January 2026
Vol. 278
Hello, friends. Happy New Year!
My friend Kelton Wright of Shangrilogs posted a beautiful essay this week about resolutions, and it was her words that landed and sparked my train of thought today.
“We talk about destinations without interrogating what makes them reachable.”
Goodness. I have reread that line a hundred times. It applies to resolutions, and goals, and career modeling, without doubt, but also to journeys of all kinds.
I have been on a journey for the past few months, one with an uncertain destination, and one that no amount of interrogation would remedy. It started with a relatively routine total knee replacement which led us down a few wild paths with a final stop for a brief, successful heart surgery to close a small hole called a paten foramen ovale, or PFO.
Dudes. I can do nothing without flair.
There have been hospitals, and tears, doctors and tests, and scary but incorrect diagnoses until we found the real culprit. All is well now, I have a clean bill of health and have graduated from physical therapy, but the end of 2025 and the start of 2026 was not fun. I had to take things very easy, and find completely new ways to rehab the knee while not stressing the heart, and a million other crazy things happened. (I will have a blast with TSA going forward, with titanium in both my knee and my heart.)
My old pal Neitzche says “that which does not kill you makes you stronger.” The grand stoic Epictetus said something similar centuries before: “It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.” All agree that inner strength is what keeps you on your feet and moving forward when times are tough.
Times, they are tough. Not just at home. There are fractures in our lives, our country, our world. Protests and uprisings and revolutions. We are in a generational turning, an ugly one, and things are going to break before they get back on track.
The Stoics have plenty of advice for these moments. Marcus Aurelius, he whose supposed-to-be-private journaling ends up being a life lesson for us all, says, “You have power over your mind, not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.”
It is so easy to spiral, to worry, to fear. To get caught in the algorithm, to forsake our strict, deep moral codes in favor of quick and dirty emotional responses. To fight with strangers instead of seeking to understand each other’s points of view. Hey, we’re only human. We’re tuned up, we’re reactionary, we’re being endlessly manipulated by billionaires. We are becoming incredibly adept at shaping narratives to represent what we want them to be, not what they actually are. Seeking comfort in the sameness of opinion, the consolidation of thought, instead of fighting back against that conformity.
(Okay, yes, I am Gen X. I could have led with that, right? I think the Stoics were as punk rock as they come.)
When the earthquake comes for you, though, that’s when the world starts to look different. Not as contrarian, but one of great beauty. A gift. A startling, magnificent place full of wonder and grace. Yes, there are problems, but they are superseded by the sublime. By kindness, and gentleness, and understanding.
Instead of fighting with strangers, I was cared for by them. They asked nothing in return but my health and happiness. I am determined to give them just that. Being able to get back to life, albeit with some amendments, is the reward for all of us.
I’ve never been forced to make changes to my life before. I’ve wanted to—I’ve set goals, I’ve reshaped habits. I’ve given public accountability; I’ve taken sabbaticals. I’ve exercised and eaten right, taken my vitamins, gotten a decent amount of sleep, stayed hydrated, and smiled. Worked hard. Very hard. And nothing prepared me for the sudden realization that none of it matters. Life is a bit of a crapshoot, and when you’re faced with that reality, everything shifts. What once seemed vital drops in priority. Small things, small triumphs, become life-changing.
I still haven’t determined what my online life looks like going forward. I’m not worrying about it. There’s a LOT going on in my writing life, as you’ll see below, and coupled with all the health stuff, it’s taken up all my bandwidth. So, apologies for being absent. But now you know why.
Another of my favorite philosophers, Lao Tzu, brings the best advice for these particularly troubled times:
“Watch your thoughts, they become your words;
Watch your words, they become your actions;
Watch your actions, they become your habits;
Watch your habits, they become your character;
Watch your character, it becomes your destiny.”
These thoughts, these teachings, are more than paying lip service. They are a code, a path, that will lead you when things are hard. Combined with your faith, they bolster and strengthen you. I’ve had to choose how I look at the past few months and carefully examine the framing. To not focus on what might have happened and instead be grateful for what did. And I have thought long and hard about how to make the destination reachable. Some is in our control. And some, we have to give up to God, the fates, or whatever else guides you.
Anyway. Enough of all the philosophizing. I have all kinds of news and updates from the book world!
Where to start? How about here?
I can’t tell you how excited I am to bring the entire Taylor Jackson series back to life. Twenty years of work is coming your way, starting this May with the rerelease of ALL THE PRETTY GIRLS. I am so grateful to my publisher for making this dream come true. And who knows… our girl probably needs a new adventure, don’t you think?
This also means that from May 2026 to March 2027, I have TEN books coming your way, including my 2026 standalone, YOU KNOW WHY.
This book is wild, and I am SO excited to finally get to talk about it. The cover is spectacular, and I will be sharing that soon! You can preorder it now, too!
In the midst of all the troubles, I managed to put together my Annual Review. That one took a while. I debated the value of it for weeks. But there’s something very reassuring about looking back on the year, examining what worked and what didn’t. I admit, many things I’ve been concerned about in the past are not as important as they used to be. But I found what I wanted to say, and 2026 became the Year of Perspective.
The Joss Walker pen name has some news, too — the entire Jayne Thorne series is available across all retailers. If you’ve been wanting to read but don’t have a Kindle, now’s your chance.
And last but not least, speaking of my friend Kelton, I appeared on the Pen Pals podcast this week. It was a free-range conversation, and so much fun.
Well of course let’s do a Taylor poll…
For the second year in a row, I tracked all the books I discussed over on The Creative Edge Friday Reads.
Since the surgeries, the one thing keeping me going has been books. I have been DEVOURING romantasy and thrillers for the past few months. So many of the books I read were first in series with the second coming this year, so I am champing at the bit for the next. Would love suggestions on where to go…
Quicksilver and Brimstone by Callie Hart
Well, if I’m being honest, I haven’t cooked a lick. The world’s greatest husband has been handling food prep, and doing an amazing job with it. We signed up for a meal service, which was a super smart move, and he’s been filling in the blanks with yummy concoctions. The one thing I have enjoyed tremendously is almond flour banana bread. Here’s my adapted recipe. It comes out perfectly every time.
You can find all of my recipes here, and if you want some wine to go with the meals, The Wine Vixen (coming soon to Substack) has you covered.
We are nearly finished taping Season 11! You can watch the new episodes on Nashville PBS Sundays after Tennessee Crossroads, on the PBS app, or on our website here, and listen to them in their entirety on our podcast here.
Time for this month’s chance at winning a gift card!
Last month's giveaway winner: Congratulations to markphillips455! Check your email...
Simply click the button below to be automatically entered in this month's drawing.
At the end of the year, I gave thanks to so many of you who are a part of the day-to-day lives of Mr E and me. Today, I give those same thanks to you. You make it all worthwhile.
Read a book. It’s just what the doctor ordered.
xo,
Are you still here?
Here’s a kitten for your troubles!
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.