Welcome to Joy Ride, a monthly dose of joy, good things, creativity prompts, and gratitude from journalist and author Jennifer Chen. If you like it, please share this newsletter with someone who might like it too.
Your Pep Talk
After a one-hour career coaching session with Jenni Gritters, I decided to devote 20 minutes every Wednesday to creative play. So far, I’ve made a poem with cutout words from magazines. I do writing prompts that no one will ever see. I’m learning how to hand letter. I’m not good at it, but it’s a practice solely for me to inject fun into my work life.
What creative play can you invite into your life right now? Give yourself grace that you don’t have to an expert. Chase your curiosity and let that be your guide rather than being the best. I’d love to hear what you’re doing, if you want to drop me a line.
My Latest News
I’m working on:
a feature story for Kindling about miscarriage paid leave
a personal essay on using EDMR therapy to heal trauma
an essay on AAPI representation in the body positivity movement
Check Out This...
NEWSLETTER: I swear by Melinda Wenner Moyer’s weekly research-based Is My Kid the Asshole? newsletter. Her post on dinner table manners changed how we approach meal time.
BOOK: I describe The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz as Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart” meets thriller meets all my writer anxieties. (Here’s a great Los Angeles Public Library interview with the author.)
PODCAST: I adore this new podcast Blind Date with a Book. Using dating app questions, three literary co-hosts set up their guest with the perfect book.
FUNDRAISER: Books Behind Bars is a grassroots campaign spearheaded by the UCLA Department of Social Welfare, Skylight Books, and the UCLA Reimagining Social Welfare Collective to raise funds to build a sustainable library for incarcerated people at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility.
I'm Grateful For...
Puppies. My family and I recently volunteered with Pups Without Borders and our job was to play with puppies (!!!). I was in heaven with these sweet souls. Any day that starts with puppy snuggles is a great day.