Wicked Honest Is Launching January 30, and I’m Taking a Risk
On January 30, we’re launching a new podcast and YouTube show called Wicked Honest, and I won’t lie, this one feels like a risk.
It’s two middle-aged Boston women throwing it all out there. No polish. No pretending we have it figured out. Just truth. It can be messy. It can be rocky. It can be everything in between. But we have a gut feeling it might hit.
So far, every test listener has said the same thing. This works. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. Still, putting your voice, your thoughts, and your heart into the world always feels like stepping off a ledge and hoping something catches you on the way down.
Maybe that’s exactly what Wicked Honest is supposed to be.
The Holidays Almost Broke Me
I have to be honest. This holiday season nearly destroyed me.
Grief is a funny thing. You think you’re doing okay. You think you’ve learned how to live alongside it. Then, out of nowhere, it hits.
My mother has been gone two years now, and this was the year it really landed. There’s still a part of me that believes she’s there, in Revere, in her kitchen, puttering around. Like I just haven’t stopped by in a while. Like I haven’t called. Like she’s still there waiting.
And then there’s my dog. My soulmate. I lost him last spring, and I still cry every day, at least once. I feel him with me. I truly do. Like a little guardian angel walking beside me. But without being able to touch him, love him, or cuddle him, I feel lost.
I once read that your soul dog is like your nervous system on four legs, and that’s exactly what he was to me. Without him, I feel dysregulated and untethered. I loved him freely and without fear, and I allowed him to love me the same way. It was the most magical relationship of my life, and I would not trade a single second of it, even knowing the pain that came after.
Turning 50: The Year of Reckoning
And then there’s this. Turning 50.
Ahhh. The year of transition.
We are always transitioning, but this one hit differently. Your body changes. You feel it. You see your own mortality more clearly. Aging becomes real in a way it never was before.
I’ve thought about death since I was nine. It has always been an all-consuming fear. Strangely, I’m less afraid now than I was then. Still, it lingers.
Layered on top of that is another kind of grief. The grief of relationships you’ve had to let go of, even though those people are still here. Sometimes it’s about self-preservation. Sometimes it’s realizing that love doesn’t always mean forever. That time is limited. That you can care deeply for someone and still know you’re not meant to walk side by side anymore.
Sorry for the Debbie Downer moment. But if the podcast is called Wicked Honest, I didn’t really have a choice.
Creating Through the Pain
The good news is that I’m still creating, maybe because of the pain.
My writing course Writing the Wound just launched today, and I’m incredibly excited about it. It’s a six-module course designed to help people start writing from lived experience. Trauma, grief, addiction, love, loss. There is no pressure to be perfect and no rules to get in the way. It’s about getting the story out of your body and onto the page. We will be offering the course again, so stay tuned if you missed this round.
My poetry book The Heroin Addict’s Wife is also receiving wonderful feedback in the poetry world. All proceeds from the book are being donated to the Pine Street Inn this winter. You can order a copy here: CLICK
And yes, Drive City, my third novel, is still very much alive. I’m exploring different avenues to bring this book into the world. It has been a longer process than I expected, but publishing is a tricky business, and not everything moves on a straight timeline. I believe deeply in this story, and I’m trusting that the right path for it will reveal itself in time.
I’m also deep into my fourth book, and this one scares me in a whole new way. I’m stepping into true crime and narrative nonfiction, working with two retired police officers on an unsolved case from my home city. It’s a case that has haunted me for decades, and haunted so many of us. I’m nervous. I’m excited. I cannot wait to share more.
See You January 30
If any of this resonates with you, if you’re grieving, transitioning, questioning, creating, or simply trying to make sense of the mess, come find us.
Like and subscribe to Wicked Honest on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@WICKEDHONEST
We launch January 30 and will be on YouTube and all major podcast platforms.
We’ll be there. Fully ourselves. No filter.
And honestly, I think that’s the point.
Book Box
Gift 🎁 the readers in your life a special treat with a book box from best-selling and award-winning New England author, ME…Dianne C. Braley! This unique box includes one or both signed copies of her celebrated novels, The Summer Before and The Silence in the Sound, along with exclusive book-themed swag and a charming ornament—a ⭐️ starfish or 🍋 lemon, tying in beautifully with the novels’ themes. Each 📖 book can be personalized, so just shoot us an email or DM and let us know what you’d like written for that extra-special touch. Perfect for any book lover who appreciates heartfelt stories by a bestselling authors!
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