The Soft Week Menu: The Soft Launch of Fall

Hi Besties, I know what the calendar says. It’s still August, it’s still hot (especially where I live in Florida), summer isn’t over, and I’m certainly not interested in rushing it out the door. But something has shifted inside me and I’m starting to look toward fall, so that’s the focus of this soft week menu. Not in a pull-out-every-sweater-and-light-the-pumpkin-candles kind of way. It’s much quieter than that. I’m thinking about the books I want to read and the books I want to share with you. I’m getting excited about The 2026 Fall Reading Guide I’ve spent the summer working on, I’m coloring pages from Bookish Halloween, I’m journaling more, and suddenly a literary horror novel sounds very appealing. Apparently my brain has begun the seasonal transition before the weather has and I kind of love this part. There is something delicious about being between seasons, when you’re still enjoying what’s here while beginning to anticipate what’s coming. So I’m calling this week the soft launch of fall. We’re not rushing anything, we’re just cracking the door open.

This Week’s Soft Week Menu

Reading

• If you’re not ready to leave summer: keep reading something you’re already loving and take your time with it. I’m still slowly reading The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, and I am loving it so much.
• If you want the first little shiver of fall: Try something darker without going completely into spooky season. I’m eyeing Tillinghast by Clare Cavenagh, a literary horror novel about a priest whose unnaturally long and bloodthirsty life is disrupted when a stranger arrives in town. We’ll see how that goes.
• If you’re somewhere in between, read entirely by mood: Your reading life doesn’t have to switch seasons overnight, and I have some great Reading Recommendations by Mood

Hobby

• If you need to get something out of your head: Journaling is a great practice. Don’t worry about making the page beautiful or profound. Write down what’s occupying your mind and see where it takes you.
• If you want something creative and seasonal: Color a page. I’m spending time with Bookish Halloween, which is making the gradual shift toward fall feel even more fun.
• If you need something completely screen-free: Pull out a puzzle, Sudoku, sketchbook, craft, or another quiet hobby you can disappear into for a while.

This Week’s Focus

• Enjoy the anticipation without rushing the arrival.
  I’m letting myself look forward to fall while still enjoying the last stretch of summer.

Ritual

• Put one thing on the horizon.
  Choose something small you’re genuinely excited about this fall and let looking forward to it become part of the pleasure.

Reset

• Follow the seasonal shift instead of forcing it.
  You don’t need to transform your home, wardrobe, reading list, and entire personality because September is approaching. Let your own cravings tell you when you’re ready.

Question to Carry

What am I genuinely excited about this fall?

Reading: Apparently My Books Are Changing Seasons Before I Am

I’m still reading The Wind in the Willows, and Besties, I’m loving it so much. What I’m loving almost as much as the book itself is how slowly I’m reading it. After spending so much of the summer reading books early for my Fall Reading Guide, I desperately needed to get out of the rhythm of finish-this-so-I-can-start-the-next-one. The Wind in the Willows has been exactly the palate cleanser I hoped it would be. There’s no urgency attached to it, and that has made the experience even better.

My reading brain has started peeking around the corner at fall because I’m also eyeing Tillinghast by Clare Cavenagh. It’s a literary horror debut about a priest whose bloodthirsty life has lasted far beyond a normal human lifespan, and what happens when a stranger comes to town and disrupts it. That is obviously a very different reading experience from hanging out with Mole and Rat, but I’m intrigued, and we’ll see how Tillinghast goes.

Hobby: Journaling, Coloring, and Following My Mood

I’ve been journaling A LOT lately. Not necessarily because I’ve created some elaborate journaling routine or decided I need to fill a certain number of pages every day. I’ve just been wanting to write, And I’ve learned that when I naturally start reaching for something more often, I should probably pay attention. Sometimes journaling helps me untangle something, sometimes I make lists, I’m thinking through an idea, and sometimes I don’t know what I’m trying to say until I’ve written half a page. That’s what I like about it, because there doesn’t always need to be an outcome. So if you haven’t journaled in a while, you don’t need a fancy notebook or thirty prompts to begin again either. Start with: What has been taking up the most space in my head lately? Then write whatever comes next.

I’m also coloring from Bookish Halloween, which feels particularly appropriate for this week’s soft launch of fall. After spending so much of the summer working on these coloring books, there’s something really satisfying about getting to sit with the finished pages and simply enjoy them. That’s really my hobby philosophy lately, I don’t want hobbies that create more pressure, I want things I can reach for depending on what I need. If my thoughts are noisy, I journal. If I need my hands busy and my brain quieter, I color. If I need to concentrate on something completely unrelated to work, I can pull out a puzzle or Sudoku. Truth is, we don’t need one perfect hobby, sometimes you need a little menu.

This Week’s Focus: Anticipation Is Part of the Joy

I think we’re sometimes so eager for the next thing to arrive that we forget there’s pleasure in waiting for it, and fall is particularly good at creating anticipation. Maybe it’s because the season has so many little markers like the books, food, the first cooler morning, the first evening when you realize it’s getting dark noticeably earlier, the return of certain routines, and the things you haven’t done since last year suddenly sounding appealing again. I’m already feeling some of that anticipation because I’ve spent the summer reading for my Fall Reading Guide. I’ve had all of these upcoming books quietly sitting in my brain, and we’re getting closer to the point where I finally get to share what I’ve been discovering and I’m so excited about that. But I’m also realizing that I don’t want to rush through this part just to get there because anticipation is part of happiness too.

Ritual: Put One Thing on the Horizon

I’m not making a giant fall bucket list this week, instead, I’m choosing something much smaller: One thing to look forward to. That’s the ritual. Maybe it’s a book release, the first cool morning when you can open the windows, a recipe you only make when the seasons change, maybe it’s a trip, a movie, a reading weekend, or a visit with someone you love. It doesn’t need to be impressive, it just needs to make you happy when you think about it. You could even take a page from my current hobby menu and write it down in your journal. So start with: “This fall, I’m looking forward to…,” then see what comes out. I think we spend so much time writing down what needs to happen that there’s something lovely about keeping a record of what we simply cannot wait to experience.

Reset: You Don’t Have to Rush the Season

This is the part I want to remember myself! Getting excited about fall doesn’t mean I need fall to arrive tomorrow. I can love The Wind in the Willows while wondering whether Tillinghast will give me my first taste of spooky-season reading. I can color Halloween pages while it’s still undeniably summer outside. I can work on a Fall Reading Guide while enjoying everything August still has to offer. Both and multiple things can exist at once, because I don’t want to spend August waiting for October and then spend October thinking about Christmas. That’s not really living seasonally at all. Instead it’s just constantly wanting to be somewhere other than where we are. So a cozy fall lifestyle doesn’t have to start with buying new decorations or completely transforming your routines. It can begin much more quietly. So notice what you’re craving, and follow it, then let one thing change, then another, and before you know it, the season will get here.

The Question We’re Carrying This Week

What am I genuinely excited about this fall?
Not what should you do, or what should you buy, or what everyone else seems excited about. Instead, what are you looking forward to? Maybe it’s something tiny, like it’s the books, or the cooler walks, or it’s baking or cooking again after avoiding the oven all summer. Maybe it’s a tradition or maybe it’s absolutely nothing traditionally “fall” at all. Whatever your answer is, let yourself enjoy the anticipation. You don’t have to wait until it arrives to start feeling happy about it.

Final Thoughts

This week’s Soft Week Menu feels like standing in a doorway where I’m not walking out of summer yet. I’m still slowly reading The Wind in the Willows and loving the fact that I’m in absolutely no hurry to finish it. But I’m also eyeing Tillinghast and wondering if literary horror is about to become my first little step toward fall reading for myself. I’m journaling, coloring Bookish Halloween pages, and I’m thinking about the Fall Reading Guide that’s getting closer and closer to being yours instead of something I’ve quietly been working on behind the scenes. I’m also enjoying wanting what’s next without needing it to arrive immediately.

Maybe that’s the sweet spot. Where we don’t have to choose between appreciating where we are and getting excited about where we’re going. We can do both. So choose something from this week’s Soft Week Menu because fall doesn’t need a grand entrance, we’re just giving it a soft launch. Now I’d love to know what’s on your Soft Week Menu this week, like what are you genuinely excited about this fall? And are you still firmly in your summer reading era, already reaching for fall books, or happily somewhere in between? Tell me in the comments.