Janice MacLeod's Blog, page 3

The 2025 Paris Planner is here… and it’s glorious.

Prepare yourself for a flurry of photos of the fancy new 2025 Paris Planner… now available on Amazon.

You might as well ALSO prepare yourself for 2025 by getting this planner. Mostly because it has SO MUCH ART. This time I read the reviews, which you should never do because Elizabeth Gilbert says it’s like eating a sandwich that MIGHT have glass in it. But I did and you liked the planners from the previous years but were kind of bummed that there wasn’t more PARIS STUFF.

Feast your eyes:

If you think you will get a new full page piece of Paris every stinkin’ week of the year, YOU ARE CORRECT.

Over 52 images of Paris, my sweet!

This time I pulled out all the good photos, paintings, and collages. Oh what a treat it was to scroll through my images and remember when I would walk around Paris so much that I was sure my feet wouldn’t recover. But a night of sleep and MIRACLES OF MIRACLES, my feet were ready for another urban hike around Paris.

Click clack feet, click clack camera, click clack repeat.

But enough about that. Back to the planner.

I went ahead and gave a page for each week, all neat and tidy-like. Every Sunday you can turn the page and behold another dreamy bit of Paris.

But it’s not all fun and games. We need to get productive. Oh yes, PRODUCTIVITY is one of the buzz words for 2025. That means full page calendars, goal lists, a habit tracker, and even a mantra of the month.

Since my kid went back to school, my Mantra of the Month was: DO IT AND GET IT DONE. Turns out my dopamine hit of choice involves finishing projects. Happy dance!

I added some coloring page at the end of the book because it turns out we are still not done with coloring pages.

Each coloring page has lined notebook paper on the back so you can tear it out and make your own Paris letter. Look at you with the fanciness!

The REAL reason I added a slew of art this year is because it’s so much fun to casually flip through a book. Color me nostalgic for print magazines. It does kind of feel like that as you flip through to look at the art. Plus, if you are one of the RARE people who don’t always fill out the whole planner, you can always tear out the pages and make something crafty… like a collage or letter or paper airplane. Wait… what?

The photo above looks a bit hard-cover-ish. Sorry about that. It’s not hardcover because hardcover is only available in a small number of places (and my Australian brethren get VERY put out when they are left out). Nor is it spiral bound, as I am bound by the limitations of Amazon’s printers who haven’t clued in that the world might enjoy a spiral bound experience. But it is nice and slim so it slips into your bag nicely. AND it’s 7x10 inches, which is the perfect size. Not too big. Not too small.

Speaking of slipping into your bag nicely…

Look at you au courant with your weaved basket, slipping a copy of the 2025 Paris Planner into your bag as you head out to the market to buy autumnal things… or Christmas gifts … or selfie pressies… or gifts for the French teacher or student… or Francophile friend… or or or…

Also, if you buy it today along with everyone else who reads this message, you’ll boost the Amazon algorithm, which will share it with other people who might like a little piece of Paris in their 2025, which would pretty much make my day, my year, and all of my 2025. So if you buy it now, THANK YOUUUUUUUUUUUUU.

Gigantic MERCI,
Janice

Paris Letters is in People magazine

Holy smokes. Can you believe it?!?! Here is the article… then my usual evaluation of the day below.

Mighty impressive stuff. It’s glossy, it’s glam, it’s glorious. Read the article.

Also, I am always amazed at how these shiny things juxtapose to what non-glam things are happening in life. Today for instance, I found out about this People magazine business at the mall after a frightfully pink, glossy, and expensive visit to Claire’s.

If you don’t know Claire’s, it’s about the best store in the world for little girls.

It’s pretty much horrible for everyone else.

It’s a dazzling display of sequins and sparkles, unicorns and rainbows, bows and scrunchies. The displays are even short in stature so the target market can see everything and only the cashier can see you rolling your eyes. Then there are the offers: Buy three get three free. So if you find three things to buy, you have to go around the store again to pick out three more things for free.

It was hard enough the first time.

However, this one trip to Claire’s is the highlight for my kid during an otherwise grim day of following mommy and the teen niece around who are looking at clothes in boring stores the rest of the time.

We were hungry, dehydrated, and one of us was feeling deflated by the price of glittery plastics… but behold, an email about PEOPLE freaking magazine.

I turned to my niece to tell her.

“Cool.” Not an exclamation point in sight. Teens. Hard to impress these days. Then again, she showed me the ripped jeans she bought and I had pretty much the same reaction as her. Cool.

I tortured myself in various change rooms around the mall with the People magazine logo in a thought bubble hovering over my head. I was at the mall wanting to buy a good funeral dress. Had occasion to need one recently (occasion?!?!) and thought I should really have a decent black dress for these things. I wore my darkest sundress but really, I should have these things. Back in the advertising agency I dressed for a funeral everyday.

Take from that what you will.

After a few failed frocks, we headed home in a torrential downpour. As I drove white knuckled at the wheel I’m thinking… People magazine… I’m also thinking I’ll have to pull over before I land us all in the ditch.

Life. A mixed bag at all times.

We made it home and my pretty in pink girl gave daddy a tour of all the things we bought that day while I hid the tags and receipts. Not because we spent so much, but because of the quality-price ratio of the items we purchased. Also because we spent so much.

The husband lives in a world of coffee shop takeout. He has no sense of the inflationary effects of the Covid age. So the pack of swirly straws we bought with the plastic decor that you snap on and snap off to mix and match different styles… yeah I don’t want him to see see how much that costs now that freight is frightful.

But PEOPLE magazine. At the same time as I’m pulling price tags off things I don’t want him to see and I know she won’t be remotely interested in a year from now, I’m in PEOPLE magazine.

She swirled around in her sweater with the the pink bows on it and showed how the pink hairband bow matched perfectly. I thought, Please let this not happen to my sweet little girl:

During all this time I didn’t even think to tell the husband about the article because I was so busy hiding price tags. An hour later he Liked the article on Facebook so I guess he knows.

All those times standing in line at the grocery store with my eyes lingering over the People magazine. Who would have thought I would ever be in it, and especially on a random regular day like today.

Read that article and click all the links that take you to all the places. And especially buy the books.

Cool? Cool.

Gold medal Paris books to get you in the Olympic mood

Summer reads featuring Paris? Yes, please. Here are six books to keep you in the Paris mood long after the Olympic medals are won. Each author gives a little “postcard of Paris” to express what they love about the city.

THE LITTLE PARIS BOOKSHOPBY NINA GEORGE

Monsieur Perdu can prescribe the perfect book for a broken heart. But can he fix his own?

Filled with warmth and adventure, The Little Paris Bookshop is a love letter to books, meant for anyone who believes in the power of stories to shape people’s lives.

IN HER OWN WORDS…

If you want to blend in and feel a bit Parisian: grab a French Picnic with fromage, wine or Crémant, some fresh Baguette, and enjoy the smooth summer evenings under the rose-colored sky at the green shores of the Seine, with a view on the illuminated Eiffel Tower.

Day by day, you will find “your Paris”, which you will carry in your heart forever, and it will be a sparkling memory of sounds and smiles, a collection of precious moments, when you feel free and light – because Paris will give you all the love back you show her (yes, it’s a Madame). Have a rendezvous with your dreams!

BUY ON AMAZON PARIS LETTERSBY JANICE MACLEOD

A travel memoir about art, writing, and finding love in Paris.

Beautifully illustrated with the author’s own sketches, this novel is for those who dream of a life richer and more fulfilling than the one they are living today.

IN HER OWN WORDS…

Paris is a city built on treasure chests. Its grand boulevards are lined with stores that are like boxes of treasures turned on their side. The way trinkets and treats spill out in the window displays, the way they decorate a dessert, and the way they speak lovingly about the products they sell—all under the soft glow of ornate lamp posts—it’s all so charming. And addictive. The moment you leave, you start planning the next trip.

The first time you explore Paris, you’re floored that a place like this exists. The architecture, from the majestic Haussmann buildings to the intimate cafés tucked into stone courtyards, to the bridges stitching along the Seine, is breathtaking. When you return, you’re astounded that the bones of the city are exactly the same, yet some of the shops have changed despite looking like they’ve always been there. The more you return, the more you see subtle changes. You also begin to revisit the ghosts of who you were on all your other trips to Paris. How young we were. We go through life changing in the same way as Paris. Still us. Still Paris. Same bones but different.

BUY ON AMAZON THE PARIS ROOMMATES: THEABY AVA MILES

Love is on the menu in this humorous and heartfelt novel about the bonds of found family and unexpected romance, set in the City of Lights, where anything is possible.

IN HER OWN WORDS…

Oh, Paris, how I love thee. I discovered Paris was ‘home’ while studying abroad. The city’s beauty was almost overwhelming, a tantalizing feast for the senses—everything from its art and architecture to its mouth-watering cuisine. Discovering its secrets became my passion: the way the wind whispers possibilities through the trees as you sit along the Seine; how your heart shares your dreams with you as you enjoy a café; and how its music inspired confidence to follow in the footsteps of its great authors and artists. I brought by first manuscript to Brasserie Lipp for luck, and when it was published, the staff allowed me to dine at Hemingway’s table to honor my journey as a writer. I bought my first watercolors and oil paints at Charvin. Her call to my soul was so strong I have now moved to France. This city taught me how to be my best self—to wear that red dress and to take compliments from adoring men who sometimes kissed my hand; to open my heart more and let life dazzle me. In all the world, there is no city like it, and should you visit, she has the power to change you and your life for the better.

BUY ON AMAZON A LOVE LETTER TO PARISBY REBECCA RAISIN

Old-fashioned romantic Lilou hadn’t imagined her top secret Paris Cupid project could ever have attracted so many people looking for true love. But then a message arrives—someone is in love with her and knows her secret identity…

IN HER OWN WORDS…

My love affair with Paris began in my teens and has only grown stronger as I have grown in years. Funnily enough, it was reading memoirs set in the City of Light that ignited this romance. I fell hard for the rich descriptions of a place that seemed so charming and exotic compared to the little suburbia I came from. When I finally got my wish to travel to Paris that love exploded. I swooned being in the presence of all those glorious French accents, the culture, the history, the je ne sais quoi that makes it so special. Boulevards felt familiar to me, as if I had walked down them before, in a past life maybe? It certainly felt like I’d returned home, somehow. And since that first trip, I’ve returned time and again, always staying in a different arrondissement to eke out a new vista, a new experience, a wishing place, even! My family always ask: Why Paris? There are other cities in the world, you know! And sure, we might stop in other cities as long as they lead to Paris because it stole my teenage heart and never gave it back.

BUY ON AMAZON THE VELVET HOURSBY ALYSON RICHMAN

Inspired by the true account of an abandoned Parisian apartment, Alyson Richman brings to life Solange, the young woman forced to leave her fabled grandmother’s legacy behind to save all that she loved.

IN HER OWN WORDS…

Paris remains one of my favorite cities in the world.  I love how the light hits the buildings, how one discovers something beautiful at every turn. I have taken both my children on separate trips and delighted in watching their expressions transform as they stepped for the first time inside the Museé D’orsay or stood in front of Monet’s “Water Lilies” at the Musée de l’orangerie.  One of my favorite things to do in Paris is to sit in Place des Voges and watch the Parisiannes who come and sit on the lawn, reading a book or catching up with a friend.  I imagine Victor Hugo strolling past the fountain and dipping through the door of his apartment. Paris is where I come to reboot, to be inspired and to dream.

BUY ON AMAZON THE BOOK OF LOST FRAGRANCES BY M.J. ROSE

Traveling to Paris to investigate her brother’s disappearance, Jac L’Etoile discovers a mysterious scent developed in Cleopatra’s time. Could the rumors swirling be true? Can this ancient perfume hold the power to unlock the ability to remember past lives and conclusively prove reincarnation?

IN HER OWN WORDS…

No matter how many times I visit Paris, there’s always a new discovery to make. You turn a corner and see a Belle Epoch storefront still intact. You stroll down a street on the Left Bank and stumble upon a tiny florist no bigger than a closet. You make a detour when you spot a tiny park and spot a lovely fountain at its center. I have a few traditions for my first morning in Paris. I take a walk across the Seine, stand in the middle of a bridge and watch the water pass by. Out loud I always say , Bonjour, Paris. (This always makes me weepy.) Then I make my way to Cafe Flore for a buttery croissant and cafe creme. And then I visit L’Orangerie and say Bonjour to Monsieur Monet. And no matter how long I am there I try to go out of my way to visit a street or neighborhood I’ve never been to before.

BUY ON AMAZON

Top tips for visiting Paris for the first time.

Galleries Lafayette rooftop views. Instant cool factor.
Photo credit: Julie Howe

How to see the best of Paris in a week. 

A week, of course, is not long enough, but that’s your fault for not planning to live here. What were you thinking?!

Walk around the Marais. That’s the 4th arrondissement. Charmant! Duck into Melodies Graphiques at 10 Rue du Pont Louis-Philippe for pretty pens and paper.

Hang out on the islands in the middle of the city. The one island has Notre Dame cathedral and the other claims to have invented ice cream at a café there called Bertillon. These are between the right bank of the Seine (top of river on maps) and the left bank of the Seine (bottom of river on maps.)

Go to Shakespeare and Company and buy my books. *shameless plug* Get them stamped with the official bookstore stamp and put them in the official bookstore tote. 

Disclosure: I wasn’t really reading, just looking bookish for your sake.

4. Walk around the corner to visit Messy Nessy’s Cabinet… this is a blogger who opened a fine little shop full of quirky souvenirs for the traveler-in-the-know. Find it at 19 Rue de Bièvre. She sells bottles of Seine water. Turns green in the sun. True fact!

5. Walk over to the Pantheon. No need to go in. You don’t have that kind of time, but the church beside it has the steps from Midnight in Paris. 

On the steps made famous in Midnight in Paris. 
Photo credit: Kristin Lau

5. From there you can zigzag around the back to Rue Mouffetard. The café at the intersection of rue Mouffetard and Rue de l’Arbalète is where I spied Christophe who was working in the shop across the street. We lived at the bottom of rue Mouffetard by the fountain. Some loaf called Hemingway lived at the top of rue Mouffetard at 74 rue du Cardinal Lemoine.

Janice and Christophe unboxing Paris Letters before unboxing was cool. 
Photo credit: Kristin Lau

6. TournBride restaurant a few paces up the street at 104 rue Mouffetard is my hang out and a nice place for lunch. Great for people watching.

7. Get yourself an Angelina hot chocolate on rue de Rivoli no matter how hot is might be outside. Get it to go from the counter at the front of the restaurant as you will have an absolute bird at the prices inside the restaurant. Plus you can walk it half a block to WHSmith to peruse books whilst sipping hot chocolate. Very Main Character energy. WHSmith is at 248 Rue de Rivoli while Angelina is at 226 Rue de Rivoli. See? Side by each.

8. When you order a beer in a café, a demi is a small beer. Otherwise they will bring you a giant beer. Then you will have to spend your precious time 20 minutes after you leave in search of a restroom. 

9. Eiffel Tower. If you must go up to fulfill some dream, go for it, but Paris looks best when you can see the tower, which you can’t while you’re on it. 

10. Best view of Paris is from the roof of Galleries Lafayette. And it’s free. Take the escalator all the way up, then the stairs. You’ll think you’re entering some restricted area. You’re not. Keep going up the stairs to the roof. Voila! You are welcome. 

The author with offspring who is unamused with the rooftop of the Galleries Lafayette. 
Photo credit: Krzysztof Lik

11. Take the Métro… Paris’ subway system. Don’t be a hero. You’ll be walking plenty. 

12. Keep your wallet safe. Zip up and hide the goods. Thieves are ferocious. If someone asks you to sign a petition, it’s a pickpocket scam. Be wary of anyone that strikes up a conversation at a major tourist site. They are usually thieves. 

13. If your life won’t feel complete without going to behold the Mona Lisa, then go to the Louvre but also check out the Egypt wing and the Napoleon apartments. 

14. DO NOT GO TO VERSAILLES EVEN THOUGH PEOPLE WILL TELL YOU TO GO. You don’t have time and how many fancy chairs and beds does one need to see in this life? And like I said, you didn’t give yourself enough time in Paris. Just let it go. Or don’t listen to me, then go, then tell me later I was right. Because I’m right. Versailles is a week TWO activity and you only booked one week. Tsk tsk. French school teacher finger wag at you!

15. Muses D’Orsay is worth it as is the Petit Palais. Both beautiful and not exhausting.

16. Jardin du Luxembourg is best in October but also excellent for shade in the summer. If you don’t go there and rest in one of the many green chairs, you will hurt my feelings. 

17. But of all this, wandering is where you’ll find the most treasures. The best arrondissements are 4, 5, 6 for strolling. They all hug the river. Bon voyage!

Don’t miss any more of my articles. Join my newsletter. Includes pretty pictures of Paris most of the time.

Aw she got in the mood eventually. Seven years later.
Photo credit: Krzysztof Lik

Black Friday? How about Bleak Tuesday and an incongruent gift guide.

There is an incongruence here. Prepare yourself. 

On the one hand, yes I would LOVE for you to grab the 2024 Paris Planner for you and all the people on your list while you’re over at Amazon taking care of Black Friday business. Please yes! Give them the gift of Paris art all year long.

The 2024 Paris Planner is especially nice for the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

Just sayin’. Makes you look extra thoughtful and au courant.

(Also the photos of the interior pages are over at Amazon. Interior pages are very important and were fuelled by author enthusiasm.)

Now for the incongruent portion of today’s blog post… 

On the other hand, I just filled up my shopping cart over on Amazon and thought… PLASTIC CRAP. Do children like anything that isn’t large, plastic and garish?

This is the only problem with having a six year old. The toys!

She chose that outfit herself to meet Santa. That has Mr. Dressup Influence all over it. Speaking of…

I cried at the documentary. I cried OUT LOUD. There was snot. It’s not even sad, just super nostalgic and lovely. Christophe was baffled. But I was all “He’s why we have a TICKLE TRUNK!!!!!”

If you don’t know Mr. Dressup and his children’s TV show that went on forever… but also never long enough… boy oh boy have you missed out. Solid fail on  a successful childhood for you. Sorry.

He was the original crafty character. The original drawer of all the things. The man who had an outfit for every occasion. This guy had it all. The looks. The charm. There was even charisma oozing out of the eyes of the owl on his wall.

That owl opened it’s eyes and spoke, but only once in a blue moon. Still, you were always ready just. in. case.

Mr. Dressup was the best part of childhood. I don’t even remember any of the crap we got for Christmas… (sorry mommmm).

Wait. One year (my mother will not like this either)… one year, my dad who was notoriously not interested in Christmas shopping, bought me a ream of printer paper.

I know this choice might make him sound like a lame hang.

However, it was seriously the best gift. All I ever did was draw. A fresh stack of 500 printer sheets ALL FOR ME. So fresh and new and full of possibility. This was in the olden days, before there were 50 shade of white. Brilliant, indeed.

It was a marvellous artsy Christmas vacation.

My mom bought me a camera and I almost died from bliss. 

It was a foretelling of the future. How could they have known I would turn out to be a drawer and painter and picture taker and writer!?

So I’m trying to foretell the future around here. Trying to get my kid something that is very HER.

We ran into some POSCA paint markers while I was scouting for pressies.

Oh my stars. So opaque! So gloriously opaque! They came home with us because we both wanted to tear them open and start drawing.

At the end of a day filled with 1) Santa 2) Seeing her friends 3) Shopping, I asked her what the best part of the day was and she said without a pause:

“The paints.”

Yeah. The paints.

I suggest you get yourself some art supplies and pick up the 2024 Paris Planner as a kind of artsy kit for an artsy friend.

And because someone always asks at this time of the year, get these paints:

This is the set of Winsor & Newton paints I use to paint all my letters, art, everything.

I’ve added a few hues along the way, and replaced a few, but honestly this kit… purchased over a decade ago is still going strong. I could probably paint another three books. *shameless plug*

Listen. The paint kit is pricey. However, there is nothing worse than a waxy paint that doesn’t actually paint colour. We’ve all been to the Dollar Store, eyeing up some watercolour kit, thinking that will solve it. It doesn’t. It only makes things worse. However, hot tip, all my Paris Letters were painted on cheap watercolour paper from places like the Dollar Store and they turned out okay. Best to splurge on the paint and cheap out on the paper. 

At the beginning of painting, you need a lot of paper for practicing. Don’t want to get too precious about the paper. But the paints? Ahh yeah. The good stuff lasts so long and it is so satisfying that it even makes that cheap paper look good.

What would young Janice want for Christmas this year?

(You know this girl has Paris dreaming on her mind… or the 2024 Olympics… or maybe it’s just me acting as a billboard around town.)

Get yourself a copy… and heck, buy one for your favourite Francophiles. They are available over at Amazon. 

Janice

PS I’m required to mention that there are affiliate links. Buzz kill but know you know. Thanks for clicking.

The post Black Friday? How about Bleak Tuesday and an incongruent gift guide. appeared first on .

2024 Paris Planner is HERE

I think the best part of my job is when the new books are delivered. I get to see them in all their full glory.

Behold the 2024 Paris Planner, now available on Amazon.

Today is the perfect day to buy your 2024 Planner. When all the people buy on the same day, it tickles the algorithm in favour of the author more than when you buy whenever you want… but buying it later is good, too. Obvs.

So no pressure, but now would be great if you plan on planning anything in 2024.

Plus, it’s nice to look ahead because 2023 is turning out to be a bit of a stink-fest, globally speaking.

Here’s how it came together: An idea, a notion, a few clicks here and there, walks oh so many walks, journal writing, pondering, painting, meditating, clicking, finding, scouring really… all of it finally became THE THING to hold in the hand. And this thing is a BEAUTY.

Of course it includes a bunch of new Paris paintings, and a few oldies but goodies…

I added some whimsical fonts and font styles because we could ALL be adding some whimsy to our lives these days.

You know you’ll have a nicer January when this bouncy cheerful title greets you at the beginning of the month:

Not to mention the hues. Oh my goodness I had fun adding browns and greens and blues… and pinks and yellows. Cheerful is the plan, people. Cheerful is what we need.

I like… big… squares and I cannot lie:

And ample space for daily bouts of brilliance:

I tossed in a few colouring pages because we could use some anxiety reducing activities. The back of the colouring pages has lined paper so you can:

Colour the sceneWrite a letter on the back and detachSend it off to someone who needs fun mail

How artistique!

Have some literary inspiration with Shakespeare and Company bookstore…

I’m so flipping thrilled with this 2024 planner. I know it seems a bit early, but when I spotted a 2024 planner display at my local paper shop I SEETHED with jealousy, then got busy making my own.

Creativity tip: Jealousy is a useful guidance tool. It really shows you want you want in a gnarly-talons-out-flaring-nostrils kind of way.

(You know this girl has Paris dreaming on her mind… or the 2024 Olympics… or maybe it’s just me acting as a billboard around town.)

Get yourself a copy… and heck, buy one for your favourite Francophiles. They are available over at Amazon. 

PS The planner also includes a page on wrapping up your 2023 End of Year Progress and pondering 2024 Goals for the Year so you can start playing with your planner right away. FUN!

Rereading books

This is the bookmark I’m using for a reread of Eat, Pray, Love. Autumnal and dreamy.

Sometimes I get sad that I’ll never have the time to read all the books that I want to read. Equally, I get sad at the thought of not rereading the books I love. So when I discovered that it has been 20 years since Eat, Pray, Love came out, I thought it was time for a reread. The new books in my TBR stack can wait.

Twenty years since I walked into a bookstore in Santa Monica, picked it up, read the first chapter, then the next, then next, and finally bought it.

I read it when my friend Ned died, using it to push against (and hide behind) harsh realities of life and death.

I finished it while my niece was learning to walk. Now she’s in university.

I read it again in French when I spotted the translation in a bookstore in Paris.

I referred to it when writing Paris Letters.

And on the day my book launched, I was attending her speaking event where I was able to give her my book.

I also got her to autograph the French version of Eat, Pray, Love. FUN!

So I am having another go at Eat, Pray, Love… to kind of begin the next 20 years of creative living.

Santa Monica… Paris… Canada… where next?

You might groan. Ugh… Eat, Pray, Love… talk about OVER SATURATION. Even she admits that the success of it went a bit far. But it afforded her future time where she could write what she wanted to write without having to worry about cash. That’s nice. That’s the goal.

That’s so much of the creative life. You make something and sell it in order to buy yourself future time to make something else to sell to do it all again. And you try to do it fast in order to keep rolling in the creativity before the money runs out. It’s an interesting dance.

I’ve been hanging out in Etsy doing just that for over a decade… from big paintings to Paris Letters to painted storefronts. Here is #23 of 100.

(UPDATE: This sold but there are others available on Etsy. Watch the Making-Of videos on Instagram. This bistro is like a carnival with those striped umbrellas)

I can tell you one thing: Reading books begets writing books. I can’t imagine reading a book without taking notes. It’s even hard to believe that people just… read books… like, without a journal and pen nearby.

If you’re the type to read and want to write, check out my writing courses. They’ll help. They’re on sale because I just like the price. Not too much. Not too little. Just enough to get some skin in the game so the students actually do the course.

A student recently sent me a book she wrote after taking the courses.

The courses came from writing my own books.

The book writing came from reading books like Eat, Pray, Love.

Amazing how that happens. The world really is a carnival.

Janice

The post Rereading books appeared first on .

The 20th anniversary of Eat, Pray, Love and me

This is the bookmark I’m using for a reread of Eat, Pray, Love. Autumnal and dreamy.

It has been 20 years since Eat, Pray, Love came out. Twenty years since I walked into a bookstore in Santa Monica, picked it up, read the first chapter, then the next, then next, and finally bought it.

I read it when my friend Ned died, using it to push against (and hide behind) harsh realities of life and death.

I finished it while my niece was learning to walk. Now she’s in university.

I read it again in French when I spotted the translation in a bookstore in Paris.

I referred to it when writing Paris Letters.

And on the day my book launched, I was attending her speaking event where I was able to give her my book.

I also got her to autograph the French version of Eat, Pray, Love. FUN!

So I am having another go at Eat, Pray, Love… to kind of begin the next 20 years of creative living.

I found my current version of EPL a book sale table in Canada.

Santa Monica… Paris… Canada… where next?

You might groan. Ugh… Eat, Pray, Love… talk about OVER SATURATION. Even she admits that the success of it went a bit far. But it afforded her future time where she could write what she wanted to write without having to worry about cash. That’s nice. That’s the goal.

That’s so much of the creative life. You make something and sell it in order to buy yourself future time to make something else to sell to do it all again. And you try to do it fast in order to keep rolling in the creativity before the money runs out. It’s an interesting dance.

I’ve been hanging out in Etsy doing just that for over a decade… from big paintings to Paris Letters to painted storefronts. Here is #23 of 100.

(Original is on Etsy. Watch the Making-Of videos on Instagram. This bistro is like a carnival with those striped umbrellas)

Sometimes I get sad that I’ll never have the time to read all the books that I want to read. Equally, I get sad at the thought of not rereading the books I love.

I can tell you one thing: Reading books begets writing books. I can’t imagine reading a book without taking notes. It’s even hard to believe that people just… read books… like, without a journal and pen nearby.

If you’re the type to read and want to write, check out my writing courses. They’ll help. They’re on sale because I just like the price. Not too much. Not too little. Just enough to get some skin in the game so the students actually do the course.

A student recently sent me a book she wrote after taking the courses.

The courses came from writing my own books.

The book writing came from reading books like Eat, Pray, Love.

Amazing how that happens. The world really is a carnival.

Janice

PS People have asked about a 2024 Paris Planner. It will be out NEXT WEEK. Stay tuned. So fun.

Slow fade into fall

Another blog post. Another blogger waxing poetic about autumn.

That’s how I wanted to start. Go on about cool mornings and chunky sweaters. That’s how all of us bloggers-vloggers-social-media-painted-nails-and-flowy-dress types start our September blog posts.

We are autumn people.

I’m starting to realize that autumn is all about calming down already. Summer and all that beach sand. Too much pressure to make the most of it.

Here at the homestead I have been meandering in the garden. The dill is pretty in the pink morning light so I leave it. The bees are still involved with the dahlias so I leave them, too. The zinnias just never stop so I let them continue.

I’ve left my garden alone much of the season. Yanking out only the most embarrassing of the weeds.

It’s working out.

The key is to have a high fence to keep the neighbours from wondering. Speaking of, one of my neighbours passed away recently. HOLY TALK OF THE TOWN. This person who was always on the periphery of my mind, and literally on the periphery of my property, suddenly became the forefront of our days. I learned so much about this person in one week: her kids, her grandkids, heartburn, painting, video games, clothing, pillow propping, tracing paper, throw rugs, black book, will, choir practice, knees… a collage of a random bits discovered in passing.

It was a beautiful life.

She would laugh at all the random bits I picked up between the last day and funeral day. The things people drop.

While life was happening, so was the 100 Painted Storefronts of Paris Project. All are in the Etsy Shop if you are in the market for paintings to adorn your walls:

 

 

 

I also added a custom listing if you’re looking for something specific, or if you show up to Etsy to buy one of these and it is already gone. No worries. Nothing to fret over. If I did it once, I can do it again. Probably better. Just pull out that chunky sweater and act as if you are the living embodiment of fall itself.

Watch the Making-Of videos on Instagram. Fun!

September Storefronts: Angelina and The Failure Garden

September changes things. We don’t think we are susceptible to the change, that we won’t fall for it this time, but resistance is futile.

Suddenly it’s cinnamon. 

Didn’t think twice about this cozy spice a few months ago. Now it’s everything.

I’ve been plugging away at the 100 Paris Storefronts project. It’s slower going than I thought it would.

I wish I could draw faster.

I wish I could paint faster.

I wish I could make videos faster.

I feel like a fail when I see just how long it takes me to draw, what is in essence, an elaborate series of rectangles and plants.

Speaking of plants, I’ve been loitering around a corner of my garden. I call it My Failure Garden. It’s a new space where I jammed in a bunch of perennials I was given from a friend. I’m not sure what to do with this corner so I just stare at it and beat myself up over the hodgepodge-ness and weeds.

I navel gaze in front of this space and feel all the feels.

At first I felt bad about it.

I know. Shocking.

But as I walk away from My Failure Garden, I feel lighter. Sometimes we need to give ourselves space for emotions. I happen to have a physical space. Turns out.

Conversely, my little acre of Instagram is brimming with fun little videos showing the painting of Paris storefronts for my 100 Day Challenge… not really 100 days. It’s more like 100 THINGS challenge.

Life. A mixed bag.

Here are the latest Paris storefronts, all available on Etsy if you’re so inclined to have a piece of original art lovingly gazing at you from your wall. (I didn’t link the images to the Etsy shop because it’s annoying for if you want to share them on Pinterest. I can’t keep track of the social needs of my people.)

#16 Boris Boulangerie

48 Rue Caulaincourt, 75018 Paris

#17 Angelina Café

226 Rue de Rivoli, 75001 Paris

#18 Yellow Tucan Café

20 Rue des Tournelles, 75004 Paris

A few others are kicking around the Etsy shop as well. You go there. I’ll go back to drawing. Deal? Deal.