desk notes: June

a monthly recommendation roundup: books, podcasts, and other assorted bits and bobs

Hello! It’s been a while - I’ve really missed sending out a weekly Substack missive, and it’s lovely to be back in your inboxes for the June ‘26 edition of desk notes, a series of curated monthly recommendations spanning books, podcasts, TV/film and other assorted bits and bobs that I’ve been loving over the last few weeks.

June, in the end, was jam-packed: with a family holiday to Provence, a significant time hiding from heatwaves in London, one gig, a batch of great podcast episodes, a new single from one of my lovely friends, some top-notch reading material, an obsession with an NYT game, some home-grown goodies and more… all of which I will get into below! Happy reading! x

Reading list 📚 everything I finished this month

Strange Girls by Sarvat Hasin - gifted to me by a lovely friend who read and loved it first, Strange Girls had me in a chokehold during the first heatwave of the summer, which was made all the more delicious by the fact that it’s set in the throes of a stifling London heatwave, too. Exploring an intense university friendship that didn’t quite stand the test of time, I thought that Hasin captured the never-quite-said-aloud nature of early queer relationships, and how devastating it can feel when something that felt like it would be forever comes to an end.

Speedboat by Renata Adler - I saw this mentioned online as an experimental 70s novel in vignette form, and as I am currently attempting to write a vignette-led novel myself, I took this out of the library in the hope that it’d offer me some instruction. In the end, I wouldn’t quite say I took anything practical away from it: unlike my novel-in-progress, Adler’s vignettes are veeeery loosely linked, forming a picture of its young journalist protagonist Jen Fain in such an unusual way that half the time I didn’t quite know what I was reading. Still, an inspiration to see how far others have pushed the form in the past!

Les armoires vides by Annie Ernaux - after a couple of years spent exploring Annie Ernaux’s work in no particular order, I decided to take a more structured approach, and start reading her back catalogue from the beginning. Which took me to Les armoires vides, originally published in 1974 and later released in English as Cleaned Out. The novel explores a young woman’s reflections on her childhood and adolescence as she undergoes an illegal abortion. As is always the way with Annie Ernaux, I inhaled this novel, and loved getting a glimpse at some of her earlier work. I am excited to continue along this path, however long it may take me!

Sophie, Standing There by Meg Mason - June had me feeling extra lucky because I managed to bag a proof of one of the most highly-anticipated books of the year. I could not have loved Sorrow and Bliss more (another vignette-led novel, and a big inspiration for my work-in-progress), and was intrigued to see how Mason might follow it up. The novel takes place behind the scenes at a literary festival, and follows Sophie, a technician in the aftermath of a brutal divorce. Though I have to admit that the setting of the lit festival didn’t grab me initially, the brutal divorce stuff (unfortunately!) does resonate and I was soon pulled in by Mason’s excellent rendering of the cast of characters. Definitely one to bookmark for August, when it’s released!

Open tabs 🖱️ articles & essays I’ve enjoyed this month

Molly Skinner is the newest agony aunt on the Substack block, and I adored her first piece of (beautifully-penned!) advice. Tackling her own question before taking on dilemmas submitted by others, Molly explored whether or not motherhood should be a part of her future. I recommend to all, but especially to queer readers, who I think will relate to so much of her writing on this topic💓

From the should I-shouldn’t I of motherhood to navigating the world as a newly single mum, I loved reading Emily Ratajkowski’s piece Mother F*cker, published in The Cut earlier this month. I thought it offered an honest insight into her dating life during a particularly painful period, and (as is the way when it comes to The Cut) it seemed to piss off a lot of people in the comments.

monica heisey’s advice for enjoying yourself when you are deep in the drafting process arrived at the perfect time for me personally, maybe it will also be useful for you?

I’m off to Rome this coming weekend, and I have been combing through Crisp Packet by Heather Steele’s recs for la citta eterna as though my life depends on it! If you don’t already follow Heather for her gorgeous travel and lifestyle content, you should. I also found myself salivating at my laptop when reading Annie Replogle’s list of 25 dishes that define Rome.

From Rome to somewhere a little closer to home, Sophie Sajnani put together a fun piece exploring the UK books she’s excited to pick up on her upcoming trip to London, as well as the bookshops she has on her to-visit list. I even made a little cameo with a couple of my favourite spots!

Oenone wrote a piece that really put into words the value I find in shopping secondhand, and how it can improve your ability to pick out pieces that might not be in vogue, but suit you and your own sense of style. One for all of the thrifters out there!

Soundbites 🎧 podcasts, mainly, but sometimes music?

Diabolical Lies, The “Rise” and Fall of the Girlboss - Diabolical Lies is a fairly new-to-me podcast, though of course it has a huge following and many of you will not need this recommendation at all! That being said, if you are looking for socio-cultural critique by two smart and funny women, this might be the pod for you. This episode on the rise and fall of the girlboss phenomenon was time particularly well spent.

Vinyl Spinning by Essy Sparrow - my girl does not miss and her latest single is no different! This one has a dreamy, autumnal vibe to it - I cannot wait to be listening to this while watching rain sluice down my window. For now, I guess I’ll have to be content with the only thing sluicing anywhere being the sweat behind my knees. Sorry, TMI, I’ll leave it there.

I’m a big fan of Everything is Content, and their episode with writer Jem Calder was one of the best things I listened to this month. I’d heard him speak on a panel event back when his story collection Reward System was released and loved hearing his insights into the writing process then, and in similar fashion I adored this deep dive into the nuts and bolts of writing his debut novel I Want You to Be Happy. I think this one would appeal to all writers, whether they’d read the novel or not (I haven’t and now it’s inched its way to the top of my list!)

I loved listening to Sloane Crosley and Brad Listi in conversation on Otherppl podcast. I’ve been working through the Otherppl back catalogue since discovering it earlier this year (I would recommend it to all writers!), and having read and enjoyed Crosley’s essays in the past it was a treat to be able to learn more about her as a writer. The book they were discussing, Grief is for People, is firmly on my TBR along with I Want You to Be Happy.

Screen time 📺 what I’m watching

The White Lotus, Now TV - reader, we finished it. I loved season three just as much as the first two (despite the internet’s feelings otherwise!), and am already looking forward to season four…

The Comeback, Now TV - I hadn’t heard of The Comeback, Lisa Kudrow’s cult mockumentary, until one of the Everything is Content girls mentioned they’d been watching and loving it. I was home alone that evening, so popped it on after dinner, and found myself reminded of just how good Kudrow’s comic timing really is. The show spans three series, each filmed around a decade apart, and I can’t wait to see how it evolves from here.

You’ve Got Mail 💌 icymi, a selection of newsletters past

Word count 📝 an update on my novel-in-progress (emphasis on the in-progress)

Okay, here we go! As I mentioned in my last post before I dropped off the grid, I am taking June and July off Substack to focus on my novel-in-progress, and I am pleased to report that despite a week away and two (two!) unbearably hot heatwaves in London, I have in fact managed to make some progress. I have the first section of the book redrafted, a plan in place for the next section of edits, and had a very generous close read of the opening from a writer friend I met here on Substack, which has been so helpful in looking at what’s working and what’s not. I will report back in July!

Desk drawer📎 some miscellaneous favourites for the month of June

connections📱 - forget Wordle, the NYT Games app has me capital O-obsessed with Connections, its deceptively difficult word-categorising game. My girlfriend and I like to play it before work in the morning, and I’ve formed a semi-parasocial relationship with its creator, Wyna Liu. Truly the best start to the day!

west end girl live 🐈🏰 - after an extreme hyperfixation with Lily Allen’s newest album last year, I had the most fun seeing the live show with one of my oldest friends this weekend.

how does your garden grow? 🌱 - very excited to have our own little patio garden when we moved in together, my girlfriend wasted no time in getting a few things planted. Now, we have our very own little batch of tomatoes coming through on the vine! In reality, checking on these babies is the start to our day, Connections comes second…

Through my lens 📸 my month in snaps (@emjameswrites on IG if you would like to see dog pics on a more regular basis!)

Thank you for reading! I hope that this month has been a tasty summer treat for you all, despite the outrageously high temps we had to suffer last week (in London, at least!). Like June, July is going to be a quiet one in terms of this Substack - no weekly Monday posts while I wrestle with this new draft of my novel, but I’ll be back with the next monthly round up in four weeks’ time. This month is shaping up to be a goodie: I have tickets to Pitbull at BST in a couple of weeks (note to self: order that bald cap!) as well as something a little more highbrow in the form of the Tate’s new Frida Kahlo exhibition. But first, Rome - if anybody has been recently and has recommendations, I would love it if you would leave them below! Ciao for now! x

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