TODAY WAS FUN

the most fun

Photo: Mahyar Dini; Photoshop (not tattoo): Fernando Gomes

I think I’ve made a horcrux.

Like, a friendly one. A murder-free horcrux with an oversized neon smiley face. If you’re not a Harry Potter fan, a horcrux is “an object in which a Dark wizard or witch has hidden a detached fragment of their soul in order to become immortal.”

Today Was Fun launches today.

The book 100% has a fragment of my soul. It’s a book about work (says so on the cover) but truth be told, it’s also my way of making my mother, who I lost almost three years ago, immortal.

The lessons my parents taught me are the real backbone of the book. How I grew up hearing my mom tell me, when she came home from her day teaching Kindergarten, “I have the best days”. How I saw my dad laugh and joke with his colleagues like they were old friends. The way caring for my mother with cancer profoundly changed my relationship to my own days. The way caring for my father with Alzheimer’s today keeps those lessons alive.

We deserve to love our days. Even Mondays. Because one day we will run out.

A friend told me recently she thought I was brave for sharing so vulnerably. It stopped me in my tracks, because I didn’t feel brave. I stopped and interrogated myself. What did I feel? I didn’t feel scared. And then I realized: I didn’t feel the need to be brave in my writing because I didn’t, in the first place, feel unsafe.

And that’s because of you.

I send these words out into the ether every week, hopefully making their way into your inbox—and if I’m lucky—your thoughts and days. They say the internet is an ugly place, but that’s not how I experience it. (Cue the hubris and my first 1-star review…) What I experience is a community of kind souls who are all trying to have themselves a good day and show up for others who are doing the same. In that kind of crowd, it’s easy to write vulnerably.

Thank you all for receiving, so gently, what I write. Thank you for receiving the book. Thank you for the kind notes of encouragement and for telling me how the ideas I’ve shared have made a difference in your life. It’s ridiculously lovely.

❤️

OKAY. Eyes not leaking. Let’s do some things! IT’S LAUNCH DAY!!!

1. Let’s make more authors! Maybe the best way I can celebrate launch day is to pay it forward. If you or someone you know is considering writing a book, I’ll gladly offer a free 30-minute chat where I share what I’ve learned about the writing process/ publishing industry and transparently answer any questions. Just shoot me a note at todaywasfun@breegroff.com!

2. Let’s make some Amazon & Goodreads reviews! That didn’t sound as enticing did it… but I would legit appreciate it. It’s so important. You know how you go on Amazon to buy an extension cord and see one with two reviews and are like, “No thank you! Credible extension cords ONLY for me.” Samesies for books. Pro tips:

   1. You don’t have to have ordered on Amazon to leave a review there.

   2. You can copy and paste your review from one site to the other.

   3. A review can be a sentence or two long—no need to overthink!

   4. You will have my eternal gratitude. Seriously. The faster reviews come in, the faster the algorithm robot’s ears perk up and it starts bee-booping my book in front of more eyes.

3. Let’s make more good days! I hope and think the book will help you love your days. Honestly, what I truly want is for the book to sell because it’s… actually a good book. The greatest gift is when you enjoy it and tell a friend about it. I have this grand hope that people will pass dog-eared copies of the book around the office like some sort of underground joy manual. That’s the dream.

Okay, launch day. Here we go. To ever-better days ❤️

With love,

Bree