I Pay For It

Content, you filthy animals

My newsletter here is free and probably always will be. That’s because it comes out only once a month and it serves primarily to promote my work, however indirectly. But while we’re dealing with the sordid topic of coin, how about a preorder? I don’t know about you, but I think we’re all going to need some escapist fare in 2025.

My book, she is so beautiful.

I’ve been in a big transitional phase, financially. After two decades of having my finances conjoined, I started flying solo in 2024. New accountant. New accounting software. Too many trips to the notary to count. I pay attention to what I pay for, and why.¹ So I’ve been going through my Substack/Patreon subscriptions and making hard decisions. I currently have 37 paid Substack subscriptions.² Over at Patreon, it’s only 10, but they’re almost all bangers. My Substack subscriptions tend to focus on the craft of writing and being an old/middle-aged/divorced woman. At Patreon, it’s almost all podcasts, pretty well-known ones, so I’m not sure they need my endorsement.³

But here’s a smattering of Substack recommendations that I think are worth paying for. I’ve tried to focus on the more obscure choices among my subscriptions — does anyone really need me to recommend Culture Study or Men Yell at Me — but I included a few big accounts. And one free one that you shouldn’t sleep on. By the way, some of the paid ones offer partially free content, which is how I got hooked on them. Smart!

Austin Kleon: This relentlessly cheerful, thoughtful newsletter makes me feel like such a slacker. This is my shameless bid to be interviewed in his typewriter series. (Kleon was kind enough to give me advice on how to find ribbons for my growing family of typewriters, four and counting.)

Burnt Toast: A rousing success that doesn’t need my endorsement, but it’s such a great community.

David Lebovitz’s Newsletter: I stumbled on this one via Michael Ruhlman. Lebovitz is a baker/cookbook author who lives in Paris. It’s like fan fiction for me. I’ve yet to try a single one of his recipes, but I love reading about his life and his work. I still think about a sandwich he made during the Olympics.

Copyright David Lebovitz

How Not to F*ck Up Your Face: Probably the Substack I recommend most often, especially after a friend tells me about the latest strange implement/cream/serum she has bought for significant bucks.

Oldster Magazine: I loved it even before Sari Botton started publishing my weird little personal essays.

The Present Age: I don’t know how I found my way to Parker Molloy’s Substack, but I am in awe of its consistency.

Really Good Vintage: As someone who’s trying to avoid impulse purchases, I should let go of this one, but — I just can’t. Really informative if you want to learn more about fashion. Also I’ll never regret the knit skirt I bought because it was linked here.

Release McCracken: (free)! Trust me, you’ll want to read Elizabeth McCracken’s dispatches about her morning swims.

Roy Edroso Breaks it Down: IIRC, I began reading this newsletter because I became aware of the fact that a) Edroso had just moved to Baltimore and b) he has some sort of connection to the late Terry Teachout, someone I adored. The kind of Substack I really admire, five days a week, with set features. A big comfort read since the election.

The Spread: Absolutely delivers on its promise to be the women’s magazine of your dreams.

Again, this is just a sampling. (See, “subscribes to 37 Substacks” above.) I have no idea where this strange, scary world is headed, but as long as I can afford it, I’m going to support the creators who provide me solace, wisdom, escape, and comfort in these difficult times.⁴

Some people live for sweater weather, I live for sweater dress weather

Read/Reading: We Were Once a Family, Roxanna Asgarian; The Sequel, Jean Hanff Korelitz; Colored Television, Danzy Senna; The Fourth Girl*, Wendy Corsi Staub; Kill Your Darlings*, Peter Swanson; The Wedding People, Alison Espach (audio); Hidden Valley Road, Robert Kolker (audio). *denotes advance copies of books to be published in 2025.

Rereading: Betsy’s Wedding, Maud Hart Lovelace. Various works by Bill Bryson (audio).⁵

Me, me, me: I (well, Tess) was a clue in the Washington Post crossword puzzle in November. Also, I’m now hanging out at Bluesky, visit me there.

1. It has been pointed out to me that I was a “financial dilettante” for a long time. I was. I had the good sense to enjoy it.

2. Way too many and some are on the bubble. Personal pet peeve. Don’t charge for content and then fail to provide content.

3. But in case you’re curious, they include: If Books Could Kill, Every Outfit, Maintenance Phase, You Are Good, You Must Remember This, and You’re Wrong About.

4. I’ve also decided that at this point in life, I’ll buy books whenever I can and then just donate them immediately. Yes, in 2025 the Mystery Box is coming back, bigger and better than ever. Well, better.

5. I’ve listened to several of Bryson’s books multiple times and I now use the audiobooks as my “white noise” when I have insomnia. I turn the volume way down low, but I still manage to pick up some interesting facts before drifting off again. Really enjoyed the section about Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell in At Home.