Dear Reader,
Today's guest author, Kristen L. Berry is a writer and communications executive. Born and raised in Metro Detroit, Kristen graduated from the University of Michigan with a bachelor's degree in English Language & Literature. She has provided PR and communications expertise to leading consumer brands for nearly 20 years, all while writing in her spare time. Kristen co-founded a critique group that has gathered monthly since 2019. When she isn't reading or writing, Kristen can be found lifting heavy at the gym, hiking in Malibu, eating her way through Los Angeles with her partner, or shouting at the latest Formula 1 race. We Don't Talk About Carol is her debut novel.
In We Don't Talk About Carol, a dedicated journalist unearths a generations-old family secret--and a connection to a string of six Black girls missing since the 1960s--that hits way too close to home.
You can enter a drawing to win one of TEN copies of We Don't Talk About Carol. Email [email protected] Please include your preferred shipping address.
Please reach out to Kristen and welcome her to the book club: https://www.kristenlberry.com/contact
What Running a Half Marathon Taught Me About Writing
Shortly after moving from Michigan to California in 2011, while sitting outside a charming San Francisco restaurant, a close friend talked me into signing up for a half marathon. I was tipsy from our cocktails and from the headiness of my cross-country move; it's my only explanation for agreeing to run 13.1 miles as someone who for countless years insisted, “I am not a runner.”
I regretted this decision by the time I awoke the next morning. But instead of texting my friend a litany of excuses, I researched training plans. I was pleasantly surprised that the initial steps of the 14-week program I selected sounded manageable. I would only train for three days that first week, with four circuits each day consisting of a one minute run and a four minute walk. Each week I would increase my runs slightly, and decrease my walks.
Totally doable.
So I laced up a new pair of sneakers and committed to the process, putting in my prescribed minutes day after day, week after week. I encouraged myself to delay my walks as long as possible. 'I bet you can make it to that next stop sign,' I'd tell myself. Let's see if you can make it four minutes without walking, I eventually thought.
Before I knew it, I was putting in eight miles during my long runs, only slowing occasionally to gaze at the deer grazing along Sawyer Camp Trail. All I had to do was listen to the seasoned runners I met along the way. 'Can you take one more step?' Just concentrate on taking that single step. And on July 29, 2012, I crossed the finish line on the halfway mark of the San Francisco Marathon.
It's been nearly thirteen years since I ran that 13.1 miles, but I think about it often--not the moment the medal was draped around my neck, but the weeks of training leading up to it. How, through the guidance of a plan (and the support of friends and loved ones), I was able to take a big, scary goal and tackle it in small, manageable chunks over time. After completing a novel that went nowhere shortly after graduating from college, I was hesitant to take on such a daunting challenge again. But when the idea for my debut novel struck me during one of my many socially-distanced pandemic walks, I was able to draw back on my training from all those years ago.
One foot in front of the other. One mile (or chapter) at a time.
-- Kristen L. Berry
https://www.kristenlberry.com/contact
You can enter a drawing to win one of TEN copies of We Don't Talk About Carol. Email [email protected] Please include your preferred shipping address.
Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.
Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
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