HOW TO WRITE A LOVE LETTER. (COVER REVEAL, OR, HOW SOMETIMES, YOU JUST NEED TO WRITE A BOOK TO HEAL.)

I quit writing, you know.

Yeah. For good. Kinda.

Back in 2021, I quit writing, and I wasn’t sure I was ever going to write again. There were parts of my life that were, admittedly, falling apart (as they do in your early twenties.) Trauma poked holes in the metaphorical water balloon that was my life, and all the things that made me who I was kept spilling out of me.

My hands were trying to catch falling water. They were too busy to write.

So, yeah. I quit writing in 2021. And I didn’t really write again until 2023. But by 2023, I didn’t love it anymore. It felt like I was forcing myself to do this thing that I thought I loved, that people said I loved, but no matter how much I tried, it didn’t feel right.

But… if I didn’t write, I was never going to write again. I had to brute force it. I had to try again.

I wrote THE GODS MUST BURN as an attempt to fall back in love with writing. It was an idea that I’d had for a while, fleshed out through playing video games and recovering from a long period of illness. It wasn’t meant to be a book that anyone else saw. It wasn’t meant to be a debut. In fact:

So, the fact that THE GODS MUST BURN is my debut is a little bit funny. Insanely ironic. Life works in mysterious ways. The universe has a really good sense of humor. Sometimes, I worry that the universe laughs at me more than I get to laugh at myself.

Here’s the thing: when I say TGMB wasn’t meant to be read by anyone but myself, I mean that. TGMB was a love letter—firstly, to myself. I wrote down the inspiration for this book in very raw terms.

TGMB was me saying, hey, I know life has really chewed you up and spit you out the last few years, but you used to love this thing, and I think you could love it again if you gave it one more shot.

So, I did. I gave it one more shot. And now we’re here.

I’m so proud, and pleased, and a little teary, to finally reveal the cover for my debut book (the one I never wanted to debut with), THE GODS MUST BURN.

Wow. Take a minute. Let’s just sit with her.

Alright.

This was my love letter—to myself, to writing, to the absolute void growing inside me that could not be fed with any passion but books.

If I’d never tried again, we’d never be here. You wouldn’t know me—I wouldn’t know you. TGMB would’ve still been sitting in my drafts, untouched, with all my notes still there waiting to be unearthed. And with that, it would not be hitting shelves come February 2026.

Most days, I still can’t believe it. Sitting here, writing this newsletter, re-reading old messages and notes that I left when I thought this book would never come to fruition—I still can’t believe it. This dream, that I thought was too big to ever achieve, is finally coming true.

I quit writing. I did! But I’m so thankful that I came back.

I wrote TGMB as a love letter to myself, but it’s also a love letter to you, and to the rest of the world, and to my ancestors, who I’ll never know. So, it’s my hope that you’ll read this love letter and find whatever it is you need within it.

Ack. I’m such a sap. You mean the world to me, and thanks for being here.

If you’re dying to get your hands on this gorgeous cover (and read a lil love letter meant to heal whatever ails you), THE GODS MUST BURN is now available for pre-order! It releases in February 2026 and you can follow this link to catch it in your cart.

But if your bookshelf is running out of space, you can always add it to Goodreads and Storygraph, for next time.

Thanks for being here with me. When I say you mean the world to me, I really mean it. I think the universe blessed me with you, and I’m always sending blessings back your way.

See you next time!

Do all things with love,

Taylor 💖