There has been some entitled behavior on Substack recently, not against me, but against my friends, and I feel compelled to push back.

To certain Substack readers: Just because you enjoy an author’s work, that does not give you the right to pressure or criticize or shame that writer when a post of theirs represents a departure from the subject matter or spirit you’ve grown to expect from them. How presumptuous and narrow-minded to demand an author write only what you want to read, to never have an opinion that doesn’t match yours, to never make a mistake or use a phrasing that doesn’t land well. Writers are human, which means diverse and ever-evolving, imperfect, growing, changing, experimenting.

To feel disappointed is one thing, but to chastise and belittle the writer, to be heartless and unforgiving, to threaten to unsubscribe if the writer doesn’t return to their previous style (just do it already; don’t be manipulative); how cruel! We writers can be a sensitive lot, and your harsh words may hurt more deeply than you know.

Please be kinder and more patient, and please understand that a writer does not write for your pleasure alone, they write to understand themselves, to process their experience, to learn and expand, and especially to freely express themselves as artists and human beings.

You can take or leave the product of their creativity, but be generous and T.H.I.N.K before you speak (is what I am about to say True, Helpful, Inspiring, Necessary, or Kind?)

Thanks for listening. 🙏💚