I thought it might be nice to have a daily pet thread. Here's Daphne, whom some of you might already know about. She's about 11 years old and an incredible sweetie (unless you're another dog or the USPS).

Right now, I’m reading and rereading Astrid Parker Doesn’t Fail, which is a comfort read for me—a sapphic romance novel. It’s interesting to go outside of my usual genres; I never read romance novels until very recently. At the same time, I’m reading a forthcoming memoir by Morgan Parker. What are you reading, and how are you feeling/thinking about it?

This is the introduction thread. Say hi, tell us where you’re from and what your writing is all about! In your introduction, answer these 4 questions: ➡️ What is your name (preferred pronouns as well, if you don't mind) ➡️ Why did you decide to join The Unexpected Shape Café? ➡️ What is your favorite book? ➡️ What are you interested in writing about? We can’t wait to meet you! If you'd like to share anything else as well, feel free! And welcome!

Still Moving is published! This is my memoir of my first 3 years of Long Covid. (Appropriately enough, my proof copy of the paperback arrived when I was dealing with a migraine. I know y'all can understand that detail differently than most folks.) I arranged distribution through Ingram, so you should have options wherever you live. My site has more details + excerpts: https://skyeris.art/still-moving I hope the book illuminates ways to face pain, grief, and illness, that more deeply connect you to love.

Since I'm beginning to read many more memoir works closer to the kind of writing I'd like to write myself, I thought I'd ask the collective : What do you look for in terms of analysis when you're reading a memoir? Do you make notes? What do you make notes on? What are you looking at and for when you're reading? Essentially, I only studied English lit until I was 15, and so it's been a LONG time since I've read works in this way. I like reading this type of writing because I enjoy it, but if I can also make it useful to my writing practice, I'd love to be able to do so. TIA for your attention!