Margin Notes from May 🖊️ 💌

a recap of what overflowed from this month's essays and into the margins

Jun 10, 2026

I know, I know, I know—this is arriving late! But here’s the thing: I truly, genuinely, do not know where the month of May went.

And a lot of life has happened between.

I attended the Greater Austin Book Festival and spoke on my first panel. I was showered with love and support, truly cannot articulate how fully my community showed up for me (though I will try in a later section). I also went offline for a bit to reconnect with my husband, as he had finished his first year of law school and had attended my oldest friend’s baby shower. Quickly followed by a long weekend away with my in-laws, where I got to spend some very needed quality time with my delicious 15-month-old nephew. Then, a day after getting back in town, dear out-of-state friends visited to celebrate my husband’s 30th birthday. The day after his big party, and I mean literally the day after, we flew out of the country for a week-long vacation with my family.

And here I am, back at work, metaphorically drowning in overdue slide decks, desperately trying not to abandon this newsletter (so please be nice if there are typos, I’m trying not to let my perfectionism get in the way of doing the damn thing).

I feel out of breath even writing about this because I swear, April was yesterday. I was just creating my Summer 2026 mood board because the sweltering heat and watermelon with Tajin were on the horizon.

This is not a rant or a complaint by any regard, but it is an acknowledgement that writing has taken a back seat because my connections have come to the forefront.

But that’s kind of the whole point, isn’t it? Gaining experiences, sourcing material. Writing is the act of sense-making, and if there’s nothing to make sense of, what’s there to write about?

Writing Rituals I’m Vibing With

If there’s one lesson I’m continuously and embarrassingly surprised by, it’s the fact that there is no replacement for execution.

Searching for a prompt to break the writer’s block is not nearly as effective as putting a blank piece of paper in front of you, a pen in your hand, and seeing what bubbles to the surface.

Reading an article on what books to read for boosting creativity will never compare to creating. Doodling on a napkin. Attempting a new hobby without watching 20 tutorial videos.

Unfortunately, the writing ritual I’m vibing with most is writing. Frequently. Short bursts in my diary. Scattered sentences in my pocket notebook. Incomplete thoughts on the back of my hand. Incoherent phrases in my notes app.

Jotting it down, regardless of how fleshed out, so I can come back to it when I’m ready. Not letting it die in my mind.

Library By Alyssa (because writers are readers too)

May was actually a pretty slow month for reading.

I only finished a single book, Cleat Cute, by Meryl Wilsner. This was my smutty book club’s pick, and as a huge USWNT fan, it scratched a certain itch. It follows two polar opposite soccer players who are on the same fictional New Orleans club team as they fall in love. The plot felt a little underdeveloped, but I had a lot of fun as I breezed through it. Shameless plug: if you want a more in-depth review, you can check it out here.

I made slight progress on Project Hail Mary, getting to chapter 17 before leaving for Mexico. As a chronic overpacker, there simply wasn’t room for me to pack a physical copy of a book, and I refused to purchase the e-book strictly on principle. I hope to finish it by the end of June, because I really do enjoy living in that dorky man’s brain.

However, I did read three books while on vacation (which will be included in June’s Margin Notes, you impatient diva), and I hope to get through a few more before the month is over.

What’s New With Julia’s Shelf Discovery

Multiple pages in my journal have been filled with musings on this experience.

I am an inherently shy person and have struggled all my life to take up space. I was never one to raise my hand in class or have a big friend group. More than that, I was always the one behind the curtain or in the audience. For the first time in my life, I took center stage.

Something transformed inside me when I published Julia’s Shelf Discovery. Not only did I put my work out for others to consume, but I asked them to. I asked people to show up for me, and they did. Tenfold. Now I’m not afraid of being seen or asking others to listen to what I have to say.

There’s a narrative out there to block everyone you know and just start writing, posting, or promoting your work. To enter the stage with not one familiar face in the audience. For many folks, I know there’s a safety and identity aspect to sharing art, and everyone deserves a space where they can authentically show up as their unfiltered self.

However, sometimes people surprise you in the best way possible. And I think you should give them the opportunity.

I’m really trying not to beat myself up for the fact that I only wrote one article in May, or get caught up in trying to actively exist on every platform, all the time.

In fact, I’d like to take this moment to sheepishly give myself some flowers. Because in the middle of all this life, I managed to grow my TikTok following and gained subscribers, just by musing on Notes and posting silly little pictures. I’ve also received my first PR present from Teva, a brand that I’ve loved and bought from for years.

More than that, I’ve really fallen in love with posting online. The trepidation I felt before pressing “post” is turning more into excitement. I’m making content I love, writing in my journals, and reading books again. I’m reclaiming pieces of me that fell wayward or felt obligatory. The stakes feel lower, but in a freeing way.

Perhaps that’s why Gemini season is always so chaotic. It shows us that duality doesn’t always translate to extremes. Have fun. Lean into the cringe. Be disciplined in putting yourself out there. Because truly, genuinely, with love, it’s not that deep.

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