Think of this as the mixtape for Thirteen Weeks in Digby. I’ve always “heard” music in the back of my head as I read (weird quirk, I know), so I put together 16 tracks that capture everything from gusty storm vibes to those quiet, “just us” moments and the big, messy warmth of found family.

Digby may be fictional, but it’s built with the heart of a real Midwestern town. Here’s why I created it, and some of my favorite places within its streets.

Several years ago, my husband and I decided on a whim to visit the Unitarian Universalist church in our town. We didn’t know what to expect. Inside, a man looked up and asked, “Are you here for directions?”

What we found was a small, big-hearted group full of kindness, quirks, and an eagerness to help. On the way home, I told my husband, “There could be a TV show about that group. And I’d watch it.”

I truly believe that what we read steers what we write. Some books become blueprints, others become whispers, and then there are those rare ones that crack something open.
As I write Thirteen Weeks in Digby, I keep returning to the stories that shaped its voice, heart, and humor.