at 5pm CT
August 21st - Silver Bay Public Library - Book + Music Event at 1:30pm CT
September 11th - Cloquet Public Library - Book + Music Event at 5:30pm CT
October 23rd + 24th - FARM Folk Keynote Speaker in Minneapolis, MN (see schedule)
First of all, THANK YOU to everyone who has texted, emailed, or even snail-mailed me when you finished the book! I truly cherish your kind, encouraging words and I love hearing what stood out to you as you read, especially if anything was thought-provoking or helpful. So thank you for taking the time to send your feedback!
I have recently learned that one thing that matters a lot in the Algorithm Age is the number of book reviews on sites like Amazon, Goodreads, and Audible. It helps the machine to learn which books are engaging to readers and thus increases the likelihood of recommending that title. Apparently the “goal” is over 100 reviews.
So I would be incredibly grateful if you could leave a review of my book when you’re done - it doesn’t have to be long or eloquent, just a brief note of why you enjoyed it.
Here are the links to leave a review of the book on Amazon, Goodreads, and Audible!
LEAVE A BOOK REVIEW ON GOODREADS
LEAVE AN AUDIOBOOK REVIEW ON AUDIBLE
And here are a few snippets from recent book reviews that I found quite touching:
“This is the second book that I’ve read where I felt like the author and I were sitting at a table in a coffee shop and she was just telling me about her experiences and her life - and, honestly, it was quite an enjoyable time at that virtual coffee table.”
“It Wasn’t Meant To Be Perfect is an inspiring book. Gaelynn Lea addresses fears and challenges like a warrior, and encourages you to do the same. Get this book or audiobook to get your brain in a better place! If you want to do it, just do it.”
“Her style is forthright, open, and without self pity or emotional manipulation. Her personality comes through: a woman of intelligence and determination, taking control of what life has given her while reaching for her full potential.”
One thing I haven’t mentioned as often as I should is that there is also an audiobook version of my memoir, available on Audible and on the Hachette website! I read the book myself and there’s also lots of my music woven in between the chapters. I know that not everyone enjoys reading or is able to sit down with a written book, so I was grateful that Algonquin Books and Hachette Audio invested in this accessible format!
Before I sign off, I just wanted to leave you with a thought from Thich Nhat Hanh:
“When conditions are sufficient, something manifests. That is what is called a formation. The flower is a formation, and so are the clouds and the sun. I am a formation, and you are a formation.” - Thich Nhat Hanh, Your True Home
This little quote got me thinking. What kinds of formations are we manifesting in our society when it comes to politics, or how we take care of the most marginalized?
I don’t often write about the news or politics, because I believe there are better places for you to get this information (for current disability-related news I would recommend Disability Thinking Weekday, Disability Community for Democracy, The Words I Wheel By with Emily Ladau, Disability News Digest, DREDF, and ADA Watch). I’m sure I’ll be writing about disability news again soon, as the Trump Administration is threatening disabled people’s rights to live in the community and to receive an accessible education. But this is, overall, a newsletter about creativity for all people.
Nonetheless, Thich Nhat Hanh’s words made me pause. For if we say that we are committed to manifesting peace and love, then we need to create the right conditions for these things to grow. What does this have to do with politics? Well, it seems like everywhere I go, the main topic of conversation is bashing the Trump Administration (I’m not saying I sit these conversations out - it’s so easy to get sucked in, after all!)
I would argue that a country only gets someone like Trump in office if the “right” conditions are there for him to take root and grow his support. What are these conditions? Unchecked capitalism, sure. People in high places willing to look the other way or stay silent, yes. A two-party political system that reflects the will of the monied rather than the will of the general population? Double check! But there are other, smaller forces at play. A culture of fear may start with paid ads, but it grows and spreads when everyday people pick fights with each other online. Or when we get fixated on what bad thing we want to destroy rather than what good, healthy thing we want to create. Or when we parrot name-calling or otherwise dehumanizing language.
So what I am saying is that if we want the polarization in our country to wane rather than intensify, we need to focus our limited time and energy on what we want to grow. Fighting fire with fire is only a good strategy if you want the blaze to grow bigger.
Yes, let’s defend the rights of the marginalized and work to keep safety nets in place and to reform the system to be more equitable. But let’s do it in the spirit of care, sharing, restoration of justice, and love. Let’s try to keep peace front and center.
My friend Dani recently told me about a beautiful book by Robin Wall Kimmerer called The Serviceberry and I loved it. The book introduces the idea of a “gift economy” — a call to see everything sustaining our lives as gifts from the earth and then gratefully respond with some form of reciprocity. Of reciprocity, Robin writes:
“I don’t mean a bilateral exchange in which an obligation is incurred, and can then be discharged with a reciprocal ‘payment’. I mean keeping the gift in motion that is open and diffuse, so that the gift does not accumulate and stagnate, but keeps moving, like the gift of berries through an ecosystem.” - Robin Wall Kimmerer, The Serviceberry
This Indigenous author calls us to imagine the big and small ways that a gift economy could function in America instead of the consumerist mindset that capitalism promotes - its focus on scarcity and accumulation. Robin asks us: What are ways we could help shift our culture towards compassion, care, and shared resources? Things like Little Free Libraries, hosting potlucks, volunteering, and organizing community health clinics and housing cooperatives... It’s worth pondering what’s possible!
Let’s create the culture we want to see, one in which someone like Donald Trump (or really, any billionaire) simply wouldn’t be exalted as a hero, because it runs so contrary to our deeply-held values. Let’s amplify the ideas and the values that we want to see and start building the world we wish to actually manifest. What would that look like?
Sending love to you all! And EEEK, check out my newest project…. More coming soon!
Truly,
Gaelynn Lea
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