The chance of a lifetime. Or is it? (I think it is.)

And...it's self-promotional!

There are many reasons why people gravitate toward one another. Love, power, money, someone that reminds you of someone else you should probably work through in therapy. As a Sagittarius, I’m skeptical of partnership because most of it seems to happen for opportunistic reasons. If not at first, then likely down the line. And that’s depressing to me beca…

Good news! As of today, Mercury Retrograde is OVER. It’s now safe to send that important email without fear of typos or have that conversation without too much awkwardness. But maybe still avoid texting your ex! Below are your Mercury Direct horoscopes. Read for your sun sign.

Vienuolika punktų, kurie leidžia man daryti daug.

Aidas savo skiltyje apžvelgia Trumpo bylą, Blackberry ir Tesla, Peru prezidentės Rolexus ir išsamiai pasakoja apie amerikiečių santykius su abortas.

There are so many kinds of mother. The mothers you cherish and celebrate. The mothers who were never really there. The mothers who broke you. Who built you. The mothers who cheered you on. Who chipped away at you until you were dust. The mothers who reveled in your astonishing intelligence and grace and power. Who saw only their own light. The mothers who died painfully young. The mothers who lived so long you felt yourself disintegrating with them. Petal by wilted petal. The mothers who shined. Who dimmed. Who did their best. Who disappointed. Who redeemed themselves. Who accepted your redemption. Who zigged and zagged. The mothers who were a beacon. The mothers you never knew. The mothers who sewed themselves into the quilt you became. The mothers who couldn’t bear to tell the truth. The mothers who were brave. The mothers who didn’t know who they were without you. Who never saw you no matter how wildly you waved. The mothers who grieved you. Who believed in you. The mothers you call. The mothers you no longer speak to. The mothers you take for granted. Or treasure. The dead mothers. The mothers you have to search for and carry. The mothers you find in people who are not your mother. The mothers like a limb. The mothers like a mirror. The mothers like a flame. The mothers you wish. The mothers you love. The mothers you ache. The mothers you echo. The mothers you aren’t. The mothers you wanted to be. The mothers you became. I am thinking of you. I am holding you all.

About How Mercy Pushes Us Deeper Into Truth

It's been a surprising/thriving 18 months on here, so here's some stuff I know.

How do you take care of yourself to protect yourself from falling back?

The question I’m asked the most by readers is, “Why did you divorce?” The answer I generally give is, ”I was with my ex-husband for seventeen years. I think that’s a full run.” The reality is, the ending was dramatic.

“Why are her boobies in her pants?”

June’s Photo Winner!

While we wait for more test results to come in on Samwise, here’s a fun announcement. For the last two years, Founding Members have received framed photos. Last year’s image was Samwise and Emily with Abe at 3 am. The first was a scene from a dawn hike at sacred Ship Rock in Navajo Nation.

Never feel alone on Notes again…This is the way to use Substack's Notes to get subscribers. Find other Substack writers to connect with on Notes. Create a network of people to connect with.

Thank you for being such a cool part of Substack Writers at Work. We’re about subscriber growth and our growth as writers and human beings. (Even if you don’t think of yourself as a writer, if you’re writing on Substack, you’re a Substack writer.) And that means knowing punctuation. More on this soon...

The embodied imagination

The Heroine's Journey 7

From Advent Calendar Prompts to Zoom Classes--Dive into Poetry!

Issue 104

A manifesto for winter light

Listen now | We answer your queries on writing retreats, notebooks and influences

Come close, let's talk.

It took a while, but now I get all the hype. Part 1 of a 2 part series about my strength training ~journey~.

Thoughts on the Cait Corrain scandal—plus the one thing that publishers need to do to make their authors better people.

An invitation for writers enrolled in our May 8th masterclass to share material and possibly win a free workshop!

Session 1, Day 1

Session 2, Day 26

Nobody asks us personal questions anymore.

Actually, I don't want to know.

Part One of Two: Where I Started, What I've Done, What Worked Best & What Didn't Work (& tomorrow, the more philosophical "Eleven Urgent & Possibly Helpful Things I've Learned Along the Way")

From the Archive| A Lit Salon post on the thrill of naming our dreams out loud even as we tremble, knowing our dreams have saved our lives before, and can save our lives again

Hi friends. The sixth (!) year of #1000wordsofsummer starts June 17. Are you getting excited? I am feeling the energy and I am absolutely thrilled by this year’s list of contributing authors. I really think something magical is about to happen this year.

On the power and value of a good title as a guiding light that you can return to as you work, even if you don’t ultimately stick with it in the end.

Confirmed literary magazines that agents read when looking for writers to represent.

WE'RE ONE YEAR OLD!

And so we come to the end of our conversations on Anthony Trollope’s The Warden, focusing, as always, on your questions. Join us as we dig into Trollope’s thoughts on the nature of the novel, whether he was doing theological commentary or social commentary, whether the novel works on all four levels of interpretation (and much more!). Happy listening!

Today is Heidi’s birthday, which means it’s the perfect day to discuss a mystery novel! So join us as we celebrate by digging into Jospehine Tey’s classic novel, The Franchise Affair, one of the most celebrated mysteries ever written. It’s got humor, a really fun puzzle, a good villain, and some delightful writing, adding up a to book that is quite fun …

On Not Stopping

The girl with kaleidoscope eyes

Buckle Up for Some Tough Love

A poll

I think it was sometime in the pandemic. I have no access now so who knows. I said something to the effect of all you motherfuckers owe Sinead an apology. And I got a DM from an account saying only two words, “Thank you.” But with a heart instead of a period. I thought it was spam. Like being followed by @keanureeves3391842. Wasn’t her official account.…

If you asked me a week ago or three years ago or ten, how much does it cost to hire movers, I’d have said a thousand probably, five thousand, at least, if you’re moving out of state. For most of my life, it might as well have been a million dollars. It didn’t matter. I sure as shit didn’t have a thousand or five to hire someone to move my shit.

La hermana de mi madre, mi tía, falleció este jueves sobre las ocho y media de la mañana. Un ataque al corazón, trató de agarrarse a un rosal antes de caer desplomada sobre el pequeño huerto que da a la parte trasera del cortijo de su familia. Que es la mía. En ese cortijo pasé mucho de los veranos de mi infancia, en ese patio trasero aprendí a callar c…

Ayer pasó una cosa extraña en la firma de libros. Algo que no suele suceder porque yo estoy ahí a lo que estoy —dedicar tiempo, cariño, escuchar con el corazón, es que creo (de verdad) que cada minuto que un lector dedica a un escritor es un regalo. Así lo entiendo. Los libros tienen algo mágico (además de todo lo bueno que tienen, digo) hacen que pasen cosas. Nos salvan, alumbran caminos, yo imagino los libros como ese manojo de llaves de La grande bellezza, esas que custodian “los palacios más bellos de Roma” (de fondo suena un adagio de Georges Bizet) un hilo finísimo capaz de conectar sensibilidades, un lenguaje infinito que engarza soledades compartidas. Un lugar seguro. A lo que iba. Un lector (Isaías) muy calmado, me deslizó un comentario que no esperada: “Intuyo que esto te cuesta más de lo que parece, así que gracias, sin más”. Me pilló a pie cambiado, supongo que porque tenía razón. Me siento cada vez más frágil.

Go to the grocery store, make some soup, keep going

A conversation with New Yorker cartoonist Liana Finck

And looking forward to 2024

The giveaway is a copy of Winnie Dunn’s debut novel, 'Dirt Poor Islanders'