What's glowing in November

As we close out the month of October, I feel as if I’m restabilizing my senses after a whirlwind. 

It was a good month for me. I did a book signing at Judging By the Cover bookstore, my novel was featured at the monthly book circle at Laguna Beach Yoga, and I led a writing workshop at my friend Gianna’s poetry book event. 

Meanwhile, there were two film festivals locally. I volunteered for the third year at the Newport Beach Film Festival, and for the first time attended some events at the Coast Film & Music Festival, specifically the first-ever live show of jam band Rainbow Body, and the Coast Summit, a day of talks themed on the intelligence of nature. 

Garth Stevenson shared about his adventure playing bass with the humpback whales in open water off Baja California, Andy Mann told us his rise from photographing his friends rock climbing to shooting ocean wildlife in Antarctica and beyond, Nicole Miller explained how biomimicry helps industry meet the innate efficiency of the Earth (an interconnected system with plenty of garbage but no waste), and Dr. Paul Piff shared his studies on how awe contributes to collective morality and wellbeing. 

“Awe is the emotion that makes you want to engage for the collective,” he said, noting a study that had one group of students gaze up at treetops and another group stare at a building, and then tracked which students helped someone pick up a pens in a staged accident. 

Finally, I have research that backs up why I crave watching the sunrise and the sunset, and dream of taking my dog camping to sleep under the stars. 

He also noted that we live in an awesome world, and you don’t have to look far to find moments of awe. You can build it into your daily life.

This is now my intention for November—to experience awe every day. 

What I’m writing about in November

Here’s a preview of the stories I’m writing this month. 

• How to build inner safety with the Feelings Wheel 
• What AI is doing to our brains (and why I won’t use it for creative writing)
• The 2 kinds of intuition (you need both!)
• My worst first dates in New York City, San Francisco, and Orange County

I’m also teaching a free workshop called Shine Your Light—TOMORROW, on 11/2! If you struggle with posting about your work or relate to a “fear of being seen,”—this is for you! 

Registering will also get you the recording, if you cannot make it live.

Our next Community Call

This isn't just a newsletter—it's a community! Every quarter, we have a Community Call where we share what's showing up in life. There's something about putting voice to your experience in a safe space. You feel seen and heard.

And, when you hear others share, you feel less alone.

Paid members will receive an email this week with details on our November call. Be sure to upgrade asap to join us!

On a closing note, it’s been just over two months since I launched this newsletter. I’ve avoided looking too much into analytics, because there are so many stories and themes I want to cover before evaluating (yes, I care about what people read and respond to and will be taking that into consideration come January!). 

But I did stumble on a stat that I wanted to share:

73 subscribers currently have a 100% open rate. These people have opened every email so far. That’s nearly 20% of my whole audience. 

It brought me so much joy to peek through the list of names, some of people I know, and some I don’t recognize. To have that level of engagement makes me feel like I’m telling stories over a campfire for my closest friends, and I’m grateful to know it is serving you in some way. 

Thank you for being here!

Dani ❤️