The Inaugural Orr Report
I sent my first newsletter today! After hours of learning how to set up Squarepace, Kit (formerly ConvertKit) subscription forms, EMBEDDING CODE, promptly losing not one but two drafts. . . it finally went out. Yay! Based on my informal survey, about 1/2 went to Spam and 1/2 to inboxes. (If you happen to subscribe and did not receive the newsletter, kindly check your Spam!)
I call that a win! For an English major/lawyerly lady, learning web design etc has been a challenge, but 1 million times better than taking statistics for my Psych masters, so there’s that.
Anyway, as I said in my newsletter, THANK YOU to those who subscribed and/or are supporting me as I launch a new career as a novelist!!!
The transition from environmental lawyer to first-time novelist has been. . . fun! Interesting! Challenging! A little lonely! (Thank goodness for my furry co-workers Gracie and Gemma, not to mention my six-year-old nephew Daniel, who often "works" with me--i.e., watches YouTube.)
Creative writing has unlocked something in my brain in a way I never imagined. It truly feels like the ideas and the words and the stories come from some magical place in the universe – it’s definitely different from law. And the best part of the job is: reading “counts” as writing! So, I read and read and read, to study stories I love, to stay on top of Book Club and literary fiction trends, to catch up on everything I missed during my 21 years of lawyering, and it has been heavenly.
Book Update
I am finishing up my final edits on my novel this summer and plan to start querying literary agents by the end of August.
As I wrap up my final edits and prepare my list of agents to query, I am enjoying productive procrastination with this blog, where I plan to post more frequently book reviews, product recs and other reflections on the writing life. (Side note: I enrolled in the Amazon affiliate program so I can link to all the things I enjoy in my new WFH writerly situation, the deliveries of which keep Gracie the dog quite busy. The links will be free to use and the commission will hopefully help subsidize my school supply addiction.)
Three Happy Things
Here are three things that brought me joy this past month:
TV: Somebody, Somewhere on Max is a delight. So sweet and gentle (while also featuring delightful profanity)! So Midwestern! So heartwarming! All about friends and family and small town life. With a dose of singing and the best characters since Parks and Rec, in my humble opinion.
Podcasts: Staying Alive with Jon Gabrus and Adam Pally makes me laugh out loud with delight. Ever since I first saw Adam Pally in Happy Endings circa 2011, I have been a huge fan (he’s also in The Mindy Project and the hilarious Champaign ILL). If you enjoy juvenile humor and male besties who interview experts and celebs about wellness, and are endearingly vulnerable about their own bodies and wellness practices, please give it a listen.
Working in Hotels: My last BigLaw work trip was Houston in August 2022 (the loveliest time to visit Houston). Just this week, I started going to local hotel lobbies to work on this newsletter so I can feel like I'm "on the road" while staying close to home. How fun! I loved the Drake in Oakbrook. Great people watching, good (Starbucks) coffee and wi-fi, and a nice change of scenery.
