[image description: a wall of books with the words “Off the Beaten Shelf” overlayed on top.]

I have some news and I figured this would be the best way to share it!

January always gets me thinking about what I might want to do differently in the year to come. I’ve been running this blog since 2014 and plan to keep it going indefinitely, though I don’t want to get bored, so I have to give myself new creative challenges.

So the first bit of good news is that I’ll be doing the tried-and-true Millennial thing: starting a podcast!

People seem to like podcasts and folks have been asking me for audio versions of my posts, so it seems like a win-win. At least initially, I’m not planning on getting too fancy since I don’t know anything about audio. I’ve got a decent voice recorder and Mr. Off the Beaten Shelf says he can make me an intro, so I’m going to start recording these weekly posts and sharing them on the usual podcast platforms. Stay tuned!

The second bit of news is that I have a new email list.

I have one email list for Off the Beaten Shelf readers where you get the weekly post emailed to you every Saturday afternoon (and if you don’t see it, check your spam and trash folders). I don’t want to annoy y’all with my personal writing updates, like when I have a new essay or short story published unless y’all really want to keep up with my writing. So I now have a separate email list for that.

To get periodic updates about my writing, subscribe here.

I write about everything from Victorian death rituals to queer gifts, from libraries unionizing to Middle Eastern food, from skateparks to small business, from bisexuality to poetry and science fiction. I have a lot of interests, so lots of things strike my fancy! If you want a sampler plate of the weird beats I cover, subscribe.

And of course, if you haven’t already subscribed to get Off the Beaten Shelf blog posts in your inbox, what are you waiting for? You’ll never miss a post and there’s a set of free downloadable reading logs in it for you, which is great for this time of year if reading more is one of your New Year’s Resolutions.