Do you already look forward to winter, or are you just one book away from loving it? If it's the latter, I've got THE book for you!
WinterTide: Survive and Thrive in the Year's Coldest, Darkest Season is a love letter to winter in all its glory. Written by Brette Sember, who has the ultimate (Buffalo, New York!) experience in thriving in winter, WinterTide is both inspirational and full of practical, joyful tips. I especially loved all the quotes sprinkled throughout the book - such words of winter wisdom.
As a lifelong Midwesterner (Michigan and Minnesota, both cold and snowy), I grew up absolutely loving winter. Cross-country skiing, building snow forts, reveling in the ability to play outside all day long if we had a snow day, warming our feet and cold legs by the woodstove, and truly enjoying the earlier evenings by laughing together, enjoying great meals, playing games, or cozily reading while bundled up, cup of hot cocoa in hand. While I adore summer (swimming! Lake Michigan! those sunsets!), there is something special about this seemingly fallow season that is anything but.
If you're not there yet, this book will persuade you to beauty of the shorter-days-of-the-year side. If you already love winter, you'll learn some new things to do, and keep nodding your head in agreement (and planning on gifting this book to as many as you can).
This is a book to savor, re-read, make plans from, become inspired by, and dip into again and again over the years.
Highly, highly recommended.
Brette Sember is the author of more than 40 books and has edited and coached dozens more. She loves to help authors make their book dreams come true. She also teaches writing classes. Sember lives in western New York state with her husband, two dogs, and two cats. She has two adult children.
We caught up with Sember to ask her about her new book, winter, and more. Here's what she had to say...
Please tell us about your new book, WinterTide...
WinterTide is for every person who dreads winter or counts down the days until spring. That used to be me. I have lived in Buffalo, NY, my whole life, and I know winter. For years, I struggled, feeling depressed, fat, bored - you name it! We used to scrape to be able to do five to seven days in the Caribbean in February, but somehow it didn't help. Then we tried a month in Florida, and then we tried three months in Florida. It was there that I realized I desperately missed winter and needed it. I decided I maybe I didn't actually hate it. So we went to Iceland in the winter, where I delved into how Icelanders manage winter cold and darkness. It changed my entire perspective. I discovered how to love winter and have a really detailed plan for how to manage it.
One of my favorite parts of WinterTide is the Winter Mindset. What can spark that shift for people?
I think that the key is accepting winter. Stop fighting it. Stop complaining. Accept it. Embrace it. See it as something natural, normal, and needed. Once I did that, I saw the benefits of it and started making sure I could experience them. You have to actively plan for winter. Don't hide from it.
What inspired you to write WinterTide?
It was seeing all those "X days until spring" countdowns on social media that made me realize I had to write about this. I have a friend who says, "Don't wish your life away," meaning don't live saying things like, "I wish winter was over," "I wish the days would go faster." Find a way to enjoy every day of your life, including the winter days. I discovered how to love winter, and I wanted to share it with everyone else who was struggling like I used to.
What do you hope readers take away from this book?
I hope that I can ease people's pain! Too many people spend the whole winter resenting the cold, the dark, the weather, the snow, etc. Winter shouldn't just be something that you struggle through to get to spring. There are so many wonderful things about it. And the thing is, winter is natural and necessary. I just want people to find a way to find the comfort and peace I have discovered. I offer a lot of tools in this book, including mindset tips, preparing your home and life, how to deal with cold, how to deal with darkness, how to be productive, and more.
What's up next for you?
I'm working with a lot of authors on their books as an editor and book coach. I'm always looking for exciting new projects to sink my teeth into. I'm also teaching a class about how to use AI as a tool when writing a book proposal. It's NOT about having AI write it for you. It's about how to leverage it as a more powerful Google. I recorded 10 videos and created prompts for students to use. AI should not replace us as writers, but we can definitely leverage it as a tool. No one should be ignoring it at this point.
How can people find your work?
My site is www.BretteSember.com.
Link to buy the book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FRS6Y6HL/ref=nosim/?tag=mooseinthebirdba paperback or ebook (also on Kindle Unlimited). For people who don't use Amazon, they can message me directly for a copy.
Instagram: @BretteSember
YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@brettesember6613/shorts, where I talk about the book and writing, and also post some pet videos