Posts from @sigridsong

Sea Smoke in January

sigridsong — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 23:46:21 GMT

Sea smoke drifted over the harbor on January 12. The water was black glass, the air thin and salty. June Tam stood on the dock and watched the vapor rise from the lake. June had not expected to feel anything about the smoke. She felt something about the smoke.

I placed that scene early in Ice Out to show how the lake can hide and reveal at once. The harbor garden behind the restaurant watches the same smoke each year. The moment is a pause before the thaw. The book is available on my site.

First published at sigridsong.neocities.org.

The Tuesday Class

sigridsong — Mon, 05 Oct 2026 01:46:24 GMT

Every Tuesday, Wally Tam teaches twelve people at the community center how to make scallion pancakes. He tells them the dough needs hot water and ten minutes of rest. He does not tell them that he has made the same pancakes at Harbor Garden for twenty-seven years.

In October, darkness reaches East Superior Street before the class is finished. Wally packs the uneven pancakes into paper cartons. Some are thick at the center. One has no scallions. He brings them back to the restaurant anyway.

Food is how this family says what it cannot say. Wally teaches the recipe to strangers because teaching it to June would require a conversation. The pancakes are simpler.

First published at sigridsong.neocities.org.

Ice Out

sigridsong — Sat, 03 Oct 2026 00:54:24 GMT

I am writing about the time of year when the ice on Lake Superior begins to break up. The sun shines, but the water is still cold. In my book Ice Out, I wanted to capture this moment when the lake and the city of Duluth are still connected, but also starting to separate. The Aerial Lift Bridge answers the ships, its steel frame a reminder of the lake's power. June Tam, the protagonist, drives across the bridge on a sleet-covered day. The bridge is the first thing I put in, and it sets the tone for the rest of the story.

First published at sigridsong.neocities.org.