Noticing
Navigating the Creative Life
A new beginning…
Yes. I’m joining the Substack community. Wait. That’s not true. I’ve been “in” this community for a few years. I subscribe to the best of the best—Narratively, In a Flash, Lit Mag News, Oldster Magazine, Poetry Unbound, Journey with Jess Rinker, Memoir Land…and more. You can see who I subscribe to. I highly recommend them all.
I know. I might be late to the Substack game. Many writers are leaving Substack for platforms that support them in other ways, like design, monetization, and more marketing. I’m not here for those reasons. I don’t plan on making this newsletter fancy-schmancy or techy or flashy. I don’t plan to make this a paid-for gig. I have my own set of marketing skills and tools and platforms that already work for me.
If I’m clear, I simply like the way the Substacks that I subscribe arrive, like nudges from far away friends.
I could tell you that I left Facebook, but that’s not accurate. My account was brutally hacked in March this year. When I say brutal, I mean an entire book could circulate around what resulted, including my page for sale on FB from my hacker. I might pen this for you in a later Noticing.
So, my FB account was hacked, which left the account disabled and unattainable. Within hours, the Meta Universe deleted my Instagram account. Between the two, about 30,000 followers. I felt devasted and probably mourned. I also thought about re-starting those accounts. Instead, I waited.
I let time pass and ideas fade.
Here were some ideas:
TikTok or BookTok: I couldn’t see myself creating weekly/daily/hourly videos for the TOK community. I’m too competitive and most likely would’ve self-imploded.
Other Social Media Platforms: I already existed on X, Linkedin, BlueSky, Tumblr, and Pinterest, if you call occasional interactions existing.
Relaunch Facebook: Nope.
Relaunch Instagram: I did. Find me HERE. I hit the re-start because I’m in the center of an amazing book tour, a collaboration between Hannah Rodabaugh and myself. Hannah’s book, Lost Cathedrals, and mine, AfterBurn, hold these incredible intersections of loss, re-wilding, trauma, and beauty. Maybe my re-birth of IG resulted in commercial pressure, the idea that we need social media as artists in order to succeed. I don’t agree. I think my truer reason for re-beginning IG has to do with a hole in my heart. Yes. Yes. I’ll flush out that narrative for you as well.
Start a Newsletter: I don’t need a newsletter. Not in the traditional sense. I already have two newsletters with about 3,000 subscribers.
I know.
Right.
I already have two newsletters. What’s up with that?
Musings & Movements, offers workshop notes from the free online gathering that Gayle Brandeis and I teach each month.
Events & Tours & Gatherings, markets my workshops, teachings, book tour, along with other artists who I appreciate.
Both of these populate just once a month.
A Substack newsletter offers more. Connection. Community. An interactive space. Me and the page and you. A space to share my thoughts, my heart, my noticings. Wait. I do this on my blog. Still less than once a month and not thematically or structured.
I guess what I need and, maybe you might enjoy too, is a weekly glee-full rant. I guess I long for community. Think, avant-garde poetry salon mixed with analog methods, like vinyl records, long-hand writing, to-do lists, and home-baked bread. Think, gathering around a campfire and sharing stories, experiences, noticings. Think, postcards, hand-written Thank You’s, and a proper cup of tea.
I plan to send you a Noticing each week. Within each Noticing, I’ll share my thoughts, along with a creative call or prompt or tool. Something that you might find useful. Something to keep you inspired and your heart filled.
Here’s Your Creative Call for this week, May 17th, 2026:
Take a moment and list your intentions behind your online existence.
Dig deep.
Ask hard questions.
Ask playful questions too.
Interrogate your WHYs.
Ask if your online interactions stay in alignment with your essence.
Enjoy the process.
Much Love,
Rebecca
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