From the Compost Heap header. A pencil style illustration of a compost heap with flowers and plants growing around it. A bee buzzes by and a white rabbit hops by.

  • Things Bringing Me Joy ✨

    Part of my advocacy work right now is being autistic in public.

    But to continue doing that I have to take care of myself.

    Here are some of the things that brought me joy this week.

    Making Mini Zines ✂️

    Different types of making meet different needs.

    Writing is analytical and helps me unravel my ideas. But it’s not the most regulating.

    So instead of writing this week I’ve been making mini zines.

    This one is using images from the mood board for my fantasy novel. A process that I paused for several months and am now orbiting back to. I’m really curious about how I can make my storytelling more interdisciplinary and how I can invert my writing from something I am doing for others to something I am doing for myself.

    I’ll probably write more about this later, but here’s a timelapse of me making a zine.

    Tap to watch me make a zine at midnight when everyone else in my house is sleeping.

    Down the Rabbit Hole 🐇

    I fell into a story over the weekend the way Alice fell into Wonderland. Once I started I just had to keep reading until I reached the end.

    Non-Player Character by Veo Corva. A glowing night-time forest with poly dice constellations in the sky. A glowing person nervously reaches out to a floating seal creature.

    Non Player Character by autistic author Veo Corva (they/them) made me feel seen in a way I don’t think I ever have in a story before.

    This book follows a diverse group of nerds becoming found family. If you’ve ever felt alone or “too much” or “not enough” I think you should read this.

    + 10 if you’re autistic, anxious, or otherwise neurodivergent.

    + 10 if you’re queer, gender queer or disabled.

    +10 if you’ve ever been a fantasy gamer (tabletop or video game).

    I can’t say much more without giving away plot points, but this is a beautifully written crowdfunded book.

    Support the author if you can (and let me know if you read this!)

    Escaping the Algorithm 🌀

    I’m experimenting with an algorithm free way to share snippets of photos, videos, and links. I borrowed the idea from Katherine May to start a What’s App channel.

    So far I’ve posted…

    A peek at some test prints. (The final versions of these will be going out to my quarterly print subscribers this month.)

    Tiny off centered test prints of letterpress style Your name sings in my ears quotes with leaf motif.

    And I shared that I was enjoying Different, Not Less by autistic author Chloé Hayden. Which I’ve now finished. This book deserves a full review, but in short it was an informative and affirming view of autism & ADHD. 10/10 would recommend.

    Different not Less by Chloe Hayden. Teal book with rainbows and butterflies held in a pale hand. House plants peek out behind.

    If you’d like little snippets like this you can follow through What’s App.

    It’s the kind of thing I’d post to social media, but completely algorithm & ad free.

    There are no comments. And I can’t even see who’s following me.

    Just a simple portal for small shares.

    Join me.

    Trading Zines 📮

    I’ve been doing my zine thing for about a year now without really finding the zine community. Recently I stumbled into a zine Discord (let me know if you want an invite) and suddenly found myself trading zines with other zinesters.

    If you’ve wandered around my homepage you may have noticed I have a section for alchemy (trade & barter) that isn’t set it up yet. (Boo chronic migraines!) But it’s pretty simple.

    If you’d like to trade (zine for zine, book for book, or some other creative swap) just let me know!

    Zine collection spread on table. Visible titles include: Offline, Taking Care of Yourself as an Artist Publisher, Practicing Microresistance in Conversations, Tea, Reality Has, Motherlore, etc. Zines are various sizes and colors. Many have black sharpie on white paper appearance. Others are typed. The most visible are a bright neon risograph texture of seaweed (on the artist publisher book) and a composition book style (the microaggressions book.) Links to each zine are listed below.
    My zine collection (newest zine babies not photographed yet.)

    I’m sure I’m forgetting something.

    I’ll probably end up posting it to my What’s App tomorrow.

    Three proofs of How it Feels to Me with a hand drawn figure surrounded by a halo of colorful objects. My typewriter, a succulent, and a stack of Spectrum zines are also visible.

    If you missed it, last week I shared some of the ways the autistic community needs your help right now and a short list of choose your adventure action items.

    Click here to read it.

    Thanks to everyone who reached out. I haven’t had the capacity to respond yet, but I appreciated each message and especially the two picture book preorders. 🥰

    There seem to be a lot of cruel people in the world right now.

    Thanks for being one of the helpers.

    Sarah signed with a swoopy S
    Read more: Things Bringing Me Joy ✨

  • Don’t skip this one. 🌻

    I have an important update today.

    But first, a peek inside my mental drafts folder…

    • 10 Years Post Autism Diagnosis
    • Finding Your Why (probably a zine)
    • Dynamic Disability (& new chronic illness diagnosis)
    • Embracing Supports (maybe a zine)
    • Discovering my Fiction Writing Process

    But I’m skipping over all of that for a time sensitive PSA.

    Tylenol does not cause autism.

    Big mistake.

    I logged back into Instagram after 8 months away.

    I couldn’t have chosen a worse time to do so.*

    Instagram (at least the current iteration) is dangerous to my mental health. What used to be a light hearted photo sharing app has now turned into another algorithmic dumpster fire.

    I tried everything.

    I blocked accounts, “curated” my feed, and did my best to train the algorithm. Near the end I even downloaded a social media blocking app to limit my usage to midday.

    I was already struggling.

    Then the autism news hit.

    Nope. I can’t be here. I’m out.

    I naively imagined that the next generation of autistics could grow up with less stigma. To know who they are and unabashedly ask for support.

    To see that progress purposefully eroded is gutting.

    My nervous system simply cannot handle the horrors and catastrophizing on endless algorithmic remix.

    And it’s not just autistics under attack. Every marginalized group is in real crisis right now. Science and education have been defunded.

    There is a new fresh horror every day.

    An embroidery frame holds a cross stitch that reads "I'm Fine". A second image shows the reverse which is a tangled mess of navy blue thread.
    Read I’m Fine – a digitized zine about self regulation & advocacy

    It’s easy to feel helpless when the world is on fire.

    That is what they want.

    But I’m not having it.

    Let’s self regulate and take one positive action.

    Together.

    My Action Steps

    Here’s what I can do.

    • Be autistic in public.
    • Model nervous system support for my fellow neurodivergent folks (and sensitive souls who may not even realize they are neurodivergent.)
    • Continue creating resources that educate about the autistic experience.
    My zine making area with Spectrum and Chaos Gardening zines, paper cutter, and watercolor wash circles.

    Your Action Steps

    If you want to be an ally here are ways to help.

    Choose 1 or 2.

    • Speak up when you hear misinformation and harmful rhetoric.
    • Share my Spectrum blog post or zine.
    • Contact your representatives. Tell them autism is not a disease to be cured.
    • Preorder How it Feels to Me (a picture book about sensory processing.) This is a crowdfunded project I am creating with autistic illustrator Gracie Klumpp.
    Three proofs of How it Feels to Me with a hand drawn figure surrounded by a halo of colorful objects. My typewriter, a succulent, and a stack of Spectrum zines are also visible.

    We just got a new set of proofs and are feeling very excited about next steps. After changing book binders we are a bit over budget – so if you preorder now it will be a big help.

    If you don’t need a book yourself you can also choose to donate your copy and we’ll be sure it gets to someone who needs it.

    PREORDER

    I’m feeling particularly vulnerable this week.

    If this email resonated I’d appreciate hearing from you.

    Take Care,

    Sarah signed with a swoopy S
    FOOTNOTES

    * Why did I do this? Because I met some cool people at the NWA Maker’s Faire and thought maybe I should try and better follow local creative events.

    Read more: Don’t skip this one. 🌻

  • Maker Faire, Autism & New Books

    Maker Fair Check In

    Last weekend I ran a “Make a Zine” booth at the NWA Maker Faire.

    I brought supplies to make zines and also had a display of zines and books for sale. Lots of kids made zines! Three teens. One friend I invited.

    And one college student who made this zine. (I have permission to share.)

    Collaged zine cover reads A thousand miles from nowhere. Handwritten text with dates marked out in red are overlaid with a red flower in a vase surrouned by a handcut white border.
    Handwritten text reads: Ever since I started attending college I knew I didn't fit. I felt like a different species." A collage of bright yellow daisy type flowers is overlaid with a six petaled flower in a peach color. Handwritten text continues: Even now, teachers learning my face first feels like a confirmation, I trample through grass and mushrooms carving desire paths in my wake to get around people moving differently to me. A collage shows a path and yellow flowers, a cup of tea, and a tall glass window with lots of overlapping lines. Text continues: I'm always trying to make space. Space is glued in from a magazine. Writing continues: in a place not meant for me and for a goal I don't yet have. A gift tag is glued in: with love from blank to you. A math equation that means a line rising (I had to ask) points to the back cover.
    Back cover. Handwriting reads: But at the end of the day I sit in chemistry class with a friend. A black and white silhouette of a figure before a window is glued to the page and below it a rainbow.

    Thanks to everyone who dropped by my table.

    The whole event was a great experience.

    Full transparency: I didn’t make any money. I lost about $27 based on the table fee alone. But the money goes to a good cause. I’ll participate again next year.*

    The Autism Spectrum

    The zine that was picked up most often during the Maker Faire was my Spectrum zine about neurodivergence. While our goverment leaders are spreading such harmful misinformation about autism it feels more important than ever to do the opposite.

    You can read (and share) the blog version of the zine here.

    Two zines and magazine clippings on a wooden desk with scissors, gluestick and pencils. Both zines titles are cut out magazine letters: Chaos Gardening with leaf rubbings and Spectrum with a hand painted watercolor color wheel.

    I have a few misprints of my Spectrum zine printed on the wrong paper. Completely readable, but the images bleed through more than I like.

    If you would like to distribute Spectrum zines (either publicly or to friends and family) let me know and I’ll send you a stack of misprints for free.

    You can also browse my library of resources for autism & neurodivergence.

    Whatever our world leaders say we are NOT a horror show.

    Our brains are sensitive, but powerful when given needed supports.

    What is a zine?

    I made a special zine for this event (and September’s zine subscribers) called “How to Make a Zine”.

    And a brand new blog post called What is a Zine? where I share resources on making zines and a peek at my own zine collection.

    Read it here.

    Zine collection spread on table. Visible titles include: Offline, Taking Care of Yourself as an Artist Publisher, Practicing Microresistance in Conversations, Tea, Reality Has, Motherlore, etc. Zines are various sizes and colors. Many have black sharpie on white paper appearance. Others are typed. The most visible are a bright neon risograph texture of seaweed (on the artist publisher book) and a composition book style (the microaggressions book.) Links to each zine are listed below.

    New paperbacks!

    I’ve been working for months on a second edition of Discover Your Creative Ecosystem. And the Maker Faire moved up my timeline.

    This second edition has minor edits (most notably an expanded section about purpose), my new headshot, updated bio, and they/them pronouns.

    These paperbacks are printed by 48 Hour Books and live in my closet. They will each be packaged and mailed by me personally. So I’m happy to sign and personalize them if you like.

    Buy a copy here.

    They are $15 – which is the lowest my book has ever been available for purchase.

    Tap below to watch me flip through the spacious full color interior.

    If you’ve bought the original edition I’ll be sending an ebook version of the updated text soon.

    There was a printing issue with the hardcovers, but I should have those back in stock before the end of the month.

    I’ll be updating Self Publishing 101 soon. I’ve nearly finished testing several Amazon alternatives. They all have pros and cons so which printer is best for your book depends on your goals and budget.

    An invitation to draw together. 🍉

    I’m sending this email earlier than usual because there’s an event this week I want you to know about. Hanna Keiner and Logan Juliano, PhD are hosting a meditative drawing livestream on Thursday, September 11 called Where Do You Draw the Line?

    The event is free, but everyone will be invited to take action from my Palestine Advocacy page in lieu of payment. (There are many ways to make a difference even if you don’t have the budget to contribute financially.)

    I’m really grateful for my advocacy library to be used in this way.

    If you host a similar event or link to it please let me know.

    Ink drawing by Hanna Keiner. Sinuous lines that evoke smoke or waves.
    Image Credit: Hanna Keiner

    That’s all for this week.

    Take care of yourselves. I appreciate you.

    Sarah signed with a swoopy S
    FOOTNOTES

    * I enjoyed meeting the other vendors so much I’ve logged in to Instagram after 8 months off social media. I’d like to be able to more closely follow local events and those I met at NWA Maker Faire. This is a trial period to see if curation, boundaries, and tweaking advertisements can make it a more positive experience. I much prefer RSS, but when there is to RSS feed for certain groups and events I am just missing out.

    Read more: Maker Faire, Autism & New Books

  • What is a zine?

    What is a zine?

    A zine (pronounced ZEEN) is a handmade magazine about a specific topic.

    “Zines have been around since the early 20th century, and have been an enormous part of underground and non-commercial publication.” *

    I learned about zines from Austin Kleon who has a great collection of printables zines and resources on his website. He also has a tutorial to make a “mini zine” from a single sheet of paper.

    Having tried both ways I prefer to make zines out of sheets folded in half. Sometimes I use a single page and other times I nest and staple them.

    Photo of my desk with TETRIS and Wheel of Time Zines, scraps, ink and blue Aes Sedai mug

    “Zines are characteristically cheap to make, often photocopied, and have a distinctly DIY look. Often, they represent the voices of people on the fringes, and their content is hyper local.” *

    Zines were bore to share information and amplify voices that weren’t often represented in mainstream media. As a result, zine making has a rich history among marginalized communities, fandoms, and activists.

    If you want a deep dive into the history of zines and how to make your own I recommend this free zine by The Public in Canada.

    Zinesters (people who make zines) often value the act of sharing information over an potential profit. Zines are made cheaply so they can be easily sold, traded or given away.

    Zines fall into the cheap art philosophy which I’m passionate about.

    Art is for everyone.

    The why cheap art manifesto. People have been thinking too long that art is a privilege of the museums and the rich. Art is not business! It does not belong to banks and fancy investors. Art is food. You can't eat it but it feeds you. Art has to be cheap and available to everybody. It needs to be everywhere because it is inside of the world. Art soothes pain. Art wakes up sleepers. Art fights against war and stupidity. Art sings hallelujah! Art is for kitchens! Art is like good brea! Art is like green trees! Art is like white clouds in the blue sky! Art is cheap! Hurrah! Bread and Puppet Glover, Vermont. 1984.

    Purchase this print from Bread & Puppet.

    Use What You Have

    Zines are an indie solution to sharing information. Use what you have access to.

    Paper, markers, stamps, paints, stickers, tape.

    Photocopy, scan, or photograph.

    Or make your zine digitally.

    Share your zine online or print copies to sell, trade, or give away.

    Would you like to trade with me? Reach out and let me know!

    I also have a monthly subscription if you’d like a new zine each month.

    My zine making area with Spectrum and Chaos Gardening zines, paper cutter, and watercolor wash circles.

    Artist Publishing

    Zine making is just one kind of artist publishing. Any type of independently produced book or publication is a form of artist publishing. This can range from self publishing books, newspapers, zines, or artist books.

    Artist books often embrace time intensive methods and archival quality materials. As a result they are often more highly priced.

    If you’d like to learn more about artist publishing I’d recommend starting here. Or browsing my artist publishing board on are.na.

    I’ve been focused on zine making, but collect both zines and artist books. I may explore creating an artist book when I complete my fine art collection.

    My Zine Collection

    Here’s a peek at my zine collection and links to the artist’s shops.

    Zine collection spread on table. Visible titles include: Offline, Taking Care of Yourself as an Artist Publisher, Practicing Microresistance in Conversations, Tea, Reality Has, Motherlore, etc. Zines are various sizes and colors. Many have black sharpie on white paper appearance. Others are typed. The most visible are a bright neon risograph texture of seaweed (on the artist publisher book) and a composition book style (the microaggressions book.) Links to each zine are listed below.

    Free Printable Zines!

    Artist Books

    Zine Archives

    There are lots of places online and “IRL” (in real life) that are dedicated to archiving zines. If you’d like to archive your zine you can check with any of the organizations below, your local library, or upload to archive.org (like this.) Every archive has it’s own mission so be sure to make sure your zine is a good fit before submitting.

    More Inspiration

    Footnotes

    * A History of Zines. River H. Kero. bookriot.com/history-of-zines/

    Read more: What is a zine?

  • Creative Chaos

    How about an old fashioned update from my creative compost heap? 🌱

    We haven’t done one of those in a while.

    First, some recent posts from my microblog (the kind of things I used to post from social media.)

    The Garden

    Our chaos garden turned feral. Some real life updates.

    The birds are loving it. We’re even learning to identify some by their bird call with the Merlin app.

    Brick house with an undulating garden bed overrun with grass. A black armillary sphere and purple russian sage pierce the weeds.
    Birdhouse gourds growing up gazebo of green pipes (a greenhouse without the plastic cover added) and a white metal house planter I thrifted beyond with morning glory leaves twining through

    Creative Chaos

    I’ve accepted that I can’t always work in my lovely studio. So earlier this year I set up a workspace in the living room. And I am getting SO much done.

    This summer I’ve made lots of progress (from this chaos) on Entwined & Ember. Now that copy edits are done I’ve started book design for Ember.

    Here I am sorting the prompts into their final order.

    Art or Trash?

    Sometimes being an artist means preserving paper towels with blueberry stains.

    Just me? 😂

    Papertowels with blueberry stains on a glass oven cooktop beside a bunch of bananas and a papertowel with a note that says, "Do not throw away!"

    Best in 3D

    I won an award in the local art exhibition I was in.

    I should really add that to my CV.

    Here’s the post they did about it on Instagram.

    An embroidery frame holds a cross stitch that reads "I'm Fine". A second image shows the reverse which is a tangled mess of navy blue thread.

    Neurodivergence

    At the end of my Spectrum zine you’re invited to make your own spectrum and send it to me. The very first came in from Liz Getty.

    Watercolor wash in a spectrum rainbow spilling outside of a pencil circle. Text reads: Most days feel like my being is seeping outside the lines, though the lines don't feel like they belong. The artist is Liz Getty.

    I love where Liz took this. You are so much more than what fits within the lines. 💫

    Seaborn 🌊✨

    Want to read a shiny book about queer pirates and magic?

    I’m hosting a read a long with some of my Wheel of Time friends. We start in September so there’s plenty of time to pick up a copy.

    Join us!

    The read along will be hosted on Discord and Storygraph. Hit reply if you have any questions.

    Seaborn by Michael Livingston book cover. Blue background with gold details and two pirate ships: one sailing and one flying.

    Just for Fun

    The Great Sword Heist of 2025 ⚔️ Someone’s sword collection was stolen off their walls while they were sleeping. They’re having a great sense of humor about it.

    Last One Laughing, UK 🇬🇧 If you love British comedy like Taskmaster you will love this. Some adult material so not for kids.

    A poem about railway cars. 🚂 We don’t have enough trains in this country for my taste.

    Ways to Support drawing of a white rabbit hopping into flowers
    Two zines and magazine clippings on a wooden desk with scissors, gluestick and pencils. Both zines titles are cut out magazine letters: Chaos Gardening with leaf rubbings and Spectrum with a hand painted watercolor color wheel.

    Psst…

    I’m also trialing a new type of 1:1 support over email.

    You can ask me about creative projects, neurodivergence, self publishing, home education, or chronic illness.

    If you want to help me test this idea (for free!) click here.

    Here’s a little video I made about how it works.

    I appreciate you.

    Sarah signed with a swoopy S
    Read more: Creative Chaos

  • Chaos Gardening & Neurodivergence

    This month’s zine is Chaos Gardening: tips from a chronically ill & neurodivergent gardener.

    You can buy a copy or subscribe for monthly zines.*

    If you want a peek at my own chaos garden I’ve posted several photos and videos on my microblog.†

    Here is the wild bunny that’s taken up residence under my art studio (which I named The Rabbit Hole before this beauty moved in.)

    How it Feels to Me

    Here’s an update, on How it Feels to Me, the picture book about neurodiversity I’m co-creating with illustrator Gracie Klumpp.

    We’ve reached the proofing stage! I couldn’t be more excited to share a peek our progress.

    Click here to see more!

    Cover design test for How it Feels to Me - a cream cover with swatches of colors: blues, greens, oranges, the title and a dark skinned human standing at the center surrounded by a halo of objects: tokens, leaves, a traffic cone, seashell, and more color swatches. Written by Sarah Shotts. Illustrated by Gracie Klumpp. Proof #1.

    Unfortunately, this book is needed more than ever.

    Harmful information is being spread by the US government categorizing autism and ADHD as epidemics. Neurodiversity is not a broken brain! It is a brain that experiences the world differently and this picture book shows how.

    If you’d like to support the project you can preorder or donate a copy to a school, library, or a neurodivergent family in financial hardship.**

    PREORDER OR DONATE A COPY

    What is autism?

    If you missed my last email I wrote a post called What is Autism? that breaks down sensory processing and autistic differences.

    Two brain scans. The one on the left is a rainbow web reaching into all areas of the brain. The image on the right is a rainbow ribbon traveling along the language center of the brain.
    The brain on the left is autistic.
    we process a lot more information in any given moment.

    I end the post with this footnote,

    “Being neurotypical just means that your brain is processing the world like most others. This means the dominant culture has been made to support the way your brain processes the world around you. You are surrounded by supports for your neurotype every single day.”

    This is a concept I’d like to explore further. It really turns the idea of supports on it’s head.

    Click here to read the whole post.

    Novel Writing

    I finally finished the mood board for my fantasy novel.

    I’ve hung this right in my living room so it can stay in my consciousness.

    You can see the timelapse where I make it here.

    I’ve come to the conclusion I need to free up some mental capacity to really delve into this world in the way that’s needed. Turns out proofing three separate books for self publishing is kind of a lot. I’m being patient with myself. There’s no rush on this.

    Here’s a peek at my writing workspace.

    Laptop with yellow hobbit hole wallpaper. An edison bulb lamp sheds a dim golden glow on a goddess vase filled with pens. The workspace is otherwise shrouded in darkness.

    I set this up in the living room when it was too cold to be in the studio (and soon it will be too hot.) It turns out that extreme heat and cold trigger migraines so I’m afraid I am a fair weather studio artist. Accepting that my body needs what it needs means making spaces that work for me.

    I love seeing my zines land in your life.

    Here are a few photos you’ve sent me recently.

    Oh, did I mention I’ve started printmaking again?

    My I'm Fine zine, Wheel of Time mini zine and a campfire linocut print lay on a table by a row of blue and green books.
    A hand holding my Choose Your Adventure zine while wearing colorful yellow pants, striped shirt, and yellow shoes.

    Shoutout to A. Wilder and Paige Meredith Ray. You should visit their blogs.

    Ways to Support drawing of a white rabbit hopping into flowers

    The Compost Heap is handmade without the use of AI. 🐝

    Support doing things the old fashioned way by joining my Patrons ($5) and I’ll send paper zines each month with the coolest postage stamps I can find.

    Drawing of a tin can telephone and the words Let's chat

    If you’re reading this in your email inbox you can just hit reply to message me directly. I’d love to hear what you think. It makes it worth the time I put in.

    Thanks for being here.

    I appreciate you.

    Sarah signed with a swoopy S
    FOOTNOTES

    * I’m no longer digitizing zines. Due to chronic migraines I’m attempting to cut down on screentime. I wrote a bit about that here.

    † What is a microblog? Basically a social media style blog feed that I archive on my own site. I’m working on setting this up to autopost to Bluesky. I call my microblog scraps – evoking both a scrapbook or commonplace book and also the bits of kitchen scrap that end up in the compost heap.

    ** If you donate a book we are happy to find the book a home or to send it to the school or library of your choice.

    Read more: Chaos Gardening & Neurodivergence

  • All this has happened before. 🌀

    My creative process is cyclical, but I like to think I am orbiting closer to true north.

    I took last month off from blogging and wrote a personal update about mental health for my newsletter instead. I had more replies than ever.

    Just another reminder that while I like structure sometimes I create needless work for myself. I need to shift my output to match my capacity. Not the other way around.

    Last month I had migraines every other day. They let off when I lessened my computer time. It’s tough because I love blogging and connecting online, but I need to pace myself.

    This means I won’t be digitizing the zines any more.

    They will be completely analogue.

    A yellow gingko leaf in a brass frame

    I need to slow down on migrating my archive. Otherwise my website is nearly “done” except for the Cabinet of Curiosities.

    Last month’s newsletter also mentioned how well the boundaries I’ve created to protect my mental health are working. Which means I actually have capacity to take action. It’s unfortunate that my Masters degree, which focused on art for social change, is more relevant by the day.

    Rather than spiraling into despair I’m focusing on positive actions that can be done.

    My next step is to begin migrating my autism educational resources to my website. This is one small step to combat the misinformation and harm being spread by the US government. As well as proofing our picture book How it Feels to Me which is an #ownvoices book by two autistic adults about sensory processing.

    But neurodivergence is just one of many groups being targeted right now.

    So I’m working with some friends to create an advocacy resource library that spans multiple issues and suggests ways you can make a positive impact.

    I hope these resources will help anyone feeling stuck or hopeless.

    With collective action we can support each other and bring about positive change. 🌈

    Read more: All this has happened before. 🌀

  • A Very Merry Unbirthday 🎶

    I’m still celebrating!

    Last week, on my actual birthday, one of my favorite chapters from the Wheel of Time was adapted to screen. So I am having a great month.

    As my gift to you, anyone who joins the zine subscription this month, will get a bonus Wheel of Time mini zine. 🥰

    If you want to print any of these zines to hype the show you can download them here.

    The “I’m Fine” Zine

    This month I wrote about creating safe spaces and regulating nervous systems in “unprecedented times.”

    You can read the digitized version here.

    An embroidery frame holds a cross stitch that reads "I'm Fine". Back cover shows the reverse of embroidery hoop which is a tangled mess of navy blue thread. Text at bottom says March 2025. A Kindle Curiosity Zine.

    The work on the cover has been exhibited in several different galleries and is part of the My Brain on Motherhood collection as part of my ARIM.

    Sculpture

    I’ve also spent a substantial amount of time this month working on a sculpture called Bloom Where You’re Planted from a dead cherry tree.

    You can read about the process here.

    Here I am cleaning mud off the root.

    My hand using a Swedish washcloth to remove a final layer of mud off a twisty tree root.

    Time Blind Supports

    I’m making a concerted effort to spend more time creating and less time on admin this year. One of the tools I’m using for this is logging my time with spreadsheets and charts.

    As someone with time blindness I can very easily sink time into something without realizing.

    Seeing time visually has made a huge difference for me!

    Pie chart. Web 59%, Zines 21%, Other 10-%, Mawd 4%, Picture book 3%.

    If you’re curious about this process you can click here to read more about what I’m doing and what impact it’s having.

    Bar chart showing admin going down and create time going up from Jan to March
    time spent on admin vs. creating in jan, feb & march (so far)

    The LOST podcast episode.

    Last month, in all my excitement about The Wheel of Time, I completely forgot to tell you I published a ramble podcast. I’ll be doing these on an ad hoc basis moving forward. (If you enjoy listening let me know!)

    I haven’t managed to migrated podcast episodes off Substack yet.

    Listen here for now.

    This is essentially a brain dump I recorded in January reflecting on my creative ecosystem, closing loops, and my intentions for moving into a new year.

    When I migrate off Substack I’m thinking of calling this a “Brain Dump Podcast” to remind myself it’s okay to be messy. Here’s some possible podcast art. Not my normal color palette, but maybe my kid’s love of all things rainbow is rubbing off on me.

    Drawing of brain with colorful paint splatters over the top

    Wait, there’s more!

    Of everything I’m sharing I spent the most time and energy on this.

    If you’ve struggled to learn a second language later in life – it may not be for the reasons you think. I’d love to know what neurodivergent folks think of this post.

    Learning a Second Language as a Neurodivergent Student (Child or Adult!)

    I also wrote some thoughts about From Where You Dream. A book about storytelling from your unconscious.

    From Where You Dream
    Time Travel banner. Hand drawn illustrtation of TARDIS in space surrounded by swirling lines and stars.

    Just two posts in the TARDIS time hop this month.

    If you have time to check out my 360 VR work I’d love to know what you think.

    This Time in 2023

    Making 360 VR with a 3 year old collaborator ✨
    More Reaching Than Rooting

    While I was at it I also created a landing page for free resources and printables.

    https://sarahshotts.com/free
    Ways to Support drawing of a white rabbit hopping into flowers

    The Compost Heap is handmade without the use of AI. 🐝

    Support doing things the old fashioned way by joining my Patrons ($5) and I’ll send paper copies of my zines with the coolest postage stamps I can find.

    Overhead shot of zine test prints and my green typewriter.
    Test PRINTS FOR MARCH’S “I’m Fine” ZINE

    Not into snail mail?

    Here are other ways you can support.

    • Share my blog with a friend. (It’s free!)
    • Buy a book or zine from my (new!) shop.
    • Link to me in your newsletter.
    • Art swap! Let me know if you’d like to swap your art for a zine.
    • Send me an email and let me know what resonates.
    Drawing of a tin can telephone and the words Let's chat

    If you’re reading this in your email inbox you can just hit reply to message me directly. I’d love to hear what you think. It makes it worth the time I put in.

    Thanks for being here.

    I appreciate you.

    Sarah signed with a swoopy S

    P.S. One downside to emailing each month instead of weekly is that there is SO MUCH to cover. I’ve almost given up on sharing links because I have too many to narrow down. But the 15 hours a month I’ve recovered to spend on other projects seems worth the trade off.

    If you want a suggestion… Watch the Wheel of Time. 😉

    A misty location with two figures suspended within three silver rings

    Read more: A Very Merry Unbirthday 🎶

  • Time, Time, Time ⌛

    It feels like years since I’ve written.*

    Since then…

    the Wheel of Time Season 3 trailer dropped.

    Season 3 is airing in March – just in time for my birthday.

    If you love fantasy books like Lord of the Rings… I’d love for you to give this a watch next month and nerd out with me. Even if you haven’t read the books – the visual design and performances for this show are so stunning I’d really recommend watching first and then diving into the books.

    This season is based on my favorite book in the series!

    The Shadow Rising is when Wheel of Time steps away from Tolkien and starts being it’s own thing.

    Half the characters travel to the desert and meet a complex warrior culture. The others go hunting down some very dangerous women. The layers build from there! I can’t even mention my two favorite parts because they are too spoilerific, but check this image out:

    A misty location with two figures suspended within three silver rings

    Don’t you want to know what’s happening there?

    I’m dying to see this scene. It happens “off page” in the books. 👀

    [This Clip Contains Spoilers]

    If you’re a book reader (or just don’t care about spoilers) here is the first scene of Season 3. We are starting out with a bang!

    What else happened this month?

    Well… I completely redesigned my website. 😂

    It’s still “under construction” so pardon my dust (and broken links) as you’re poking around. I hope to “unveil” the new site properly next month.

    I wrote a few posts including this one about website design as worldmaking. My old website was a minimalist website (which lives on as a virtual art gallery.) But I’m letting the rest of my site be weirder and more me.

    I hope it will sprawl and grow into a proper labyrinth.

    I’ve been having a lot of fun with visuals and texture. But my favorite detail so far is this “page not found” design, which feels very me.

    Screencap of Sarahshotts.com 404 page. "You've fallen down a rabbit hole" and Tenniel illustration of White Knight from Alice in Wonderland stuck upside down with his legs poking out of the ground. "What you're looking for is no longer at this location."

    If you want to read the boring reasons about why I’m switching web & newsletter platforms I’ve written about my online ecosystem here.

    I’m leveling up my zines!

    This month I used a printing press to make the February zine.

    You can see the process (including a timelapse video) here. You can also see a mini Wheel of Time zine I made. I’m going to print them up and leave them around town as guerrilla fan marketing. (Let me know if you’d like to do the same and I’ll share the file.)

    READ ONLINE

    Now that I have a printing press I’ve added a $10 tier where you can subscribe for quarterly prints as well as zines.

    I’ve also realized that the time I’m spending on these zines has been growing each month. (Especially in contrast to the simple letters I started with.) So I’m phasing out pledges below $5. This means I have more freedom to play with color and multiple page zines if I’m so inspired.

    I’m also stepping away from Patreon and Substack to host subscriptions on my own website.†

    Everything in one spot. (Finally!)

    Works in Progress

    Here’s a peek at what else I’ve been working on this month.

    Soft sculpture of a brain made from baby clothes. One hemisphere is sewn from baby socks, onesies and washclothes. Scraps sit on a wooden table to the side.
    SOFT SCULPTURE BRAIN

    Nearly done with my soft sculpture brain sewn from baby clothes. I have two hemispheres complete and need to spend some time refining them and doing finishing work. (They’re a little unbalanced at the moment.)

    Nested rainbow hearts drawn with crayons. Rainbow sorted colored pencils and art supplies to the left.
    home education rhythm

    The transition from holiday chaos back to a normal routine is hard for neurodivergents. Here is how we’re finding our feet again and freedom within structure.

    Now that I’m integrating my various blogs into one location my archive is much larger than I realized.

    Here are a few highlights.

    This time in 2015

    Embracing my Inner Samwise

    This time in 2021

    Studio Tour

    This time in 2024

    From the kitchen table to NYC 🗽

    February seems to be a big month for me!

    It’s all that energy from surviving the holidays and getting back into a rhythm.

    (You can browse the February archive here.)

    I’m planning to move the archives month by month. Motivated in part by sharing this time hop with you. Which means (if all goes to plan) I’ll be done by next February. ‡

    The Compost Heap is handmade without the use of AI. 🐝

    Support doing things the old fashioned way by joining my Patrons ($5) and I’ll send paper copies of my zines with the coolest postage stamps I can find.

    Not About TETRIS zine on a wooden table. The title is letterpress printed and three printed blocks in purple pink and yellow are arranged as if to pile up.

    Not into snail mail?

    Here are other ways you can support.

    • Share with a friend. (It’s free!)
    • Art swap! Let me know if you’d like to swap your art for a zine.
    • Buy a book or zine from my (new!) shop.
    • Link to me in your newsletter.
    • Send me a recommendation for something (book, blog post, movie, recipe, you name it!)
    Drawing of a tin can telephone and the words Let's chat

    I’d love to hear from you.

    Hit reply to email me directly.

    Let’s talk web design, printmaking, or Wheel of Time. 🥰

    Thanks for being here.

    I appreciate you.

    Sarah signed with a swoopy S

    Compost Heap Illustrations by

    Gracie Klumpp of Leave the Fingerprints. 🐞

    Footnotes

    * To share the Neuro Nest Retreat. The workshops were all recorded so you can still join in here. I’d love to have a weaving from you. (Yes, you!)

    † Substack supporters will continue to be charged through Stripe. Patreon has been shut down so anyone supporting there will need to resubscribe. (You should already have emails from those platforms, but if you have any questions at all just ask.)

    ‡ Something I’ve learned by moving blogging platforms a couple of times is that something always goes funky. Formatting is strange. Photos are hotlinked. Multimedia elements (audio, video, embeds) are missing or broken. And hardly anything has alt text. I’m using this chance to dust all the cobwebs before making posts public.

    Read more: Time, Time, Time ⌛

  • I’ve been waiting 26 years for this.

    January’s Zine

    This month’s zine is a collaboration between 38 year old me and 13 year old me. I made it with stickers and journal entries from my millennial time capsule – created in 1999.

    To celebrate waiting 26 years to open this time capsule I’ve made a full color zine this month! To go with the Crayola vibes I used rubber stamps instead of my typewriter this month. Sometimes it’s nice to get your hands dirty.

    Patrons watch your mailboxes. The rest of you can click here to read online.

    I was SO sure there was a Tamogotchi inside! But the only “artifacts” were a dried out gel pen (I’m 90% sure it was dried out before I put it in) and a McDonalds Beanie Babies Happy Meal bag. I remember being really confused about what to include that I wouldn’t somehow miss in the next 26 years. 😂

    What would you have put in a time capsule to represent the year 1999?

    In the Studio ✂️

    Something I realized during NaNoWriMo is that I want to make my noveling process more interdisciplinary. My first step was printing out images from my novel’s mood board. Holding these in my hands and moving them around was incredibly regulating after an overstimulating holiday season.

    10/10 would recommend paper mood boards.

    I’m planning to pin these on a cork board so I can continue to move them around rather than gluing them down. I may even use string. (I have a long standing thing for conspiracy corkboards.)

    The added benefit will be keeping my story visible to my conscious and unconcious mind throughout the year. Here’s a time lapse since I’m not on Instagram anymore.

    Over the last month I’ve realized (reading Ray Bradbury & Dorothea Brande) that my creative ecosystem needs more time for dreaming and ideation. So my word of the year is Reverie and I made this phone wallpaper as a visual reminder. The painting by John William Waterhouse is titled Boreas.

    I’m also starting a “writing from life” practice – separate from my self reflective journaling – to keep up my prose writing throughout the year. I both need space to think about my novel and space to write. I’m using this gorgeous spreadsheet to track my progress. Something I love about it is that you track time as well as words. Time researching, writing, prepping all counts. There’s tons of flexibility in setting goals and the spreadsheet even encourages you to allow for missing days.

    My kid is 5 1/2 years old and this feels like the first time I’ve had the energy and capacity to stay up late writing most nights. (Brain fog in the morning means waking up early never worked for me.) I’m so grateful to home education for giving us the flexibility to set our own hours.

    Reading 📖

    I posted my 2024 reading wrap up to my blog.

    My favorite reads were…

    Seaborn by Michael Livingston

    Pirates, magic, queer characters, and grounded historical details bring this world to life. The sequel Iceborn comes out later this year!

    All of the Discworld books I read by Terry Pratchett.

    And these books on the writing process:

    Zen & the Art of Writing by Ray Bradbury

    A Slip of the Keyboard by Terry Pratchett

    Becoming a Writer by Dorothea Brande

    Reading these together really formed a constellation of creative process. Observing what overlapped and what differed. I learned years ago I can’t use another creative process wholecloth, but reading about other people’s experience can help demystify the process. Studying early drafts of Tolkien and Sanderson’s work is really doing that for me as well.

    Digital Foraging 🍁

    This time last year…

    Hello from a Human Jungle Gym is a reflection on time and energetic capacity. I had similar goals last year, but continued to sink too much time into Substack. I’m hoping that making the big jump to Beehiiv will help me realize some of these intentions.

    We’ll see what happens long term, but I had twice the open rate on my last email as I have on Substack recently. People are starting to treat Substack like a social media and posts get lost in the feed.

    The Compost Heap is handmade without the use of AI. 🐝

    Support doing things the old fashioned way by joining my Patrons ($5) and I’ll send paper copies of my zines with the coolest postage stamps I can find.

    Not into snail mail?

    Here are other ways you can support.

    • Share with a friend. (It’s free!)
    • Art swap! Let me know if you’d like to swap your art for a zine.
    • Buy a book or a zine from my online bookshop.
    • Share this post on social media.
    • Reply to this email and suggest a book, a link, or something else that you’ve been loving lately. 🥰
    Let's chat header with hand drawn tin can telephones

    I’d love to hear from you.

    Hit reply to email me directly. Or ask about doing an art / zine / book swap!

    Thanks for being here.

    I appreciate you.

    Sarah signed with swoopy S

    Compost Heap Illustrations by Gracie Klumpp of Leave the Fingerprints. 🐞

    Read more: I’ve been waiting 26 years for this.