The last time I wrote was Saturday night, and today is Thursday afternoon. It’s been an interesting week.

On Sunday we were supposed to take the girls on a kayak tour to an area in the Cape Fear known as Shark Tooth Island, but bad weather was predicted and the tour was cancelled. We hung around the house instead, reading and having a quiet day.

On Monday I woke up early and got some words on the page, but I mostly spent the morning reading manuscripts for blurbs and doing other busy work. In the late morning, I took the girl to the beach while Mallory headed down to Southport NC for a photo shoot. The girls and I spent three hours at the beach, and I watched them play the whole time. I normally like to read on the beach, but they’re not great swimmers, and I promised Mallory that i wouldn’t read so I could keep an eye on them. So I literally watched them play in the surf. it was glorious and exactly what all three of us needed.

On Tuesday morning I was back at the desk early to work on the novel, and then Mallory and I went to our friends’ house where they were hosting a fundraiser for NC’s governor Roy Cooper. I’m a fan and a supporter. Despite your politics, I think we can all agree that he’s a great person who’s always handled himself with dignity and maintained a sense of honesty. People say he’s a dark horse candidate for president in 2024. I’d vote for him.

I stayed home on Wednesday morning and wrote in the kitchen before anyone else woke up, and in the late morning I left for Chapel Hill, where I spoke to about fifty public school teachers from Wayne County NC about writing historical fiction and my path to becoming a North Carolina writer. I love speaking with teachers. What they’ve done is answer a call, not pursue a career. Bless them.

This morning I was at the office early, and I finished up this month’s essay for This Is Working. I think it’s the best one yet. On August 1 you can decide if you agree with me.