I've got some exciting news!!

Hey friends!

It’s been a while since we’ve met up like this.

I mean – you may have seen me around the internet: posting makeup selfies on Instagram or sharing an article I found interesting on Facebook, but it’s been a minute since we were like this – me spilling the thoughts out of my head into paragraph after paragraph of *loosely* edited text. We used to do this all the time back in my freelance days, and in the good ole Establishment days (RIP).

If you’ve missed this, as I have, then I have AMAZING news for you.

The rambling paragraphs, the swears, the occasional laughs – they are all coming back in my newsletter: Behind the Book.

Some of you may be asking: “Why?” Or:  “What’s a Newsletter?”

These are questions I once had too! So, let’s answer some of these questions.

What is this thing? This is my newsletter that will be coming out a few times a week! It’s like a blog only you sign up for it and it gets delivered right to your email inbox.

What will you write about? Great question! This will likely evolve over time, but we’re going to start with two regular newsletter topics: Behind the Book and Beyond the Book. Behind the Book is a look into my writing world. This could range from behind the scenes of my writing process behind my books (including the one I’m writing now), or helpful writing tips for you aspiring writers out there – building off of the classes I used to teach. Want help writing a pitch or expanding upon an essay idea? You’ll find that here! Beyond the Book is like the variety newsletter – what I’m thinking about in the world, questions I may have for you, what I and my family have been up to outside of writing. Anything goes here.

Are you trying to take my money? No? Yes? No AND Yes! The regular newsletters (with Behind the Book and Beyond the Book) are free for anyone to read. Just sign up for the free subscription! There will be occasional bonus posts (like Q&A’s and group discussions) that will only be for paid subscribers. I do believe in paying people for their work. I believe in being paid for my work. My writing has value, and if you agree and can afford it, I would LOVE for you to be a paid subscriber! But if you don’t have the dough, you will still have access to the most important content on here, and any subscription – paid or not – is a huge support.

So why Substack? Everyone is doing it! Just kidding, sort of. The truth is, I’ve been exploring options for getting my work out more regularly for months now. The transition from “freelance writer” to “book writer” has meant that for a few years now, most of my words go into the great vault that is Endless Book Drafts, to be kept for A BILLION YEARS until the book that I’m working on is published. I miss the regular communication that writing articles provided. I miss being able to expand upon ideas that don’t fit in an Instagram caption in a timely fashion. And I know that a lot of y’all have missed it too. But, do I have the time while I’m writing books to actually live that freelance life as well? Hell no! That was a grind even before I was writing books! And I still have kids to care for, and a puppy who keeps shitting on my floor! I’m not pitching a story idea anytime soon and I’m CERTAINLY not arguing with editors about why I’m not going to be “nicer” to white dudes in my articles.

When I noticed that the absolute coolest kids (Lindy West, Sam Irby, and Daniel Lavery) had all joined Substack, I started asking around to see how they liked it, and they really did (y’all better not have lied to me). I looked at Substack’s business model and I loved how writer-focused it was and so I decided to give it a try, and here we are!

I’m excited to be chatting with you on the regular again! If you want to be a part of these conversations on writing, life and more, click that little “subscribe” button so that we can get started on this journey together.