Congrats Bowen. I felt the same way in terms of celebrating a milestone. It's an arbitrary number from a statistical POV, yet it feels important nevertheless.
I didn't feel comfortable with a big announcement, but I did post a Note thanking readers, writers, and Sarah.
But you captured the most important thing in this post. There IS a correlation between more compelling writing and personal growth and a correlation between compelling writing/personal growth and more people wanting to read what you write.
I'd love to do a zoom to chat with you about whatever.
the most important thing! thanks David. It took me like four rewrites, but I ended up with something that felt meaningful to me. Not coincidentally, I was feeling kinda low the past several days, and then... much lighter, and more energized as I got to the final version of this. I appreciate your invitation to connect directly; been meaning to do that. Email inbound. Cheers!
this post! TBD on An Ordinary Disaster but most of the chapters have been through one or two rewrites already, and I'm soon to embark on a major edit/rewrite of the book as a whole.
Wow. That was all the tricks bundled up into one essay post. Every few sentences I’d get Shazamed with a new and cute ask and then some more fun content. Boom shakalaka. Growth 💪🏻
Hey BoBo 👋🏻 I discovered Substack through Chris Ryan and you through him. I haven’t read all your writing, but what I have, I mostly enjoyed. I’ll be honest-I’m really not into the touchy feely mens group stuff. Having lost my mother at age twelve and having an absentee alcoholic father, there’s been a lot of-suck it buttercup in my life. Having two of my own children and now two grandsons, Al and Ernie (I’ll bet Al and Ernie could kick the shit out of Brayden and Devon) (George Carlin is my god) I know how important it is to have stable involved role models and how easy it is to fuckup a child. What I learned about myself attempting to write-something I should have known by now-is that I’m a starter, not a finisher. I get bored easily. I write in my head and make notes but I really don’t enjoy the physical aspect of writing. I don’t have to for money, so I take the path of least resistance. My main focus on Substack is politics, geopolitics, sexuality, health and fitness. That’s where all my reading energy is spent and in the future, my financial support. I wouldn’t dare leave now and break your 1000 subscriber milestone. An ordinary disaster-interestingly, the title of my memoir was or may someday be-An ordinary life with Extra graphically added to ordinary or An extraordinary life with Extra crossed out. Regarding Van life-I bought my first house at 21, so I thought, why the fuck would I want to sleep in a van or tent. Well I have a Mitsubishi Delica on order from Japan that I plan to explore in. And my latest endeavour-today on my property I stared down a nice size buck at ten yards but didn’t have a clean shot with my crossbow. Extraordinary!
Good to see you here, ya Madd Ladd! A Delica, wow, that is a collectors' item—or at least, a van aficionado's lust object. I was hanging with two new friends over the weekend and we all agreed that life is just better once you go van. Turn the key and go! Well done.
As for the touchy feely stuff—yeah, I hear ya. It's a little bit of a dilemma b/c that is how 'mens work' or groups often get stereotyped, in part rightly so because a lot of men do want and need help with getting more comfortable expressing their emotions. That said, a constant stream of emotional over-sharing isn't interesting either. The fact is though that mens groups aren't just about getting all touchy-feely, and I know a lot of bad ass Al and Ernie's that have learned a lot and made a lot of lifelong friends in mens groups. It's another tool in the toolbox. These days I don't personally participate in any such groups on any regular basis (the writing group that I lead is not about "mens work"—it's a group of male writers) but I do use what I've learned from all sorts of groups all the time. Not trying to convince you in any way, but for a lotta guys out there, a mens group of one sort or another is a big opener.
Huge congratulations Bowen!! Feeling the warmth, genuineness, humility, and enthusiasm in your writing has made for the most delightful end to my week--thank you for sharing your gift, for inspiring me, and for bringing great people together.
I do want to know what a bear-can diet is. :) I looovee the title for your book. And I like the idea of exercising between paragraphs--I think that will help me a good deal.
Thank you Anubha, I appreciate you being here—and in person, as well. So glad you love the title! And... yes, the bear-can diet. An exercise in minimalism, quite literally. Something else to write about.
Bowen this is wonderful news, one thousand subscribers is a huge accomplishment! Well done buddy. There is a lot to unpack in this post, all the links you shared will keep me reading for a while so thank you.
I love how you define growth. As I was reading it I felt like you were writing the words that were in my head. It's great how there are so many like minded folks here on Substack.
Answering question 8: As far as the writing groups go would you say the biggest benefit was the accountability to stay committed and go deeper in your writing?
Q9: Yes, I love the title An Ordinary Disaster
I look forward to talking soon and will touch base as soon as I can.
I so appreciate your camaraderie Donna. Always thoughtful and supportive 🙏🏻
Stoked you like the title!
As for #8 -- that's a great question and one that I will make a note of to answer in more detail -- but the short answer is that overall the biggest benefits have been 1) meeting and being in direct connection with other writers—feeling part of it, y'know? 2) (if the group does this, some don't) having the opportunity to read my own work aloud, hear what it sounds like and feel how it is received by others and 3) accountability, commitment, and deadlines. All perhaps equally valuable.
I think you’re so right that our current metric-focused ecosystem of content is something we have to overcome to have authentic expression. Now everyone with something to offer — from restaurants to college professors to beauty shops and dentists— is vey concerned about ratings and that’s governing how we work. It drives the process.
yeah... overcome, embrace, integrate? I mean, it's not going away, so how to learn to live with, well, at least some of these numbers while not letting _them_ drive *us*? Part of it, for me, is refusing to participate in the linguistic shifts that allow, for example, "growth" to become diluted and distorted to mean audience growth, or for "content" to become somehow ok as a pseudo-synonym for art. no!
Epic milestone, of course this demands to be celebrated.
I was surprised to see this blog and deeply appreciate it. The reason of writing is indeed for growth and support. How often do we think that we are alone in our experience until it is shared. For me this started as a practice to find comfort in sharing the crazy journeys that I have been going through myself and processing at the same time. Never expected to reach people like this. It's a beautiful platform to connect, Substack.
Keep on writing! And I wish all the best for the future ahead and with your book. Blessings brother ;)
Congrats on 1,000 man. Epic. I love your honest take on growth. I think most of us are thoroughly human in this arena: Of course we want growth, both in terms of our art and also subscribers. I admit it openly! There’s nothing wrong with that. Most writers yearn to be seen, known, read. Perhaps I need to do a post on this.
Thanks my friend, I've really appreciated your camaraderie this past year, and I'm stoked we both got the same milestone within a short time of each other. I'm reminded of how Miller would send letters of solicitation to his fans and collectors, asking for money, clothes, food, donations, sponsorships, etc. No shame—and there isn't any!
Aww thank you so much Caitlin -- and for your take on the title for my book, and your interest in learning more about writing groups and the classes that have been useful for me. Lmk if you have any specific questions, so I can be sure to address those.
If you enjoy memoir, check out my Fifty Favorite Memoirs -- so much good reading in here →
Congrats Bowen. I felt the same way in terms of celebrating a milestone. It's an arbitrary number from a statistical POV, yet it feels important nevertheless.
I didn't feel comfortable with a big announcement, but I did post a Note thanking readers, writers, and Sarah.
But you captured the most important thing in this post. There IS a correlation between more compelling writing and personal growth and a correlation between compelling writing/personal growth and more people wanting to read what you write.
I'd love to do a zoom to chat with you about whatever.
Email me at robertsdavidn@gmail.com if you're of the same mind.
the most important thing! thanks David. It took me like four rewrites, but I ended up with something that felt meaningful to me. Not coincidentally, I was feeling kinda low the past several days, and then... much lighter, and more energized as I got to the final version of this. I appreciate your invitation to connect directly; been meaning to do that. Email inbound. Cheers!
This post took four rewrites or An Ord. Disas.?
this post! TBD on An Ordinary Disaster but most of the chapters have been through one or two rewrites already, and I'm soon to embark on a major edit/rewrite of the book as a whole.
Yes!!
Wow. That was all the tricks bundled up into one essay post. Every few sentences I’d get Shazamed with a new and cute ask and then some more fun content. Boom shakalaka. Growth 💪🏻
I couldn't help it. thanks Dee!
Hey BoBo 👋🏻 I discovered Substack through Chris Ryan and you through him. I haven’t read all your writing, but what I have, I mostly enjoyed. I’ll be honest-I’m really not into the touchy feely mens group stuff. Having lost my mother at age twelve and having an absentee alcoholic father, there’s been a lot of-suck it buttercup in my life. Having two of my own children and now two grandsons, Al and Ernie (I’ll bet Al and Ernie could kick the shit out of Brayden and Devon) (George Carlin is my god) I know how important it is to have stable involved role models and how easy it is to fuckup a child. What I learned about myself attempting to write-something I should have known by now-is that I’m a starter, not a finisher. I get bored easily. I write in my head and make notes but I really don’t enjoy the physical aspect of writing. I don’t have to for money, so I take the path of least resistance. My main focus on Substack is politics, geopolitics, sexuality, health and fitness. That’s where all my reading energy is spent and in the future, my financial support. I wouldn’t dare leave now and break your 1000 subscriber milestone. An ordinary disaster-interestingly, the title of my memoir was or may someday be-An ordinary life with Extra graphically added to ordinary or An extraordinary life with Extra crossed out. Regarding Van life-I bought my first house at 21, so I thought, why the fuck would I want to sleep in a van or tent. Well I have a Mitsubishi Delica on order from Japan that I plan to explore in. And my latest endeavour-today on my property I stared down a nice size buck at ten yards but didn’t have a clean shot with my crossbow. Extraordinary!
Good to see you here, ya Madd Ladd! A Delica, wow, that is a collectors' item—or at least, a van aficionado's lust object. I was hanging with two new friends over the weekend and we all agreed that life is just better once you go van. Turn the key and go! Well done.
As for the touchy feely stuff—yeah, I hear ya. It's a little bit of a dilemma b/c that is how 'mens work' or groups often get stereotyped, in part rightly so because a lot of men do want and need help with getting more comfortable expressing their emotions. That said, a constant stream of emotional over-sharing isn't interesting either. The fact is though that mens groups aren't just about getting all touchy-feely, and I know a lot of bad ass Al and Ernie's that have learned a lot and made a lot of lifelong friends in mens groups. It's another tool in the toolbox. These days I don't personally participate in any such groups on any regular basis (the writing group that I lead is not about "mens work"—it's a group of male writers) but I do use what I've learned from all sorts of groups all the time. Not trying to convince you in any way, but for a lotta guys out there, a mens group of one sort or another is a big opener.
Cheers John.
Huge congratulations Bowen!! Feeling the warmth, genuineness, humility, and enthusiasm in your writing has made for the most delightful end to my week--thank you for sharing your gift, for inspiring me, and for bringing great people together.
I do want to know what a bear-can diet is. :) I looovee the title for your book. And I like the idea of exercising between paragraphs--I think that will help me a good deal.
Thank you Anubha, I appreciate you being here—and in person, as well. So glad you love the title! And... yes, the bear-can diet. An exercise in minimalism, quite literally. Something else to write about.
🔥🔥🔥👍
Bowen this is wonderful news, one thousand subscribers is a huge accomplishment! Well done buddy. There is a lot to unpack in this post, all the links you shared will keep me reading for a while so thank you.
I love how you define growth. As I was reading it I felt like you were writing the words that were in my head. It's great how there are so many like minded folks here on Substack.
Answering question 8: As far as the writing groups go would you say the biggest benefit was the accountability to stay committed and go deeper in your writing?
Q9: Yes, I love the title An Ordinary Disaster
I look forward to talking soon and will touch base as soon as I can.
I so appreciate your camaraderie Donna. Always thoughtful and supportive 🙏🏻
Stoked you like the title!
As for #8 -- that's a great question and one that I will make a note of to answer in more detail -- but the short answer is that overall the biggest benefits have been 1) meeting and being in direct connection with other writers—feeling part of it, y'know? 2) (if the group does this, some don't) having the opportunity to read my own work aloud, hear what it sounds like and feel how it is received by others and 3) accountability, commitment, and deadlines. All perhaps equally valuable.
Same, cheers Donna!
👍👍🔥
Thanks for the kind mention Bowen! Big fan of everything you write as well. The admiration is mutual : )
Nice to hear that Scott, cheers :)
Congratulations, Bowen! And thanks for the roundup of writers to check out.
Thank you Nolan, I appreciate your camaraderie! And—I love a good list.
Congrats! I can tell you've been putting in the hours.
Thank you -- I'm glad it shows!
This is the first post that I have received as a subscriber. Yeah, I like to imagine that I was the 1000th subscriber.
Thanks Lynn, that's so cool! You were #1004 but that's... even better?? so glad you're here.
Congratulations!! And excited for our upcoming meetup. Bay Area writers, I hope you’ll join us :)
totally! Dec 6! sign up here → https://lu.ma/l08hen0k
Woot!!
I think you’re so right that our current metric-focused ecosystem of content is something we have to overcome to have authentic expression. Now everyone with something to offer — from restaurants to college professors to beauty shops and dentists— is vey concerned about ratings and that’s governing how we work. It drives the process.
yeah... overcome, embrace, integrate? I mean, it's not going away, so how to learn to live with, well, at least some of these numbers while not letting _them_ drive *us*? Part of it, for me, is refusing to participate in the linguistic shifts that allow, for example, "growth" to become diluted and distorted to mean audience growth, or for "content" to become somehow ok as a pseudo-synonym for art. no!
Congratulations Bowen!
Epic milestone, of course this demands to be celebrated.
I was surprised to see this blog and deeply appreciate it. The reason of writing is indeed for growth and support. How often do we think that we are alone in our experience until it is shared. For me this started as a practice to find comfort in sharing the crazy journeys that I have been going through myself and processing at the same time. Never expected to reach people like this. It's a beautiful platform to connect, Substack.
Keep on writing! And I wish all the best for the future ahead and with your book. Blessings brother ;)
Thank you! Same here—that practice in getting comfortable sharing the journey... I appreciate you being here, and your enthusiastic support!
Congrats on 1,000 man. Epic. I love your honest take on growth. I think most of us are thoroughly human in this arena: Of course we want growth, both in terms of our art and also subscribers. I admit it openly! There’s nothing wrong with that. Most writers yearn to be seen, known, read. Perhaps I need to do a post on this.
Michael Mohr
Sincere American Writing
https://michaelmohr.substack.com/
Thanks my friend, I've really appreciated your camaraderie this past year, and I'm stoked we both got the same milestone within a short time of each other. I'm reminded of how Miller would send letters of solicitation to his fans and collectors, asking for money, clothes, food, donations, sponsorships, etc. No shame—and there isn't any!
Write on DWELLE! Write on. Love it. Keep Going. Love you. Love your writing. Inspirational and aspirational.
Is it called 'metamoir' when you write a short memoir-related piece about a bigger chunk of memoirs? 🤔😉
Aww thank you so much Caitlin -- and for your take on the title for my book, and your interest in learning more about writing groups and the classes that have been useful for me. Lmk if you have any specific questions, so I can be sure to address those.
If you enjoy memoir, check out my Fifty Favorite Memoirs -- so much good reading in here →
https://open.substack.com/pub/bowendwelle/p/43-favorite-memoirs-youve-never-heard
Welcome 🙏