5.16.20

Inspiration & Perspiration:
Danielle Trussoni’s Newsletter

May 16th, 2020

“Genius is 1 Percent Inspiration and 99 Percent Perspiration.”
– Thomas Edison

 Hello from the valley of rainbows!

My house is on a bluff overlooking the Hudson River, and every year at this time we are inundated with rainbows. Short, heavy showers punctuated by bright sunshine conspire to create double, sometimes triple rainbows over the river. Here we are yesterday evening, just after the rain stopped.

This last week has been warm and wet, but earlier in the week we had a freak snow storm. I think it is safe to say that winter is over now, and that the next months will bring lots of sunshine. 

This week brought sunshine in another form: The Ancestor was chosen as an Editor’s Choice book at The New York Times Book Review. It was such a thrill to open the Book Review on Sunday morning and find this!

I’ve been feeling very lucky to have such incredible readers. People have been sending me notes about the book, and it makes me feel that my work is reaching someone. If you’ve read The Ancestor and are enjoying it, please let me know!

My friend Julie posted this picture of my book on Instagram after she read it:

Sharing your thoughts about my book is a great way to help let others know about it! Share it on social media or tell your friends and family. Review it here on Amazon or Goodreads. I always find that personal recommendations are the best way to find books I love.

In New York, we’ve been in lockdown for 8 weeks. The small businesses in my town are struggling, and everyone I know feels uncertain. I hear people saying that they are having a hard time concentrating, and that reading has been tough. Is that the case for you? Are you able to read during this time? If so, what are you reading this week?

I have been at my desk all week writing the first draft of a new novel.

I’m writing it with a fountain pen and I’ve chosen an ink called “purple martin”. I haven’t always written my first draft longhand, but I find that it has helped me stay off line while I write. The biggest danger for me is to get sucked into some online wormhole and waste an hour of my writing time. Concentration is so precious, and so easily lost. When I shut off all electronics, take out a legal pad and a pen, I feel a huge sense of relief that there is no other option but to write!!

I hope that your week has been creative, and that you’re able to work and find inspiration.

Thank you for sharing my week with me!

Yours,
Danielle Trussoni