Welcome to Books, Bud, and Brews with Elizabeth Barone, where we are hanging out, smoking up, and catching up. Today we’re discussing what makes reading so healing. I’ll read to you from my dark romance, A Disturbing Prospect. And we’ll talk favorite strains for leisure, pain management, and creativity.

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Welcome to the first episode of Books, Bud, and Brews! I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time, and after a lot of false starts, I’m so excited to finally stop telling myself no and just do it. I want this show to feel like you’re chillin’ with your bestie, smoking up and shooting the shit. But I’m also not gonna pretend like nothing is happening and everything is normal, because everything is not normal. We are going to dive into some deeper topics, so I won’t be ignoring what’s going on, and I’ll also work to strike a balance between going deep and staying cozy. I’ll look to you to tell me how deep you want me to go.

This week I’ve been running through Sleeve of Hearts revisions! After over a year of working on this book, I can finally, finally see the end in sight. I ended up going old school and printed out a hard copy and revising that way. There really is something to doing things the old fashioned way sometimes. It really does something to your brain, like flips a switch. So stay tuned for more on that series soon, because things are a-moving!

We talk a lot in the community about reading being healing, but have you ever thought about why?

I truly believe books find you when you need them most. It’s so weird, so many times in my life, when I was going through something and turned to a book to escape, I ended up finding exactly what I needed in that book, even if the plot wasn’t relevant to my life. Like this past summer, I ended up reading several books back to back that all were exactly what I needed, in different ways. It was amazing, because I’d been going through a dry reading spell, and then out of nowhere I just blew through three or four in a row that were all incredible, and all of them gave me something.

I’ll link to those books in the show notes.

I really do believe the right books find you right when you need them.

Reading also helps you slow down and focus your brain. It’s really, really good for anxiety. When you’re absorbing each word—reading is very cerebral, and it’s the only entertainment where the audience controls the flow of time. When you’re watching a movie, that 90 minutes goes by. But when you’re reading, you can really slow down, savor every word. Some of us (hi) are reading the same words and paragraphs over and over. But it slows you down. It’s good stuff.

It also gives you an escape from reality. Your reality doesn’t even necessarily have to be traumatic for you to need an escape. It could just be the monotony of everyday life, and reading gives you a break from that. Or when you’re going through something, it can be an escape from some really hard times.

Or like, when I’m reading horror, it can help you realize maybe things aren’t so bad. Like, things are difficult in my life… but at least it’s not zombies.

Reading is also a safe way to work through trauma and other complicated feelings. So many dark romance authors say they wrote their books because they experienced those things. Writing it gave them a safe space to process that in a sort of sandbox. And the author creates that space for themselves—but also the reader. Tehre’s a lot of controversy about trigger warnings, btu they’re useful int wo ways.

Trigger and content warnings can tell you what topics you migt want to avoid. They can also help you find a book to safely process specific things.

It’s really amazing that auhtors can create those spaces for ourselves and our readers. We end up processing together. I really want to explore that more, going forward in my own career.

Because, research shows that writing creatively actually heals trauma. When you’re involving all five senses to write and process your trauma, it has a similar effect to that of EMDR. We’re definitely going to be talking about that more in future episodes, because I’m very excited about this.

Today I’m reading from the first book in my dark romance series, A Disturbing Prospect.

Where I live, in Connecticut, cannabis is legal medically and recreationally. It can be a bit hard to find informaiton, though. Dispensaries use different names than what we’re used to. It can become a sort of trial and error situation, and while it can be frustrating, it can also be fun.

Different strains have different effects, uses, and side effects. It can take some experimenting to find strains that work best for you.

For pain, I really like Hauntrica and Emerald Fire. Hauntrica is one that’s in the dispensaries, I believe only on the medical side. I’m not sure what its street name is. It’s so good for pain, though quite drying. I’ve found that all the best strains for pain tend to be drying.

I also really like Emerald Fire. I actually only just tried it a few months ago, and it’s now probably my all-time favorite. It’s also not hard to find, so I’ll hopefully be keeping it in rotation from here on. It’s a really good one to keep on hand for those bad pain days.

Indicas tend to be better for pain, I think because they have a higher THC content. Don’t quote me on that. There are some sativas that I like for pain, like Sour Diesel and Gelato. But I tend to stick to indicas for pain.

Now for leisure, that’s a whole different mood. You want to kick back, watch a movie, maybe laugh a little. Gelato and Sour Diesel are really good for that, while also keeping you alert and energized. They’re not gonna put you in couch lock. My other favorite, Skywalker, though, that’ll make you feel like a cartoon character blown back into a wall by a fan. That one, you throw on a movie and probably take a nap. But for reading and stuff like that where I want to be focused and really get into my book, I love Gelato and Sour D.

They’re also my picks for creativity. Again, they’re sativas and so they’re energizing, with serious creative vibes. You’ll really get into that zone with these two strains. You’ll be able to concentrate and the ideas will flow.

There are so many strains out there but I really am a simple girl. I have my handful of favorites and I’m good to go.

What strains are your favorite? Please let us know. It can be really difficult for people to get proper information, and in the 420 community, we are all about sharing, so don’t gatekeep!

I’m so exicted for what’s ahead in this podcast. I’ve got lots of ideas for segments, and I’m curious what you’re interested in. Please take a moment and take this quick poll to help me create better episodes for you.

Thank you for listening to Episode 1 of Books, Bud, and Brews!