Winning at delight: Dancing, reconnecting, and random selection
My 3 small items of great delight + Free introductory book coaching calls (no Black Friday pressure here!)
Hello again from The Book Case, the newsletter of Dinah Laprairie, Book Coach & Reader’s Advocate.
If you’re just joining me here, you are welcome. You’ll find entries on the practice of writing and the practice of delight, and book reviews that measure how successfully a book engages its readers, from cover design to the final page. It’s delivered on a whim — or, more likely, when I can squeeze it in.
You’re always welcome to respond and share.
Hello!
I almost didn’t send this message today. If your inbox is anything like mine, it’s full of Black Friday offers, and I can’t keep up with all the deals. It’s too much decision-making, too much consumerism, too much pressure — and my late-November nervous system is already being tested by the darkness of “stick season.”
But I wanted to send out some brightness to counter the darkness, so here is the latest edition of my series 3 Small Items of Great Delight, where I remind myself of how I can maintain my optimism and health by focusing on the things that bring joy and happiness, even momentarily.
But first, a few updates and a decidedly non-Black Friday offer — it’s free, it’s no-pressure, take it if you need it or scroll on by….
Updates
MORE RETREATS IN 2025? • Yesterday,
and I met up at local coffeehouse Salute to review our latest Rekindle Creativity Women’s Writing Retreat back in October. Inevitably, and happily, talk turned to 2025. Are there two more retreats in the works for next year? Possibly! We’re looking at a late spring weekend retreat and an autumn 5-day retreat. Much is to be done before we can announce more. Get in touch if you want information as soon as it is available. You can read what the participants said of our Fall 2024 retreat on Manitoulin Island on our website.FREE 30-MINUTE BOOK COACHING CALL • Do you need support with your book project? I am here with how-to advice for people with know-how — people who have built their knowledge and expertise by showing up and doing the work. If that is you, and you want to explore your book idea or finally commit to finishing your manuscript, I can support you with deadlines, feedback, and coaching. I have openings for January. Go ahead and schedule a time for a free discovery call with me at https://bit.ly/talk-books-with-dinah. We’ll talk about your book, about you, and whether coaching is right for you. You’ll leave the call with one clear action to move your project forward. (See? No Black Friday pressure at all. It for you, from me.)
→ What do book coaches do? Here’s what
said a few days ago, and I can’t say it better. Jennie is the owner of Author Accelerator, which trains and certifies book coaches in fiction, nonfiction and memoir.
Under Jennie’s guidance, we certified coaches have the knowledge, and tools to support writers with confidence. Ask me about my training and the incredible community of coaches I belong to when we meet. If you are interested in coaching, too, head over to the Author Accelerator website to find out more about the available courses. You can also subscribe to Jennie’s Substack newsletter over here to find out more about book coaching.
And now we return to why I’m here…
3 Small Items of Great Delight
Delight is easily forgotten with the pressures of life and in the routines of our days. But I try to carry forward the lessons of two friends by recognizing it and practicing it.
What have you been delighting in? Tell me in a comment below! (Or hit reply if this landed in your inbox.)
1. Old Colleagues
Delight in familiarity
You know when you can say "I get to" instead of "I have to"? Last week, I got to join former colleagues in support of NISA's fall fundraiser in a fun game show-style event called Sudbury Family Dispute. I got to hang out with my teammates, all of them people I admire for their brilliant minds, big hearts, and integrity, all of them people I turned to when I needed guidance or reassurance: Karen Henze, Karen Rebeiro Gruhl, Martin Boucher, and Jackie Balleny. We came in dead last (shout-out to HSN's nurses who came in first place!) but concluded it mattered not one whit, because we got to have fun and support an organization that we all dedicated our time and hearts to at one point. Here are four of us, in our post-game glow:
If you want to find out more about NISA/Northern Initiative for Social Action and what it does to support mental health here in Sudbury, go to www.nisa.on.ca. Click the Support Us menu item and make a year-end donation while you're there.
2. Winning!
Delight in random selection
Last March, I was worried. I had just put down a deposit for a trip, convinced two friends to join me, and I was doubting the decision.
Dinah, I said to myself sternly, can you really afford to go? Let’s be honest.
That’s what was on my mind the night my family went to see the local basketball team. These games have become a favourite family outing.
At each game, a local charity raises money by selling 50-50 tickets. Sometimes, the winner takes home a lot of cash, and I like to play ten bucks. That night, maybe due to poor weather, the arena seats weren’t yet full. I wondered if my chances of winning were better. So when the volunteer came around selling tickets, I doubled my usual investment.
“Twenty bucks," I called out, and she printed out my tickets.
Two hours later, when the winning numbers were announced, there I was, grinning and hooting with joy. I won! My kids were slightly embarrassed at my outburst, but overcome with the chance of it.
Best thing: It was the exact amount I needed to pay for my trip, plus a little extra for the passport renewal.
Me! I won!
It’s been the story I tell everyone this year, and it was definitely the highlight, except for the trip itself…
3. Nashville
Delight + dancing
I honestly don’t know what else could top my list of delights in 2024. I basked in the post-holiday glow for a few weeks.
I knew Nashville would be fun, but that much fun? I travelled with two old friends and 28 new friends in a group trip led by the fearless Antonietta and Sandra of Cheatin’ Hearts.
We lived it up from Friday to Monday, visiting the honky-tonks and celebrity bars, dancing and listening to incredible music. We watched hard-working performers give it everything they had on stage and on the dance floor. I loved Luke Combs’ new bar Category 10, but when I wandered with my friends into crowded, narrow Layla’s, I knew we had to stay for the music.
And then, to top it off, we performed in front of the Grand Ole Opry before its nightly show. Heck, I knew it was planned — I even practiced the line dancing routines at home, truly a beginner — but I hadn’t really imagined it. And then we arrived at the Opry and there was a sign announcing our performance. So we danced our hearts out and gave it our best.
Thank goodness it was the night before the peddle tavern…
Unexpectedly incredible.
Just what I needed.
Nashville in November 2024, made possible by a 50-50 draw back in March!
Lucky me. Happy me.
Here’s what I’m reading this week. I picked up these two slim volumes from the library. The Christmas Appeal is next up in The Thursday Murder Book Club, organized by fellow mystery enthusiast,
of The Clothesline Newsletter. I was looking forward to this book based on how much I loved Janice Hallet’s The Twyford Code, which I reviewed here.
What are you reading now? I’d love to get your recommendations. I’ll be back soon with my next installment of Readability: Books that Engage. You can check out all my reviews here.
