Growing Like Weeds

I’ve never been particularly sentimental about New Year’s resolutions. But this year, the idea feels less like a list of promises and more like a map — a way of drawing myself back to the work I care most about. My science-biography projects have been waiting patiently for me, and understanding the world of plant pathology sometimes feels like facing a chasm so wide I’d need stadium lights to illuminate how far I still have to go.

Which is exactly why I don’t want to wait for January 1st to start. I want to begin now. Here’s what I’m thinking about committing to now and into the New Year:

1. Make space every week for deep reading

Not just skimming articles or grazing archives, but reading like a biographer: slowly, with curiosity, with a willingness to follow footnotes down rabbit holes.

2. Prioritize archival relationships

My best writing always begins with other people — archivists, librarians, curators. Relationship building is never something that I have struggled with, but I want to ensure that I express gratitude with each interaction as I move forward. There are many, many people that have helped along with the way that I owe a big “thank you” to.

3. Commit to a predictable writing rhythm

Steady, sustainable, human-sized writing. Not heroic writing marathons. Not waiting for the perfect stretch of free time. Just showing up regularly in a way that honors the long arc of this work.

4. Trust that starting now counts

January 1st doesn’t have a monopoly on beginnings. Every evening, I choose to read instead of scroll, every morning I draft a paragraph before checking email, every small gesture toward this work is a resolution made real.

5. Let this be the year I finally step fully into the role

I’ve been circling around the identity of “science biographer” for a long time. Researcher, lawyer, parent, teacher — yes. But also: historian of plant disease, chronicler of women scientists, steward of stories that haven’t been told loudly enough. This year, I want to inhabit that title without hesitation.

Disclaimer: Subject to change.