Introducing My Friend Harlow Scott!

Posted on November 2, 2026 by Catherine Cheng, MD

Friends, romance novels are a very. Good.Thing. Even better when your friend publishes three in one year, holy cow! And I got to read them all first!

Harlow Scott (nom de plume) and I met in the now defunct Shaneiaks Facebook group, an enthusiastic (and occasionally feral) fan group for Shane East (aka Steve West), my favorite naughty voice actor. We gushed about books, heroes, and Our Gentleman’s crazy amazing talent. I know The Never King by Nikki St. Crowe reigns close to the top of her list of favorite works, but she also loves vampires and various other delectable tropes and subgenres in romance. I recall her posting a lot about burning dinner while listening to smut, and melting into a gooey mass on the kitchen floor. I think I won her over when I offered to come over anytime with a loving tile scraper. At the time she lived in Denver so I was at least half serious–any excuse to visit home! We did meet in person on my next trip and subsequently, I have hung out with her in the Pacific Northwest where she now lives, and we even road tripped to St. Louis last year for the Mate Games convention.

Harlow’s writing history starts long before mine, having penned stories and even an entire novel (yet to be published) decades ago. She has published at least two professional books, offering her unique expertise to the world at the intersection of history and accessibility in public spaces. In 2023 (or was it 2024?) we agreed to support each other in our respective NaMo’s: Her in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) and me in National Blog Posting Month (NaBloPoMo). We committed to writing every day and holding each other up in the process. A great friendship was born!

Since then I have had the privilege and pleasure of witnessing and supporting HS on her prolific writing journey, watching the genius emerge and flourish, imagining her fingers fly at her laptop, giving form and phrase to ideas that just cannot get out fast enough. Her first two novels, Month to Maybe and Can You Hear Me Now?, were almost written in tandem–fun, easy, lighthearted reads that remind me so much of works by contemporary powerhouse authors Lauren Blakely and Louise Bay. The third, recently released, What If I Say Yes, required quite a bit more labor, if not more love. I am so proud of this particular release, her first male-male, bi-awakening love story. It called to her as soon as the the Pacific Hearts series took shape, and she incubated and cultivated it with unending dedication and care. She invested time, energy, and resources to make it the best it could be, and it has paid off. From the first draft that I read to the final edits, Eli and Marcus’s journey evolved deeply and readers have positively gushed at the outcome.

I always marvel at brains that can invent stories this engaging, let alone write them so articulately. And the spicy scenes, well… The woman’s got talent, I say! Good romance shows us our softest, most vulnerable humanity, our deepest desires both emotional and carnal. It helps us explore our most tender insides, reminds us how essentially we need deep connection, acceptance, understanding, and love. When these stories also represent those of us who feel marginalized, telling our love stories with compassion and fervor, validating our experiences and aspirations, the world is simply much better for it.

My friend does exactly this. From her bio:
“She chooses to write about love because she believes in its power to comfort, heal, and offer a place to escape.”
“Telling stories of love, laughter, and happily-ever-afters, one word at a time, where hearts ache, sparks fly, and love wins.”

Harlow Scott’s books can be found in ebook and paperback on Amazon, and you can get signed paperbacks on her website.

I know the stories in the pipeline, friends, and I can’t wait to share those with you all when they release. Meanwhile, check out Pacific Hearts. Love wins and it feels so good.

Words and Actions

Posted on October 25, 2026 by Catherine Cheng, MD

“Please never doubt the light you bring to my life. I am a new garden and you
are the sun that gives me my reason for blooming.” –JPG

“Darling, there is no tomorrow without you. If I ever lost you,
I would live forever in all the days I had with you.” –JPG

“Oh how great is the depth of my wanting for you.” –JPG

What do the words in these images do for you, friends? What do they bring forth?

If you are not already acquainted, I highly recommend finding and following Josh Greene, @typewrittenlovenotes on Instagram and on his Substack. His writing is thoughtful and evocative, keenly astute to all things human. He engages his audience with the most admirable integration of openness, earnestness, and appropriate boundaries.

I read the three expressions of his post above and commented, “Wondering… what are the day to day actions that go along with these words? It’s lovely to imagine.” Two avenues of reflection emerged from the question:

How do I walk the talk?
If I tell you how much I love you, care about you, and value you, how do I show you in our everyday interactions? What does it mean to live these words? How do I treat you such that you believe me when I say them? It makes me wonder which people in my life feel a gap between what I profess and how I behave. How do I delude myself, believing my words and actions are fully aligned when they are not? What needs to happen for those who feel the gap to tell me so I may correct, either the words or the actions?
It’s so easy (for some of us) to say the flowery words. They make everybody feel good with instant gratification. When things are harmonious it’s easy to act lovingly. How do I show up when it’s hard? Do I live up to my own standards of integrity, compassion, and self-regulation? Perfection is not possible. But how much is good enough? How do I keep myself accountable?

What words/stories drive my actions off track?
I make generous assumptions about most people most of the time; I place myself pretty far on the right side of the curve compared to the general population here. And yet, there are those for whom I hold only sparse generosity. I justify my attitude and seek validation for it. Thankfully, I have dear friends who will provide that emotional validation, remind me of my own standards of conduct, and challenge me to reconcile my actions accordingly.
I come back to the words. How do I label these people and thus prime myself for disconnection rather than connection, the exact opposite of what I always say I want most in life and relationships? It’s an uncomfortable and humbling irony, and one that I am grateful occurs only occasionally. So I am determined to suck all possible learning from each occurrence, in hopes of prevention in future. Disconnect will always happen of course, but my high dream is to look back and see that I did my best to present my best self whenever possible. What do I need for that to happen more reliably?

These questions feel important, but not necessarily urgent. I’m reminded of Rilke’s admonishment to ‘live the questions‘, to simply be alive to them, let the answers reveal themselves over time. I have trained my observation and reflection muscles well; they are tone and strong. So I don’t fear the heavy self-awareness lifts when they cross my path. I can slow down, take a breath, and assess. I get to decide whether and how to approach, detour, confront, or take other action. I’ll know when I need to know, and I am well supported with excellent counsel.

So let’s live some good questions, shall we? The world needs us all to speak and act more thoughtfully and reflectively, and be much better self-regulated.

Celebrate One Another’s Gifts

Posted on October 11, 2026 by Catherine Cheng, MD

Friends, I have jetlag so I will be brief:

“I think we could all encourage one another to acknowledge and articulate our gifts more. That could make the world better.”
I wrote this to JP Greene, @typewrittenlovenotes, in response to his story reel describing his gift of acute and specific memory.

I traveled to Portugal this past week to attend the wedding of two of my favorite young people. What a gift and privilege, and a memory I will treasure lifelong. Not only did I get to spend enough quality time with both bride and groom, but I got to meet their and their parents’ dear and loving friends, and came home having made a bunch of new friends myself.

The event included multiple opportunities to reminisce and reflect on the newlyweds’ roots, personalities, and relationships. The ceremony and vows represented them both so earnestly and exquisitely. Their honest and authentic natures clearly present to us all right up front and consistently, as every description of them from the best mates to parents were exactly the people we all know and love, all why every one of us was willing to fly over an ocean to celebrate their marriage.

How often do you hear from others about your gifts?
How often do you exercise them in both confidence and humility?

How often do you express your appreciation of others’ gifts to them?
How often do you notice yet stay silent?

When we reflect others’ gifts and impact back to them, specifically and in real time, we reinforce what we love most about them. We validate and strengthen their self-awareness and self-worth. When we notice someone making a positive difference in the world, acknowledging it amplifies the effect and helps us all absorb and integrate that energy better. I believe we are more likely ourselves to act in kind thereafter–it’s a win-win.

This week, I challenge us to practice.

Articulate our admiration with assertive positivity. To be clear, we must be genuine and honest–actively responsive in and to our observations. It need not be effusive, per se, just earnest and direct. If it feels uncomfortable, may we muster the boldness to overcome the discomfort (maybe explore it?) and connect despite it. Sincere compliments make us generous on the receiving end; they can someone’s day, which brightens our own day. I think we consistently underestimate the vast and beneficial ripple effects of a few kind and encouraging words.

May we make one another feel seen and appreciated, my friends. May we openheartedly point out others’ gifts to them, and help them self-acknowledge. Far from stoking egoism and arrogance, I think we will simply call forth our best selves for one another and for the world. Imagine what a better society we could build this way?