The Tangled Path is celebrating over a year! The first post came out on August 31, 2022. I’m going to take the next couple weeks to give a little love to some older posts, since there are a lot more of you readers now than there were then. :)
But first, some reflections on what it’s been like writing this Substack.
Show up and get out of the way.
Hot damn, this is my favorite phrase for my creative process, and it’s been working! Now, some weeks I’ve got an idea that I’ve been mulling around and come the weekend, I’m just forming it into actual black-and-white words. But often (maybe more often!) I have no idea what I’m going to write about.
Yet…when I show up to my computer, offer the idea over to the writing gods, and get to work, something almost always comes from it. I say almost because there are always exceptions—weeks of exhaustion or busyness or brain-deadness. And sometimes I have to dither around quite a bit before I can settle on something.
Show up, offer it over, and get out of the way so the words can come through. I maintain that this is a good way for me to create (although for book-length projects, more consideration is required!).
Write it for the pleasure of writing it (and sharing it).
This is my way of saying I have been abysmal at “promotion.” I throw a link up on Facebook and mayyyyybe remember to post something to Instagram. (Ok, usually not.) I got sick of hustling my creative work to make a buck, so when I started writing The Tangled Path, I decided that I would not force myself to promote any of it if I didn’t feel like it.
Was that a good decision? Yeah, I think so. I’m incredibly grateful to all my subscribers, and offer particular thanks to the paid subscribers. Somehow or another you are all here! :)
Sure, there aren’t thousands of you, and I won’t be making a living from this anytime soon. But I am grateful to be offering my work directly to readers and frankly kind of amazed that some are generous enough and in a financial position to offer support in return. It really feels like a gift.
Connecting directly with readers.
Everything you read here comes straight from me to you! I don’t have an editor for The Tangled Path (okay, I occasionally ask a family member or friend to read something ahead). So what I write comes straight from me to you.
It’s completely different from traditional publishing, where releasing a piece of writing can take months, if not years. And while there is something I appreciate about that process—it can be really nice to work with an editor, then have a length of time to give you some distance from the work—I’ve absolutely loved connecting with you all in a more direct, heart-to-heart fashion.
Stay tuned….
The next couple weeks will feature some “reissues” of a couple pieces! (All for everyone, no paywall.)
And finally, THANK YOU for being here!
It really means a lot. I hope you’re continuing to enjoy The Tangled Path!