BRI EBERHART

Hey Strangers, 

July was A Month. And it seems to be trickling into August now. Whew! I’ve been trying to find the time to sit down and write this newsletter, but it’s been tricky. 

It seems I have to carve out space to do anything lately.

Normally, I make to-do lists. I have to-do lists of to-do lists I still need to make. Everything. Everywhere. It’s documented. If it’s not, it’s out of sight, out of mind, and gone forever (or until six months from now when I suddenly remember again at 3 am, jolting me awake).

My daily to-do lists have now turned into time blocks. Instead of just going about my day, marking things off as I go, it’s turned into: “You have 30 minutes before work starts. Sit down and write your newsletter.” 

So, here we are, friends. I now have 25 minutes until work, so let’s see how much I can get through!

(Make sure you stick around to the end to see some upcoming cuteness!!)

I’m absolutely honored to say that Strangers in Our Heads (Strangers # 1) is a semi-finalist for the 2025 Book Bloggers’ Novel of the Year Award!

I’m not sure of timelines yet, so I don’t know when I’ll find out if we make it to the next round, or if we’ve been cut, but either way, I’m just blown away we made it this far. Anything that happens now is just gravy.

On the writing side of things, I have less fun news. I haven’t written anything in… a couple of weeks now. July was that bad! I’m just over 50k in Strangers # 3, and nearing 15k in MonsterHouse, but it’s been very slow going on both fronts.

I’m hoping to carve out space if not this week, then starting fresh next week and getting back on track. Unfortunately, progress = mood for me, so when I float adrift, accomplishing nothing, I feel like a total failure. But if I crank out 10k words in a week and disregard any sort of self-care, I feel great. Make it make sense. Double bad news, though, is that the mindset is unsustainable. While I wish I could crank out that many words a week for the foreseeable future, it just doesn’t happen around my day job and other life stuff. I’ll burn out, and then it’s even harder to recover. So, I have to take the bad moods and remind myself that it’s not a race.

Anywho, in other writing-related news, I can’t say what exactly because I don’t want to jinx it, but keep your fingers crossed for me regarding my adult romantic fantasy that I’ve been querying/submitting to smaller publishers. I want to find this book a home so badly!! I feel so close, I can taste it, but again, no jinxing, so I won’t say anything else from here!

The event at BestCellar Book Bar last month was amazing. A reader came to see me because she had seen my books online and knew I would be there. So, if you’re the reader seeing this, thank you, and I’m so sorry I didn’t play it cool, because it honestly took me by surprise, lol. (I’m pretty sure I asked something along the lines of ~are you sure??~ because that’s how flabbergasted I was. It was such an unexpected moment, but definitely an author milestone!)

Additional events for the remainder of the year:
Newfane Community Day
Sunday, August 24th, 2025
12 pm – 5 pm
Main Street
Newfane, NY 14108

The Better Off Read Summer Book Festival
Saturday, August 30th, 2025
11 am – 6 pm
ARTPARK
South 4th Street, Lewiston, NY, 14092

Readers and Authors Gather Events (RAGE)
Saturday, October 4th, 2025
10 am – 5 pm
The Claridge Hotel
123 South Indiana Avenue Atlantic City, NJ 08401
YOU CAN PREORDER BOOKS FOR THE RAGE EVENT HERE. CLOSES 08/31/25.

I hope to see you at one of these! Make sure you swing by and say hi.

Can I say for the umpteenth time that July was a lot? Lol. But here’s the cuteness I promised, who has 100% added to the madness in the last two days of the month. The time is now post-work, and I’m on the couch trying to finish this newsletter, and I have a little furball attacking my feet under the blanket. 

On that note, meet Mr. Coffee Beans, the newest member of our family. ❤

While writing this, we’ve officially had him for one week. He’s a madman, full of energy, and if I could borrow some off him, I would. 

Charlie, our older boy, is a saint. He had his moments those first few days, but he has finally accepted that this little terror isn’t going anywhere, so he might as well play with him. I’ve even seen them lie together in the same recliner!! 

Outside of adopting pets, we also went to two concerts in July, and both bands were everything I could have hoped for.

First, we saw The Swell Season at the Kodak Center in Rochester, and WOW. I’ve always been amazed by Glen Hansard. Even listening to him on Spotify or watching his YouTube videos, you can tell how much passion he has, but seeing him perform in person was on another level. I had goosebumps the whole time, and teared up more than once. 1000/10 performance. Would 100% see again.

Then, the following week, we saw Rainbow Kitten Surprise at Artpark in Lewiston. RKS is one of my favorite bands, so I was eager to see them regardless, but watching them live was also another fantastic experience. Great music, outdoor show with excellent weather, dancing all night long. It was great to take a night off and let loose. Another 1000/10 performance. Would 100% see again.

Since last month’s newsletter, I’ve read Eat the Ones You Love by Sarah Maria Griffin, A Grumpy Witch’s Guide to Finding Love by Zayaan Schroeder, The Final Gambit by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, The Restrictions of Cora by Kristie Price, and The Wedding Witch by Erin Sterling.

I’m currently (still) reading: Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab and Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo. These are my two main priorities this month, so I can complete them!

Shockingly, I haven’t heard a song that’s taken over my life in a hot minute. Normally, a song will sink its fangs into me and bleed me dry, but that hasn’t happened lately. 

So, if you have any good recommendations, let me know!

Oh my god, I’m obsessed with The Gilded Age. I can’t believe the season finale is already this Sunday. I’m so sad it’s only eight episodes!! 

I’ve really only watched one episode a week of TV lately, and that’s been dedicated to TGA, so everything else I’m watching is on the back burner.

Please take note that this is a system to spotlight other indie authors per their request. These titles have not been vetted and readers are encouraged to do their due diligence beforehand.

Until next time friends!
Stay strange,
Bri