March newsletter!
One day I will have snappier newsletter titles, but today is not that day!
Hi everyone,
I’ve been writing this newsletter in my head for the past two weeks. I had this grand idea that after I finished the book tour for The Love Lyric, I’d immediately send out a newsletter with cool pictures and fun highlights. But then I realized that missing two weeks of writing actually stressed me out more than anything lol. So I dove right back into the first draft of my 2026 book (which I think I’ll be able to talk about really soon!). First drafts are all consuming for me. At the end of each day, I feel like my brain is a wrung out washcloth. Even as I type this newsletter right now after a day of writing (you’re getting this on Thursday morning, but I’m writing it Wednesday night), I’m speaking out loud as I’m typing to ensure that this entire newsletter doesn’t sound like gobbledygook (had to look this word up to make sure I spelled it correctly) nonsense. So! I may be writing this newsletter with my last functioning brain cell of the day, but I’m happy to be here writing to all of you and I sincerely hope that you enjoy this newsletter lol.
First bookish update: I revealed the cover for my next YA novel HEARTSICK last month! You can see the cover again and read an except here. HEARTSICK goes on sale October 7, 2025. This will be my first time having a fall book release. I think it will be kinda cool to celebrate a book release during spooky season. I’ll also be at Steamy Lit this year, which takes place in October, so it will be fun to have a nice, new shiny book to show off there lol.
Second bookish update: The Love Lyric hit the USA Today Bestsellers list! Thank you all so much for supporting this book!!
Speaking of The Love Lyric, I had the BEST time on tour. And I feel really grateful that my events and travel were not negatively affected by any bad weather, and I did not get sick! Amazing. I loved getting to meet so many readers last month! If you came out to hear me talk about The Love Lyric, thank you so much!! I also loved getting to be in conversation with talented friends and seeing so many authors at Love Yall Book Fest in person when we’d previously just been friends via the internet lol.
Here are some pictures from tour that make me happy. :)
Very fun times!
I’ve been reading some really good books lately. Most recently I finished When Javi Dumped Mari by Mia Sosa, which publishes this June. The title is a play on When Harry Met Sally, but the book itself is more comparable to My Best Friend’s Wedding and Made of Honor. Javi and Mari are college best friends who’ve had a will they/won’t they situation going on for almost a decade. Mari finally pulls the plug and decides she’s going to move on with her life and marry someone else, and it sends Javi into a crisis. This book is SO much fun. I’ve been a fan of Mia Sosa’s for years, and I was delighted when she sent me this book early! I know that so many other people are going to love this book too. Before that, I finished Love is a War Song by Danica Nava. Last year, I read Danica’s debut The Truth According to Ember and it was so funny and sharp, so I assumed that I would love her second book, and my assumption was correct! It’s about a Native American pop singer named Avery who unfortunately ends up getting cancelled after some bad creative decisions made during a magazine cover photo shoot. As she waits for the drama to die down, she stays with her grandmother in Oklahoma whom she’s never met before. There, she meets Lucas, who works on her grandmother’s ranch, and what ensues is a very fun fish out of water romance. This one publishes in July. Before that, I finished Rachel Runya Katz’s next book, Isn’t It Obvious? which I also loved! I’m a sucker for an epistolary romance, and this book is about Yael and Ravi who are falling in love online as coworkers that have never met, but they don’t realize that they actually have already met in person (they use different names online) and they don’t really get along as co-runners of a teen book club. I read this book toward the end of January and it was a much needed bright spot. This one publishes in October.
This year I started a book club with my sisters in law (or sister in laws? what is the correct way to say this?) and our pick this month is Yellow Wife by Sadeqa Johnson. That’s my current read. I’m also reading This Could Be Us by Kennedy Ryan, which is excellent so far! On audio I’ve been listening to Cher’s memoir. Next on my TBR, I have Never Been Shipped by Alicia Thompson and August Lane by Regina Black. Very, very excited for both. (And many, many, many other books on my TBR but those are two that I know for sure I will be reading next.)
I’ve been watching The Real Housewives of Potomac. It’s the only Housewives franchise that I watch. I still haven’t watched part 3 of the reunion show (why are the reunion shows split into 3 parts now?) but I’m planning to catch up soon. I’m not 100% sure if I’m going to continue watching when the new season comes back later this year. We’ll see. In a surprise twist, I’ve also been watching this season of The Bachelor. I’ve never watched The Bachelor before, but I understood the basic premise because I watched Flavor of Love. The reason that I was intrigued by this particular bachelor is because he went to the same high school as my husband lol. They didn’t know each other and I think the bachelor ended up transferring to a different school, but it was enough to peak my curiosity and influence me to watch the first episode of his season. Needless to say, I am pretty invested to see who he chooses in the end. But I have to say that I think that Flavor of Love is more entertaining overall lol. I still need to watch the new Bridget Jones movie. I’m not gonna lie, I feel a little apprehensive about it. It’s clear from the trailer that Mark Darcy has died, and I don’t know if I want to accept that Bridget Jones reality lol.
I am doing my best to stick to a bi-monthly newsletter schedule, so I will aim to send out my next newsletter in May. Hopefully by then I will be celebrating the fact that I’ve finished a first draft. I will probably send out another very brief newsletter in between then with some fun updates.
Until next time! I hope you’re all taking care of yourselves. <3
xo, Kristina
What did you think of The Bachelor ending??
HUGE congrats on hitting the USA Today list!!! And you make all the books you read sound so enticing. Gotta add them to my TBR!