The optional notebook
It's not about rules, but awareness.
Yanyi
‘I Haven’t Had a New Idea in a Year. How Do I Think Again?’
It’s not “again” but “anew.”
2021 in Letters: The Reading in Review
A round-up of The Reading in 2022.
On difficulty in poetry
Three kinds of difficulty.
‘Does My Poetry Have to Be Difficult to Be Real?’
You can have what you want, and should.
‘How Do I Write If I Never Finish Anything?’
You've got to interrupt the "plan first, work later" mentality.
The Writing: Going back to where it started
Today is the last edition of The Writing. Starting next week, I am releasing, instead, one more letter a month just for paid subscribers like you.
Postscript: On cultural capitalism and talent
How to become someone chosen?
‘What If I’m Just Missing…Talent?’
You are missing something, but it's not what you think.
The Writing: When are you going to get a real job?
There was a point in time that I assumed that writing was just one job: to get the thoughts down and out. But as so many reader letters reflect here at The Reading, art is at least two jobs. The first is to resist; the second is to make.
The Writing: Antiracism and the classroom
My fundamental work in the classroom is building a new trust for my students, however it is they have lost trust in their own power.
The Writing: Some examples of unproductive writing spaces
Last week, I wrote on the importance of unproductive writing spaces and some initiatives I’ve started to make them. I also asked readers to contribute their own examples of gathering with other writers.
The Writing: The price of admission
Almost two weeks ago, I posted a question on social media for Asian American writers: “What do you really, really wish was available to you that would help you as a person and writer?”
The Writing: If The Reading were a book…
I’ve tried many possible forms—a memoir, a how-to book, and even fiction. But every iteration so far has felt hollow in its delivery.
Postscript: In search of ‘a completely original moment’
I felt alienated from my existence in the world. I wanted to feel as though I was still in it.
‘Someone Else Published My Idea. Now What?’
This situation reflects your hopes and fears.
The Writing: On designing a writing life
There’s a distinction between the years in which you are figuring out what it means to pursue writing professionally and the years when you actually start navigating it.
The Writing: Making the work visible
The moment I feel momentum in a project, all I want to do is regiment the number of words I will add in a day and stack them in a timeline until I know the exact day I will reach my goal. I want to know the future. And you probably know how that ends.
The Writing: Is this the beginning of a new book?
Perhaps third time's the charm.
The Writing: A reflection on leaving social media
At the beginning of 2021, I decided to leave social media, following some close intimates of mine and watching, of course, The Social Dilemma. A few of you have written me to ask how it’s been. I’ve been thinking about it too, as recently I’ve decided to
Postscript: A prompt for paying attention
One image a day.
‘How Do You Write About Joy?’
It’s about finding presence enough to be here.
The Writing: How did your summer writing go?
Back in May, I did a check-in with myself on my yearly intentions and set some goals for summer. I also asked about yours.
The Writing: Between seasons
Living in the end and a secret announcement.
The Writing: On writing where you are
[W]hat happens when one’s emergency impulse is made the attitude toward life? It involves transfiguring places from what they are into what I want them to solve.
The Writing: Vacation mode
Hello, I am on vacation! The Writing will return next week. In the meantime, here are two threads I have noted in the recent past on getting a writing education outside of an MFA. Meant for poets but useful for all.
The Writing: On finding one’s own measures (Part 2)
On Sunday I began a postscript detailing my most vivid memories of emerging in my career thus far. It turned out to be larger than a postscript. Here’s the next leg of the journey, on my first fellowship and my first book. My first fellowship. The same year I
Postscript: On finding one’s own measures (Part 1)
Letter: ‘What’s an “Emerging” Writer and How Do I Become One?’ There are, obviously, milestones that signal to others that one has “made it” as a writer. There are also, less obviously, the milestones that signal to oneself that there is permission to continue. This is the strange journey
‘What’s an “Emerging” Writer and How Do I Become One?’
Welcome back to The Reading, radical empathy for writers with Yanyi. Last month, paid subscribers received the following: The postscript to today’s letter: On finding one’s own measures (Part 1 – My first acceptance and my first writing group)Private access to the inaugural writers’ cafe, Writing Space (more
The Writing: On writing spaces
Once upon a time I had a strong impulse to throw parties and arrange meetings. There was something in the air for me around bringing people together. I had many reasons: the thrill of the crowd; the mystery of strangers coming together; the desire to buy the flowers myself. But
The Writing: Writing together this month
Postscript: A little more on the jurying process
Letter: ‘Will This Rejection Discourage Me Forever?’ Jurying is a serious matter and I’ve never seen it taken in another way. Most jurists are themselves artists and know the vulnerability of putting our hats in the ring. We also know the value of what it means to get this
‘Will This Rejection Discourage Me Forever?’
Welcome back to The Reading. Last month and this month, paid subscribers received and will receive the following: The postscript to June’s letter: A monthly wellness prompt for the quality of your lifeThe postscript to today’s letter: A little more on the jurying processThe Writing: What does it
Changes to The Writing (and how to write vulnerably, part 3)
The Writing: How do you write vulnerably? (Part 2)
The Writing: How do you write vulnerably? (Part 1)
Three breakpoints during The Year of Blue Water. Part 1 of 3.
The Writing: What does it mean to grow an audience?
Postscript: ‘I’m Afraid I’m Not Going to Get Anywhere.’
A monthly wellness prompt for the quality of your life.
‘I’m Afraid I’m Not Going to Get Anywhere.’
You've been taught to work harder when you need to work differently.
The Writing: What’s your relationship to reading (as a writer)?
The Writing: How do you know when to rest?
Newsletters by Writers of Color
Writer of color and have a newsletter to share? Add yours to this list.
The Writing: What are you working on this summer?
Newsletters by Queer and Trans Writers
Queer/trans and have a newsletter to share? Submit yours to this form.
The Writing: What techniques have you found to write long works effectively?
The Writing: How do you write on top of everything else?
Postscript: ‘How Do I Write Without Being Pigeonholed?’
On writing what’s “expected.”
‘How Do I Write Without Being Pigeonholed?’
You have control but not in the way you believe.
Five Questions with Suchandrika Chakrabarti
The Writing: Ask me anything about email newsletters.
The Writing: Do you like writing with prompts and/or commissions? What are the pros and cons?
The Writing: How have you, and do you, cope with creative rejection?
Postscript: ‘My Brain Fog Won’t Let Me Write!’
A secret about craft.
‘My Brain Fog Won’t Let Me Write!’
This is a case of a change in heart.
The Freedom of Hate
Why I'm leaving Substack on Trans Day of Visibility.
Contemporary Queer and Trans Asian American Poetry (S21)
Readings and events for Contemporary Queer and Trans Asian American Poetry, Spring 2021 at Dartmouth College.
Five Questions with Yasmin Adele Majeed
and a temporary hold on subscriptions.
The Writing: What writing unproductively means
On the Atlanta shootings.
The Writing: Do you feel pressure to make a certain kind of art? What has this changed for your art practice? What has stayed the same?
Postscript: ‘What Is a Writing Community, Anyway?’
Also known as: giving others the opportunity to support you.
‘What Is a Writing Community, Anyway?’
It's a simple matter of kindness, generosity, and surprise.
The Writing: What do you think about these changes to The Reading?
Five Questions with Devin Kate Pope
The Writing: How do you assess the quality of your work?
The Writing: What is your happiest writing memory?
Five Questions with Samantha Cheh
The Writing: How do you know when a book is finished?
It's a process of getting to know your own work.
‘Is Choosing to Stick to “Westernized” Tropes Also a Form of Freedom?’
It’s not a simple choice.
Postscript: ‘Is Choosing to Stick to “Westernized” Tropes Also a Form of Freedom?’
On Layli Long Soldier and writing imperfect language
The Writing: How do you approach the second (or third, or fourth) draft?
Five Questions with Chelsea Biondolillo
Postscript: ‘I Have a Big Pile of Writing. Now What?’
‘I Have a Big Pile of Writing. Now What?’
It’s time to explore your own archive.
The Writing: How do you make your living while writing now? And ideally?
Postscript: ‘Can I Quit My Day Job?’
‘Can I Quit My Day Job?’
Or, a metaphor for revision.
The Writing: What's a book you love that you wish had wider recognition? Why?
Hi all, let’s not ignore the obvious: you’re receiving this newsletter during the commencement of the US inauguration for Joe Biden...
Five Questions with Melissa Fu
Postscript: ‘My Two Books Failed, But I Don’t Know How to Move On.’
Facing it—a grief exercise
‘My Two Books Failed, But I Don’t Know How to Move On.’
Consider the ways that you count them.
The Writing: What do you wish you knew about getting an agent? ( + five questions)
Postscript: ‘How Do I Rediscover the Joy of Writing?’
‘How Do I Rediscover the Joy of Writing?’
It helps to fail on purpose.
A Note on Social Media
I am taking an indefinite hiatus from social media, namely Twitter and Instagram. If you’d like to follow my work or know what I’m doing on a regular basis, you can subscribe to The Reading or contact me via my website. Otherwise, you probably know me personally, and
The Writing: How are you? What are your creative intentions for the new year?
Touch: A Posture
On poetry and changing worlds.
It's Not the End of the World
Beginning in winter: a letter to your future and The Reading in 2021.
2020 in Letters: The Reading in Review
An index of letters and discussions from 2020.
The Writing: What's your favorite letter from The Reading in 2020?
Hi everyone, My hope is that The Reading has touched your life in some way. The support and love you’ve shown me, both here and in the (online) world, has reminded me that even small weekly letters can assuage the lonely difficulties we encounter as writers, sometimes even change
‘Is There a Way to Read With Love?’
Author’s note: Hello to those new here at The Reading. Today, in celebration of your arrival, the one-month anniversary of paid subscriptions, and the last reader letter of 2020**, the enhanced features of The Reading, usually part of the paid tier, are being sent out to all this week.
The Writing: What book do you gift the most? (+ some craft book recommendations)
‘Is My Friend Taking Advantage of My Edits?’
You’re working too hard for the bare minimum.
Postscript: ‘Is My Friend Taking Advantage of My Edits?’
The Writing: Have you ever switched genres? Do you write in more than one?
Postscript: ‘How Do I Overcome My Inner Critic?’
‘How Do I Overcome My Inner Critic?’
It’s better to change than to improve.
The Writing: What's inspiring you lately? (+ help me decide on something new!)
Postscript: ‘Where Do I Find Inspiration?’
‘Where Do I Find Inspiration?’
Originality comes from origins.
The Writing: What piece are you most proud of? And ask me anything!
‘I Think I’m a Writer, But What Kind Am I?’
Certainty comes from mistakes.
‘Where Do We Go From Here?’
Some advice and an update about The Reading.
The Writing: What's your favorite revision technique?
Hi everyone, Today’s The Writing will be the last one to run for everyone. I originally started this series as an opportunity to discuss practical concerns and questions about the writing industry and writing practices. Since then, I’ve had the opportunity of getting to know so many of
‘Am I Allowed Writing Resources If I Don’t Belong?’
Hi everyone, I finished this letter earlier yesterday right when AP called the US presidential election for Joe Biden. I write to you with a sense of renewed determination for what is still possible and what the future might hold. Today’s letter is one I’ve been sitting on
The Writing: What do you do in the face of uncertainty?
Hi everyone, In the past few months, I’ve been working on an essay on close-reading and uncertainty in poetry. In the question of hateful ideologies and their transforming aesthetics, I ask Who can afford to be uncertain? Who will die if we’re wrong? There’s the kind of
‘How Can I Work, Write, and Be Part of a Family?’
Hi there, Most of us think of writing as a solitary pursuit. But today’s letter reminded me of what there is to be lost when we write without each other. The Reading started in empty classrooms and dark bars; it started on those afternoons and nights not writing, but
The Writing: What are your completion rituals?
Hi everyone, Teaching this year has given me the gift and insight of how pivotal writing communities are for the uncertainty of our lives. The Writing is not going anywhere, but it is going to be smaller: a place for those of you who most want conversation and community wherever
‘Why Can’t I Do My Edits?’
Hi everyone, I’m so grateful to each of you who have written, shared, and signed up for paid subscriptions since last weekend. Thank you to each letter writer, whose questions help me clarify my own positions on what it means to write. I had no idea that I had
The Writing: Do you have a writing playlist? If so, what do you listen to?
This Sunday, I announced the pre-launch for paid subscriptions of The Reading. My dream for The Writing is to bring community, conversation, and direct access to practical answers on what it means to be a writer today sustainably. I’m incredibly excited to expand this resource with you. After November
‘I’m Tired of Working So Hard for So Little.’
Hi there. This week, I’m kicking off “pre-orders” for paid subscriptions to The Reading. The experience you’re getting now is what you’ll continue to receive in a subscription after November 15: a Sunday letter, its audio format, and Wednesdays’ The Writing. As ever, Sunday’s letter will
The Writing: How do you write when you have "nothing to say?"
Hi everyone, For those of you outside the US, the next thirty days in the US are going to be particularly harrowing. So this week’s question is all about hope: What strategies do you use when you have “nothing to say?” As usual, I’ll be here for 45
‘Am I Too Old to Emerge?’
Author’s note: Since I started The Reading this summer, I’ve had the joy of giving away the help I wish I had had when I first started writing. Next month, I’m going to start offering subscriptions. Your support would help me stay independent for all that I
The Writing: What tools or apps have radically changed (or enhanced!) your writing practice?
Hi everyone, I’ve found that part of the interest with writers’ writing processes will land, too, on the ways that we are able to write, revise, and read depending on our technology of the day. So I thought it’d be fun to hear from everyone. In the spirit
‘I’m Successful, But I Feel Like a Fraud.’
Your power is uncertainty.
The Writing: What's the most important thing you took away from doing (or not doing) an MFA?
Hi everyone, As mentioned on Sunday, if you’d like to answer one question to help me nail down my next offerings or be on the pilot list for them, please do! The survey should work properly this time. :) To end this series on the MFA (#1, #2, #3, #4,
‘When Will I Know That I’m Good Enough?’
Goodness is a pyramid scheme.
The Writing: Should I Get an MFA...if I want a writing community?
Today, I’ll be reading live at The Brooklyn Rail at 13:00 EST (e.g. right after this). Continuing the MFA series (#1, #2, #3, #4), this week’s question: Should I Get an MFA...if I want a writing community? Answer below. As usual, I’ll be here
‘How Do I Feel Less Lonely?’
Loneliness is a condition of being your only original.
The Writing: How do you negotiate the workshop gaze?
Hi everyone, This week’s question continues the MFA series (#1, #2, #3) and is inspired by a response by JinJin to the my first writing class thread on Twitter from a few weeks again. How do you negotiate the workshop gaze? This question speaks specifically to the ways that
‘I Hate Hating When My Friend Gets Ahead of Me!’
Your power is precious. Do what responds to it.
The Writing: What's the best feedback you've ever received in a writing workshop? How do you give and receive it?
Hi everyone, Thanks for your patience as I missed my own deadline at noon today whilst sweatily unloading a moving trailer. I can proudly inform all of you that I own exactly 14 “small” boxes of books of equally heavy weight and they are all towering behind me in my
‘Is the Bird I Am Holding Living or Dead?’
Another kind of letter.
The Writing: Should I get an MFA if...I live in New York City?
The end of summer has finally reached me and I’m here a day earlier than usual because of my moving and new class schedule. Today, I’m continuing the MFA series. You can read the first installment here: Should I get an MFA if…I want structure around my
‘I Can’t Bring Myself to Write Anymore.’
Now is not a time to be alone.
The Writing: Should I get an MFA if...I want structure around my writing?
Today I’m kicking off a series of answers about and around getting MFAs. I tried to answer this week’s answer in one go and it ballooned into something longer than one of my Sunday letters (I hadn’t even finished). So, I’ll be answering this question in
‘Do I Have to Be Out as a Writer?’
You're trapped in a mirrored closet. Close your eyes.
The Writing: What do you wish you had learned in your first writing class?
The school year’s getting started and I’m busy culling together a syllabus for my introduction to creative writing class at NYU. I took this question to Twitter earlier this month and was inspired by all the answers (and tips!) others gave. What about you? What do you wish
‘How Do I Get Through My MFA Program?’
Not everyone earns the honor of reading your work.
The Writing: How are you writing (or not) this year? How are you?
Last Saturday, my partner and I listened again to our Chani Nicholas horoscopes for 2020. Little did we know in January 2020 what would be in store for us this year. Thanks to Johanna for today’s question: How are you writing (or not) this year? How are you? I’
‘Can My Novel Include a Country’s Stereotype Responsibly?’
Brazil needs you, but not in the way you think.
Beginning The Writing
A new series for talk, craft, and teaching each other.
'I Wrote My First Draft. Where’s the Second?'
Write not from what you’ve learned, but what you remember.
'Money Seems More Real Than My Art.'
Free yourself from the roles you've been given.
'I Can't Write Through Chaos!'
Step back from your codependence with the world.
'How Do I Write About My Identity Authentically?'
You think you have to write what you know. Don't.
'I Can't Build a Daily Habit!'
Art is a garden, not an operation.
Happy Pride(!) in the Time of Coronavirus
Here comes a creative advice column.
