Substacks recommended by Jeannine | Writing in the Dark with Jeannine Ouellette

Recommended by Jeannine

writing and talking about writing and other things (but mostly prompts)

I'm Bess Stillman: ER doctor, writer, recent widow to Jake Seliger, who died of SCC of the tongue, and soon-to-be Mom to Athena. I write about the challenges of being corporeal. Here you'll find essays on life, death, cancer, love, health & healthcare.

But First Breakfast

By Suzanne Orrell

Daybreak eats, recipes and tales

Food is more than food, and Suzanne's newsletter knows that. I love this exploration of place, food, and loneliness.

- Jeannine

Writerly Things with Brooke Warner

I am an author advocate, publisher of She Writes Press and SparkPress, book industry insider, and champion to writers who show up to the page because they must.

Brooke is a voice I turn to for wisdom in this ever-shifting landscape of publishing. And as a writer herself, she cares deeply about writing and writers. The fact that she also champions women writers? I'm all in.

- Jeannine

REASONS FOR LIVING with Esmé Weijun Wang

Step into a sanctuary curated by Esmé, featuring guest contributors like R.F. Kuang & Jenny Odell. Each edition presents essays & prompts exploring the beauty/complexity of being alive. Unlock 2 monthly essays & bonus resources with a paid subscription.

trust fall

By billie august

Substack Writers at Work with Sarah Fay

Don't just learn how Substack works; make Substack work for you. Expert guidance from the world's leading Substack Strategist. A top-10, bestselling, featured Substack.

Sarah knows Substack inside and out, and combines her knowledge plus intuition, smart strategy, and incredibly generous vision to help Substackers reach more readers with less struggle! Super helpful!

- Jeannine

In the Writing Burrow

By Margaret Atwood

Whatever comes into my addled, shrinking brain.

For Dear Life with Maggie Smith

A newsletter about writing & other things that make this life dear—from the poet, not the dame

Changing The Channel with Kirsten Powers

New York Times bestselling author Kirsten Powers offers fresh thinking about how we can make big changes in our lives, communities and country.

The Publishing Spectrum

By Amanda B. Hinton

Thoughtful tools, Substack-savvy data, and intuitive strategy — read by thousands. ☀️ Shape a publishing practice that’s truly your own: one that honors your creative instincts and draws the right audience for your work.

Beyond with Jane Ratcliffe

The internet’s most intimate, illuminating interviews with today’s greatest writers—get an in-depth look into the craft of writing and what it means to be a heart-centered human in a hard world.

Jane Ratcliffe's Beyond brings us deeply thoughtful, richly nuanced interviews with some of the most interesting working writers of our time. Love this newsletter.

- Jeannine

Story Club with George Saunders

A place to explore the way the short story works.

I love this Substack, and am a huge enduring fan of George Saunders's work, including his insightful, humorous, and always spot-on observations on revising our writing to suck a little less, and the art of being a little less of a turd ourselves in the process.

- Jeannine

Oldster Magazine

By Sari Botton

Exploring what it means to travel through time in a human body, at every phase of life.

Sari Button's exploration of "... what it means to travel through time in a human body, at every phase of life." Highly recommended!

- Jeannine

Deconstructing Fundamentalism with Tia Levings

Breaking down Evangelical Patriarchy and Christian Nationalism with insight, humanity, and subversive hope.

Love Story

By Laura McKowen

Your life is a love story, just not the kind you think. An honest look at relationships, recovery, and writing from the bestselling author of We Are The Luckiest and Push Off from Here.

Beautiful, thought-provoking, and wise.

- Jeannine

The Isolation Journals with Suleika Jaouad

A newsletter for people seeking to transform life's interruptions into creative grist

The Art of Flash Fiction

By Kathy Fish

Free monthly Flash Fiction Craft Articles & Prompts / Weekly Posts & Community Writing Events for paid subscribers from Writer & Teacher, Kathy Fish

The Sharpener

By Sean Singer

Thinking through poetry

Cheryl Strayed's Dear Sugar

This is the home of two newsletters. Paid subscribers get Cheryl's Dear Sugar Letter monthly, plus her free newsletter several times a year, which includes her "Tells Us" author series. Free subscribers get everything but the monthly Dear Sugar Letter.

Letters from an American

By Heather Cox Richardson

A newsletter about the history behind today's politics.

Heather Cox Richardson's voice is one of the most prescient, most wise, and most incisive in this time of utter chaos and turmoil. As an historian, she brings context and nuance to current events in ways that few other voices do--and beyond that, she's plain-out brilliant and a pleasure to read!

- Jeannine