Substack Posts I’ve Loved Lately (Vol.8)
Arrival, mental health, fertility and more: 10 articles worth reading!
While I’m waiting for a bit more peace of mind to come back to me and to feel able to write more of my own words again, I’ve been enjoying reading — still not as much as usual — but some really inspiring writing.
There are so many thoughtful pieces below for you to get your teeth into, even when you might not feel like reading much. . .
10 articles you might like
By Tobi Ogunnaike of
Tobi delves into what his sabbatical really means to him, is teaching him at the moment, and some of the things he still has to figure out. For me, I really enjoyed how introspective this was — less about the actual travel experiences. The metaphors he uses are wonderful and the fleeting mentions of other people’s stories. Just, great writing.
He also inspired me a while ago to evolve these round-ups and it was definitely the right move, so thank you, Tobi, if you’re reading.
By Kelley Orcutt of
One of the biggest lessons of life that I love hearing people illustrate, and articulate often in much better ways than I can — there is no arrival. Kelley’s version is lovely.
AND
A lovely reflection on a month break from her newsletter, the thoughts that come and go, and the intention to do what feels right. Loved it.
By Mari Andrew of
Mari takes you on a journey through her writing, exactly as she is describing — that you don’t always have to know your ‘thing’ or where your writing will go. Readers like your voice and exploring with you. It may sound simple, but it’s a beautiful piece, more eloquent and revelatory than I could describe to you.
My New Personal Assistant is Free & Available 24/7
By Hannah Anstee of
A more personal and extremely interesting take on ChatGPT that I wasn’t expecting. I haven’t seen many positive spins on the subject and this was an intriguing read.
By Rebecca Hanley of
Something I really resonated with — Rebecca’s piece reminded me that both external and internal validation are important.
By Kristina Kasparian — guest post on The Audacity. by Roxane Gay
This isn’t necessarily to my usual taste in reading here on Substack — but it is such a beautiful piece of storytelling about a fertility journey and about choices. This may be a sensitive one for you to read. Incredibly raw and full of feelings.
By Samantha Boardman of
This was an interesting read on mental health. It made me think of a quote I’ve seen somewhere that said something like ‘successful people experience anxiety etc. — the difference is that they know these things are normal’.
Notes on Living #44 - The Labels We Give Ourselves
By Alicia Kaye of
This piece was so good I couldn’t even fathom any words to comment on it as I usually would. Does that ever happen to anyone else? I’ll try and string together some words here. Alicia vulnerably describes a moment where she was gently ‘called out’ and takes us through how this contributed to her changing her mind about labeling herself. The piece is gentle, thoughtful and takes you on a journey — all wonderful aspects of Alicia’s writing.
Time management, productivity, and the commodification of your life
By Isabelle Drury of
Recommendation from Claire Venus of
I wasn’t sure whether I was in the mood for another read on productivity, but I’m so glad I went for it on Claire’s recommendation. Really relatable and well written. I also read another interesting post of Isabelle’s on friendship — generally, interesting thinking.
Thank you for supporting these round-up posts — I love curating them!
What has been your favourite thing you’ve read on Substack recently?
Thanks so much for the mention Jess! And I really really related to your last post "What to say when you have nothing to say." I think a lot of us are feeling this way at the moment - good for you for taking a break!
Thanks for the shoutout Jess!! And I'm glad you decided to continue with the roundups, I always find something new and unique in these