I met Aidan Donnelley Rowley, as I’ve met a lot of amazing people in my life, online. A friend told me about Aidan’s blog, and after reading it for months, and then reading her first novel, I reached out to her, sensing that she was a kindred woman I wanted to know beyond her words on my screen. We traded emails, books, and then finally met in person for the first time when I was in New York on book tour last spring.

(Taken this spring when I was the guest of one of Aidan’s Happier Hour salons.)
Aidan is one of those women who is easy to like, not because she’s pretty and intelligent and gracious (she IS all of those things), but because she is accessible. When I say accessible, I mean it in the way that has made me fall hard for my favorite people in this world. Aidan is accessible because she walks the truth of her life. She is honest about her faults, her struggles, her happiness and her desires and her doubts. She always lets you into her world and in doing so, allows you a new window into your own world.
A few years ago, Aidan began hosting a series of salons at her home in New York City, called Happier Hours. Each gathering revolves around a female author who’s work encourages discussion and growth. The premise is that we could all be happier, and that even if we can’t be happy all the time, we can strive to create moments and hours in which we are happier, hence gathering a bunch of fabulous women together to get inspired. This concept exemplifies exactly what Aidan embodies; the message that perfection is an illusion and that embracing who we are is the real key to finding true satisfaction.

Okay, enough gushing about Aidan…
The reason I’m writing this post is to say that I couldn’t be more thrilled to announce that I’m partnering with her to bring Happier Hours to the West Coast. This coming weekend I’ll be hosting the first-ever Happier Hour brunch in Los Angeles with Meredith Maran, author of Why We Write, as the first guest. The brunch will take place at the home of my friend Maria D’Angelo, president of an incredible nonprofit called The Children’s Lifesaving Foundation. Meredith’s book is a fascinating read on what it means to write, and where the drive comes from. Sure to inspire an enriching afternoon.

My life has been unduly complicated as of late, with a lot of stress and uncertainty, so I cannot tell you how very much I’m looking forward to a Happier Hour.

A Brief Note on Putting Myself Out There
All This: Reflections on Atlanta
Notes from Atlanta
The Loss and Gain of Having Two
Finding My Mother Again










