Petite Pause no. 5
Writing sparks, dinner party dreams, and permission to begin.
Your end-of-week scroll break. A cozy little catch-up full of links, loves, and things I can’t stop talking about. A spark of inspiration you didn’t know you needed.
This week, I’ve been living in creative mode, in the best way. I’m drafting chapters for the book I’m writing (!!!), and I’ve officially started a writing workshop that already feels like a gentle, necessary push. My purse is full of notebards full of lines and ideas I want to explore. Some might turn into scenes. Others will probably live as future Substack posts. Either way, there’s lots coming.
It’s a good reminder that beginnings don’t always look dramatic. Sometimes they look like opening a new Google Doc or rereading the same sentence ten times. A little awkward, a little brave.
Weekend Itinerary
What to Read: Deep Cuts by Holly Brickley – If you’ve ever lost yourself in someone else’s creative orbit or wondered where collaboration ends and selfhood begins, Deep Cuts will hit you right in the gut. Set against a nostalgic backdrop of jukebox bars and early-2000s indie scenes, this novel follows Percy and Joe, two students whose partnership is electric, messy, and creatively charged. It’s about talent, longing, ego, and the ache to be understood. Beautifully written, sharply observed, and full of heart, Deep Cuts is the kind of book that lingers long after the last note fades.
What to Watch/Listen To: Elizabeth Gilbert on Creativity and Trust – An oldie but a favorite: her TED Talk, Your Elusive Creative Genius, is 20 minutes of pure gold if you’re feeling stuck, inspired, or somewhere in between. It’s funny, grounding, and honestly kind of healing. I revisit it often when I need a reminder that showing up is enough.
What to Make: A DIY snack board for dinner. Think: crackers, cheese, summer fruit, something salty, something crunchy. Add a good drink (sparkling water with lime, a glass of wine, or a ginger beer) and you’ve got yourself a low-effort, high-reward end-of-week vibe. Bonus points for eating it on a blanket in the backyard.
What to Do: Write one page of something. A journal entry. A letter to your past self. A grocery list that turns into a poem. There’s something powerful about starting, even when you don’t know where it’ll go. Just get it out and let it be messy.
What to Try: The Sharpie S-Gel Pen (in 0.7, always). If you know, you know. Smooth ink, no smudge, and weirdly motivating. Pair it with a clean notebook and suddenly you’re the main character.
Can you do me a favor? If you like this, will you hit the heart ❤️ on the bottom of your email? I promise it helps!
A Cozy Throwback
Back-to-school season is sneaking up (already?), and I’m not ready to let go of summer, but passing the notebook aisles in Target sparked something sweet. I remember back-to-school shopping with my grandma, just us, a ritual that felt like a soft reset. It was never about the supplies or clothes, it was being seen, together, and ready for whatever came next.
A Table for the In-Between
There’s something special about this late-summer stretch. When it’s still light at 8 p.m. but you can almost feel fall in the breeze. It’s the perfect time to plan a gathering for a few friends for an end-of-season dinner party. Nothing fussy. Just simple food, good drinks, and a little intentionality.
The Theme:
Golden Hour Supper – Think glowing light, warm colors, easy elegance. Celebrate that dreamy in-between where summer’s not quite over and fall is whispering around the edges.
The Menu:
Starter: Burrata with heirloom tomatoes, basil oil, and grilled sourdough
Main: Lemon-thyme roasted chicken or a vegetarian galette (zucchini, ricotta, caramelized onions)
Side: Charred corn and peach salad with mint and feta
Drink: Rosé sangria with strawberries, citrus, and a splash of elderflower tonic
The Table:
Drape a linen tablecloth (or a crinkly white sheet—no shame), and layer in textures: woven chargers, mismatched cloth napkins, vintage glassware. Add small bud vases with whatever’s blooming (even grocery store flowers, trimmed low) and a few tapered candles in soft sunset shades, amber, dusty rose, honey.
Scatter peaches or plums across the table for a casual, edible centerpiece.
The Dessert:
Olive oil cake with lemon glaze — Moist, delicate, and just sweet enough. Serve it with whipped cream and late-summer berries. Bonus: it looks stunning in slices and takes well to being made ahead.
The Vibe:
Unhurried. Barefoot. Second helpings. Background music you forget about until someone sings along. A little toast at the end, “To what was and what’s next.”
Whether you're cracking open a fresh notebook, scribbling ideas in the margins, or just thinking about what’s next, I hope this week gives you permission to begin again, softly, quietly, with no pressure to have it all figured out. Light a candle, write one page, plan a dinner party for no reason other than joy. It all counts. These small, steady moves forward? They're the story.
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Ordering those Sharpie pens rn! Simple delights like a fun new pen fuel long days in the office.