Happy Halloween, everybody!
Like a lot of you, I'm sure, I'm worried and stressed leading up to this election. Last night as I was lying in bed trying to go to sleep, I found myself seeing a connection between the stories I write about the little town I've created (Galway, North Carolina) and the way I intend to vote:  In both cases, I am trying to build a world that would be warmer and more welcoming--to us all--than the world we actually have.
At some point in my schooling I learned about Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, which was like a pyramid of human needs, ranging from the most basic physiological needs (food, air, water, etc.) at the widest bottom part of the pyramid to "self-actualization" and "transcendence" at the very top. 
As I recall, the idea was that you had to have your most basic needs met before you could really concentrate on reaching for the higher-level needs. For example, if you're on the brink of starving to death, you're not in as good a position to be worried about safety (the next level up from the bottom) or belonging and love (the 3rd level up), much less to strive for self-actualization.
What does this have to do with worldbuilding and voting?
Well, I'll be voting for the people who are wanting to do things that help everyone meet their basic needs. The government can't provide love and belonging, but it can do a lot to make sure that people don't starve, that they have access to good medical care, that their water and their foods are safe to eat and their buildings safe to live in and their air safe to breathe.
That's the Democrats again in this election.
While the Republicans have been
* taking away women's rights to their own bodies, such that women are dying for lack of treatment
* disenfranchising people they believe are less likely to vote for them
* threatening a violent crackdown by police--and even use of the military--on US citizens and immigrants
* threatening to take away LGBTQ+ rights
* refusing to enact sensible gun regulations that would keep us all safer
* promising increased tariffs, which would raise costs for Americans
* threatening to cut Social Security and other social programs many of us depend on
* including the Affordable Care Act (specifically the portion that allows those of us with preexisting conditions access to health insurance),
the Democrats have instead been planning ways to help us. They want to lower drug prices, make housing and childcare more affordable, ensure that women CAN control their own health care decisions and that everyone who is eligible CAN vote and feed their children and publicly speak their minds on our leaders without fear of police or military violence. 
If you have read and liked my Galway books so far, it's probably because you like the vision of a world where people reach out and help each other... where we treat each other with respect and try to make sure we all have our basic needs met. 
I created that world because it's the one I'd want my child and all young people everywhere to grow up in. It's a warmer, friendlier, safer place...one where people can raise and feed and shelter their families and have a little energy left at the end of the day to reach for some of those higher-level needs.
So I'll be voting Democrat all the way down the ballot, because although none of the candidates is perfect or agrees with me on all issues (i.e. Gaza), they come a whole lot closer to sharing my ideas about worldbuilding than the GOP does.
Be safe out there, folks, and VOTE.

A few days ago I got an email update from Malaprops Books in Asheville, saying that they had finally been able to make contact with all their employees and to know that they're all okay after the flooding.

Today I got another update I'm pasting here because it contains links to local relief efforts, in case you would like to help and didn't know where/how to send aid:

October 2024 Update
A Note from Gretchen
Dear friends and family,

We are grateful to be able to reach out to you post-Helene. Physically, Malaprop’s Bookstore/Cafe and Downtown Books & News weathered the storm mostly unscathed. Though we don’t have water, we both have power. Malaprop's lacks phones and internet. 

We are most grateful that our staff is all safe and accounted for, though many are without electricity and water. 

Until we have more resources downtown, both stores will remain closed. 

We are unable to process online orders at this moment, but if you want to still support us, go ahead and place your orders knowing it will be a good minute before they can be looked at (we are just simple humans). We will also contact folks with older orders as soon as we can communicate consistently.

If you are able to support folks in our region, here are some organizations to consider: Beloved Asheville, YMI Cultural Center & Partners, Red Cross of WNC, Community Foundation of WNC, World Central Kitchen, Manna Food Bank, and Buncombe County-Hurricane Helene Donations. Please also consider donating to BINC Foundation, which helps bookstore and comic shop employees and owners with unforeseen emergency financial, medical, and mental health service needs.

Finally, Western North Carolina is a strong community with amazing people. If you have stories to share of unexpected kindness or “magical” feats, we would love to pass them along.

You are in our thoughts and hearts,

Gretchen

...goes out to all the people affected by Hurricane Helene.
The unprecedented loss of life and destruction in areas where folks had never before had to worry about hurricanes is shocking and horrifying. Because so many of these areas are rural and mountainous and are cut off by roads that have been blocked or damaged or swept away, and because of widespread cell and electrical outages, we don't even know yet, all these days later, how many people are dead or missing. Reports from survivors and rescue workers on the ground suggest that those numbers may end up being way higher than the 140 I last heard.
I've checked in with friends and family in Florida, both Carolinas, and Tennessee, and found to my great relief that they seem to be okay--at least physically--even though many of them had terrifying experiences and sustained significant losses and will be dealing with the storm's aftermath for some time to come.
Multiple people have pointed out to me that if my fictional world of Galway, NC were real, it would have been swept away like some of the communities we're learning about now. I know that if they were real and able, my characters would step up to help each other and everyone around them.
I pray that the very real people suffering now find the same level of love and support. I've heard of many organizations and donor opportunities but haven't vetted them yet. If and when I find some I feel confident about, I'll share that info here or on social media.
If you or your loved ones have been affected by Helene, my thoughts are with you.