This is a copy of a newsletter I sent in September. Although I’ve dabbled with blogs over the years, this is the first time I’ve tried a newsletter format. Writing this felt more like I was writing to friends rather than The Void. Now I’m experimenting with posting the newsletter on my blog but giving subscribers a little extra. As I mention below, it’s all a work in progress and there’s no such thing as “the one right way” to do this, especially since I’m doing it primarily for fun.
Note that the link and photo I refer to in the essay is available only to subscribers. You can sign up via the pop-up in the lower right corner of your screen.
Hey there!
Welcome to my very first newsletter ever! I agonized for way too long on what to put in a newsletter and how often to send one. Searching on the internet didn’t help much because the internet feels like one big chorus of “ur doin it rong.” It doesn’t matter what the context is, you’re always doing something wrong on the internet (and if you’re unlucky enough to do it on Twitter, people will let you know immediately).
So for no particular reason except it seems like a good idea right now, I’ll send you a newsletter once a month sharing an essay (ugh, that sounds so formal–let’s call it “something I’m thinking about” instead), a fun or interesting link, and a random pic just because. Naturally, this is all subject to change because I consider this newsletter a perpetual work-in-progress.
Do I know what I’m doing? Hell no, but I’ve found the best way to learn how to do something is to do it and be willing to suck for a (long) while. In this age of carefully crafted online personas, it’s easy to forget that we only see the finished products that people choose to display, not the messy, failure-filled path it took to get there.
Thanks for being my guinea pigs as I navigate this latest experiment. If you’ve been waiting to start something until you feel ready, don’t wait–you’ll never feel ready. Dive in!
Grace Wen 