exciting things ahead!
The new year brings exciting changes for this newsletter, including a name change: Pub Cheerleader is now plural!
Please help me welcome the amazing Amy Giacalone!
Amy and I were once co-editors at Arcturus and quickly became friends. We swapped stories and novel manuscripts, which was a gift because Amy has a sharp editorial eye, and I absolutely love her writing. I know you will, too.
A bit about Amy: she has an MFA from Columbia College, was a featured contributor in the Chicago Arts Grant LDOC series, which provided short stories to commuters, and is the recipient of a first place Gold Circle Award for humor writing. You can check out her story “Tiny Ghosts,” in the anthology Ghostly: An Anthology of Ghost Stories, edited by Audrey Niffenegger, and watch her read an excerpt from it at the Chicago Humanities Festival here.
Our flexible plan (i.e. subject to change) is Amy and I will each write a monthly post, plus will each tackle a mini interview aimed at learning how authors remained steadfast on their path to publication. We have no shortage of ideas of things we’d like to do (writing prompts! giveaways! events!) but rather than hammering out the details, we decided to jump right in.
That probably seems counter to my goal to slow down this year. But I prefer to think of it as a leap of faith. Because Amy and I have worked together before, I already know we make a great team. She’s a fellow Upholder, so I know we won’t let each other down. Will we fumble as we figure things out? Probably. But we’re looking for progress, not perfection. We’re making space for possibility.
We’ll learn and grow together. We’ll keep cheering you on. And we’ll have fun!
Here’s a fun writing prompt, courtesy of Amy: Write a fight scene inspired by one item that’s in your recycling bin
Reading Recommendations
Another change: we’re no longer linking to my affiliate shop and instead directing you to support Madison Street Books, a wonderful independent bookstore in Chicago that opened right before lockdown (like, the day before!). You can order directly from their website or stop by if you’re ever in the West Loop.
Okay, to the recs…
Online: I find reading honest takes on rejection extremely comforting, so this piece by Sara Lippmann on Run Amok’s blog was like a warm cup of soup.
Books:
Read (not so recently): I previously mentioned I was going to read Nawaaz Ahmed’s Radiant Fugitives, but wanted to circle back to officially recommend it because it’s one of the best books I read last year. It’s narrated by a fetus (but not in a gimmicky way) and tells the story of a Muslim Indian family in Obama-era San Francisco. It’s masterfully written and incredibly moving.
Currently reading: No one writes about joy and gratitude like Ross Gay and I’m loving his new essay collection, Inciting Joy. The amount of footnotes might turn some people off, but I love everything about this book, footnotes included.
Up next: In preparation for interviewing Asale Angel-Ajani for The Millions, I’m going to (re)read her electric debut novel A Country You Can Leave. (Out 2/21)
Preorder alert: José Olivarez’s new poetry collection Promises of Gold is out on 2/7!
Here’s to 2023 being full of fun, growth, and maybe a leap of faith or two!