The best of 2024!

I can’t believe the year is already winding down, but the calendar…it does not lie!

As I did last year, I thought I’d round up some of my favorite things in 2024. Hopefully you can find a post you missed or musical artist you enjoy!

The best of the blog 2024

Most viewed posts published in 2024

1. Self-publishing vs. traditional publishing: How to choose
2. 46% of Americans didn’t read a book in 2023 (This week in books)
3. Ideas aren’t sacred, but agents should treat submissions confidentially
4. Find and delete these phrases from your novel
5. How Emily Henry hooks the reader

Most viewed posts overall in 2024

1. List of character strengths and weaknesses
2. How to write a query letter
3. How to write a killer one sentence pitch (or logline) for novels and memoirs
4. Example of a good query letter
5. Everything you need to know about novel word counts

My personal favorite posts of 2024

1. Candles in the dark
2. Can we really separate art and the artist?
3. Every artist needs Raccoon Phases
4. Six reasons you’re confusing the reader
5. Find and delete these phrases from your novel

The best books of 2024

I didn’t do nearly as much reading for pleasure as I would have liked this year–I read a ton for my day job and also spent some time reading yet-to-be-published books by author friends, but here are some of my recently published faves (all links are affiliates to Bookshop.org):

1. Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton – An immensely entertaining (and funny!) literary thriller.
2. The Rebel’s Clinic: The Revolutionary Lives of Frantz Fanon by Adam Schatz – A fascinating and engaging biography of one of the more influential anti-colonialist thinkers.
3. Sunderworld, Vol. I: The Extraordinary Disappointments of Leopold Berry by Ransom Riggs – The start of a really fun new Los Angeles-based series.
4. The Creative ACT: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin – This isn’t necessarily the most groundbreaking book on creativity, but it’s full of great reminders. Just pretend the appendix story didn’t happen.
5. Beach Read by Emily Henry – I appreciated Henry’s craft so much I wrote a whole post about it!

The best music of 2024

A few years ago I resolved to listen to an album every weekday to keep up with the great new music out there, and I kept that going for another year!

The best albums of 2024

1. Orquídeas by Kali Uchis
2. Diamond Jubilee by Cindy Lee
3. Home Constellation Study by Asher White
4. Harms Way by Ducks Ltd.
5. Brat by Charli XCX

The best songs of 2024

1. Patterns by Laura Marling
2. Muñekita by Kali Uchis
3. HEHEHE by Rema
4. Virga by Yasmin Williams
5. 360 by Charli XCX

The best Alfred Hitchcock Movies

I didn’t watch nearly enough new movies to have a solid ranking, but my partner Alyce and I got on a Hitchcock kick this year, and here are my five faves:

1. Rebecca – About as perfect a movie as they come.
2. Vertigo – Needs no explanation.
3. Shadow of a Doubt – The contrast between Hitchcockian evil and small town Northern California is so vivid.
4. North by Northwest – The first two-thirds are the absolute zenith of Hitchcock. The final third… not so much.
5. Rope – Hitchcock distilled into a single room.

The best products of 2024

Here are some random things I enjoyed in the past year! All links are Amazon affiliates.

1. Bose New SoundLink Flex Portable Bluetooth Speaker – Stylish, portable, great sound, indoor/outdoor, everything you need in a speaker.
2. ThermoFlask Water Bottle – Simple, perfect, well-insulated water bottle. I carry mine literally everywhere.
3. Avacado and Spice journal – I also recommended these last year, but honestly, journals just don’t really get better than this.
4. Bellroy Classic Backpack Plus – It’s a very expensive backpack. It’s also possibly the best backpack ever?
5. How to Write a Novel by Nathan Bransford – I may be biased.

In terms of television, it’s all about Survivor. What an incredible season 47 has turned out to be!

Thanks so much for reading and commenting throughout the year! We’ll have one more 2024 You Tell Me on Wednesday, and then I’ll round up This Year in Books on Friday before I go on a holiday break until 2025.

Need help with your book? I’m available for manuscript edits, query critiques, and coaching!

For my best advice, check out my online classes, my guide to writing a novel and my guide to publishing a book.

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Art: Verschneite Dorflandschaft im Abendlicht by Anton Doll