July Prompts for Heat Waves

+ a new IN SITU book for coming in hot

For when it’s too hot to care but, alas…you’re in the thick of it.

“In Situ” #03 is here! I’m pleased to share the newest Moon Lists printed booklet, HEAT WAVE, an ode to the sweaty rollercoaster of summer, as explored in four acts.

Each section reflects a different state of the season: prompts on the charged anticipation, the sticky sweetness, the fever dream-fueled highs, the languid lows. A time when everything feels more vivid, more intense, more delicious, more unbearable. When stillness hums, when you move slower but feel more.

This “In Situ” edition was created in collaboration with Maria Geyman of Masha Tea, and it is available in very limited edition here.

+ as an amuse bouche, this month’s Substack prompts are a sampling of what’s inside…

July Prompts for a Heat Wave:
Act II, The Rolling Boil

1. PEAK RIPENESS
What’s something that is feeling purely delicious, ripe, messy, and juicy?

2. COMING IN HOT 
Your phone overheating. Being told to “simmer down.” How are outside forces communicating that you need to cool off? 

3. HOT HUES
Sun-bleached turquoise. Overripe watermelon. Green grass after a thunderstorm. Roadside wildflowers. Summer makes everything brighter: What color are you craving more of right now?

4. PLUNGE
What’s the last thing you said yes to without hesitation? 

5. FEVER DREAM
Admit one thing you probably shouldn’t do, but lowkey want to?

6. BEACH SUB
Summer hunger hits differently. What’s your go-to simple, satisfying, hot weather meal? 

7. MELTDOWN
When was the last time you totally lost it?

8. BURNING YOUR TONGUE
Texting your ex. A hot take. Unsolicited advice. When was the last time you took a sip too soon (metaphorically speaking)?

> > GET ALL THE PROMPTS < <

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THE MONTH’S MOOD:

Above, left to right: Vintage collared blouse @falconiereshop; sun tea ice cubes @_leavesandflowers; MAC fuchsia face glitter; Ruth van Beek, “Untitled (Figure 67),” 2020; DIY spray painted lawn chairs; strawberry, cream, and jelly panna cotta @aromecassis; melon soup on the Wikipedia page on “Fruit soup”; Larry Bell’s glass cubes; “Papaya and watermelon,” Agostinho da Mota, 1860, Museu Nacional de Belas Artes; stone fruit season @teget; “Taking Over Airports” @reisingerandres; John Baldessari, “Double Play: Feelings,” 2012; chilling dog; “Illicit Love Letters: Albert Camus and María Casares,” The Paris Review.

From the Archives: Related Summer Prompts