the first writing i encountered that felt so viscerally personal and writing at an emotional level that seemed to defy complete understand is k-ming chang's work. also in the fashion world, i think about yohji yamamoto (here's a short documentary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6asF53UqGd8)
beautiful piece as always! I've definitely noticed my internal monologue shift as I consume more poetry and artistic literature especially compared to my non-fiction Nassim Taleb / Malcolm Gladwell phase lol
Your point about freeing up more time to experiment with our art/writing/creativity without the pressures of professionalism or for economic advantages is apt. I find there's contradictory advice that can be found online and on Substack though.
While some of the advice talks about writing for a distinct audience and what they want and need, if you want to grow, I feel the other contradiction from advice from successful Substack writers is to write from the heart; or as you say, to "not to sell out your own mind."
Based on your observations, do you have any advice for writers who are trying to make a living on Substack but also trying to maintain authenticity in our artistry? Do you have any tips on how to write well, not just for the clicks, but for ourselves and our audiences too?
sorry this is late — and it’s such a hard question, when you’re looking both to make a living and make art.
one thing a friend told me that’s stayed with is that she does both things — poetry she writes for fellowships/grants/etc and poetry she writes for herself. allows her to stay practical, but keep them separate in her mind, so she can do her most authentic work too.
I don’t begrudge people who have to make occasional compromises sometimes because that’s how the world works, and once someone achieves more security or renown, it’s easier to be more radical
other times though, I say fuck it — writing what’s personal = writing what’s universal etc
I really like your last comment! Haha. Thank you for your candid honesty. Perhaps, just doing versus over thinking too much about it is the best way forward. Thank you jasmine!
This line is brilliant. “I write like the 12 dollar desk salad, the bar that packs 20 grams of protein and plastic into one 200-calorie brick.” It perfectly illustrates your point. And I clicked on your post in the app before any other today because I was curious to find out who is your audience of one. Great title.
A piece of music that shook me lately is dodie’s song “Burned Out”. It creeps in like mist but tugs your heart strings in vacuum suspension. It resonates with me a lot in face of graduation — what’s hidden underneath the flowers and applauses and smiles. https://open.spotify.com/track/2FhTvTUcbTRIxvNmdpjtbw?si=qUI2IdaURoSQ8jp-S-93PA
ahh thank you for sharing all this, so lovely! I have not read Bluets but it's very much on my list now, as are your other suggestions (have heard good things re: Olivia Laing's Lonely City, too)
+ 1 on Lonely City. Memoir / essay collections by women is one of my favourite sections of my bookshelf. I read widely but I do find myself gravitating to those voices. Your reflections on art & politics made me think about a recent piece Sarah Sentilles wrote for the latest issue of Wonderground (created by a friend, Georgina Reid) https://wonderground.press/. Always happy to share reading suggestions. The next tech book on my list is Jamie Susskind's new one.
last summer i went to the moma alone & saw the exhibit of cezanne in pencil & watercolor; there were a few sketches of fruit there that i still think about sometimes; a series of pears that can only be described as voluptuous; not necessarily sexual, but charged with some intense energy that i lack the language to describe; it was an "image that shimmered around the edges" in a literal sense, but also in the way didion's describing i think, too, something about the tenderness in pencil and brushstrokes, something about how they're at once gratuitous and sparse, something about desire and ambiguity and fullness, richness, vibrancy
one day I would like to reach the verbal facility to say exactly what i mean about this
I think you have excellent verbal facility 😌 also I think I am going to do MoMA again before leaving NYC since I only got halfway through last time, and I will look for the voluptuous pears
Really enjoyed this one. I'm reminded of this essay i think about often: https://ava.substack.com/p/you-like-books-and-think-they-are?s=r. If you haven't read it, I think you would appreciate it. Without spoiling it, it's about love that goes beyond pragmatism, efficiency, and leverage.
Thank you for sharing, as this is a topic I'm trying to mull through myself. In terms of not "selling out", it did remind me of this article that a friend shared recently: https://gurwinder.substack.com/p/the-perils-of-audience-capture
the first writing i encountered that felt so viscerally personal and writing at an emotional level that seemed to defy complete understand is k-ming chang's work. also in the fashion world, i think about yohji yamamoto (here's a short documentary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6asF53UqGd8)
beautiful piece as always! I've definitely noticed my internal monologue shift as I consume more poetry and artistic literature especially compared to my non-fiction Nassim Taleb / Malcolm Gladwell phase lol
i loved every moment of this and loved listening to this in your voice. thank you for these reminders, and so thoughtfully and elegantly composed
🥺 thank you!
Wow! Jasmine, what an inspirational read.
Your point about freeing up more time to experiment with our art/writing/creativity without the pressures of professionalism or for economic advantages is apt. I find there's contradictory advice that can be found online and on Substack though.
While some of the advice talks about writing for a distinct audience and what they want and need, if you want to grow, I feel the other contradiction from advice from successful Substack writers is to write from the heart; or as you say, to "not to sell out your own mind."
Based on your observations, do you have any advice for writers who are trying to make a living on Substack but also trying to maintain authenticity in our artistry? Do you have any tips on how to write well, not just for the clicks, but for ourselves and our audiences too?
sorry this is late — and it’s such a hard question, when you’re looking both to make a living and make art.
one thing a friend told me that’s stayed with is that she does both things — poetry she writes for fellowships/grants/etc and poetry she writes for herself. allows her to stay practical, but keep them separate in her mind, so she can do her most authentic work too.
I don’t begrudge people who have to make occasional compromises sometimes because that’s how the world works, and once someone achieves more security or renown, it’s easier to be more radical
other times though, I say fuck it — writing what’s personal = writing what’s universal etc
I really like your last comment! Haha. Thank you for your candid honesty. Perhaps, just doing versus over thinking too much about it is the best way forward. Thank you jasmine!
love this :)
This is all so brilliantly stated. 💚
This line is brilliant. “I write like the 12 dollar desk salad, the bar that packs 20 grams of protein and plastic into one 200-calorie brick.” It perfectly illustrates your point. And I clicked on your post in the app before any other today because I was curious to find out who is your audience of one. Great title.
haha I was worried that line was tacky but I'm glad it worked!!
It’s how I eat so it worked for me! I need to add more olive oil to my writing. It’s all protein and veggies.
absolute banger of a piece and very much relate to all of this
dropping ada limon's the raincoat as something that lives rent free in my mind (https://poets.org/poem/raincoat)
I also read young money and immediately was so turned off to banking thanks @jess so very much relate
omg ty for sharing one of my goals this year (in line w/ this post) is to become a Poetry Person TM
A piece of music that shook me lately is dodie’s song “Burned Out”. It creeps in like mist but tugs your heart strings in vacuum suspension. It resonates with me a lot in face of graduation — what’s hidden underneath the flowers and applauses and smiles. https://open.spotify.com/track/2FhTvTUcbTRIxvNmdpjtbw?si=qUI2IdaURoSQ8jp-S-93PA
oh man, this one resonates hard rn. ty for sharing <3
I went to an art center today and really loved this video artwork called Nightlife by Cyprien Gaillard, here’s a sample: https://youtu.be/uY5ty2GimEI
woww I love this!!! the combo of the slo-mo explosions + the soundtrack; want to see this on a big screen
Have you read Nelson's book, Bluets? I loved that one too. A favourite painting in our state gallery's collection is Cy Twombly's 'Three studies from the Temeraire '(https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/collection/works/239.2004.a-c/). A more recent discovery (for me), from their Biennale show was this work by Sheroanawe Hakihiiwe (https://www.biennaleofsydney.art/participants/sheroanawe-hakihiiwe/). A couple of books you might like, if you haven't already read them, Sara Baume's memoir, Handiwork (https://tramppress.com/product/handiwork/) and Olivia Laing's Funny Weather. Good luck with your move :)
ahh thank you for sharing all this, so lovely! I have not read Bluets but it's very much on my list now, as are your other suggestions (have heard good things re: Olivia Laing's Lonely City, too)
+ 1 on Lonely City. Memoir / essay collections by women is one of my favourite sections of my bookshelf. I read widely but I do find myself gravitating to those voices. Your reflections on art & politics made me think about a recent piece Sarah Sentilles wrote for the latest issue of Wonderground (created by a friend, Georgina Reid) https://wonderground.press/. Always happy to share reading suggestions. The next tech book on my list is Jamie Susskind's new one.
ah yes same!! esp loved The Collected Schizophrenias, In The Dream House for memoirs/essays, Jenny Offill’s books for short/touching fiction
last summer i went to the moma alone & saw the exhibit of cezanne in pencil & watercolor; there were a few sketches of fruit there that i still think about sometimes; a series of pears that can only be described as voluptuous; not necessarily sexual, but charged with some intense energy that i lack the language to describe; it was an "image that shimmered around the edges" in a literal sense, but also in the way didion's describing i think, too, something about the tenderness in pencil and brushstrokes, something about how they're at once gratuitous and sparse, something about desire and ambiguity and fullness, richness, vibrancy
one day I would like to reach the verbal facility to say exactly what i mean about this
💓
I think you have excellent verbal facility 😌 also I think I am going to do MoMA again before leaving NYC since I only got halfway through last time, and I will look for the voluptuous pears
nooo cezanne was temporary :( though i think the matisse exhibition is supposed to be really good!!!!
Really enjoyed this one. I'm reminded of this essay i think about often: https://ava.substack.com/p/you-like-books-and-think-they-are?s=r. If you haven't read it, I think you would appreciate it. Without spoiling it, it's about love that goes beyond pragmatism, efficiency, and leverage.
this is basically how i feel about books, too! ty for sharing
no I absolutely love that line, and think about it all the time! esp. when I want to pursue a path that feels divergent or difficult
also just listened to Garter Snake — really is touching