It wouldn't be crazy to say I have lived inside my mailbox for most of 2021. And, thankfully, it wasn't all finicky clients, promotional emails, and rejection letters in response to ambitious submissions. I actively sought content I'd like to read and process. To populate my inbox with emails I wouldn't want to hit back with a "leave me alone," "what the actual fuck," or "per my last email," I went on a signing rampage earlier this year, and to my delight, stumbled upon several well-researched and well-curated publications I enjoyed reading. Here are the newsletters you must subscribe to in 2022!
Will Dowd's THE LUNAR DISPATCH
Every night of the full moon, the award-winning author of Areas of Fog sends out a newsletter carrying socio-political events making rounds, his interviews with astronauts, and his many philosophical introspections. A short-read ideal for bibliophiles and moon-gazers alike.
Lilly Dancyger's MEMOIR MONDAY
Memoir Monday is a weekly newsletter edited by Sari Botton and a quarterly reading series edited by founder Lilly Dancyger, where editors of Catapult, Narratively, Literary Hub, Guernica, The Rumpus, and Granta pick their favorite personal essays and memoir pieces.
Maneesh Madambath's BOMBAY DAAK
Madambath's contemplative daak (letters) sent from Bombay explore poetry, prose, people, places, and seasons in the light of what's happening in the world, where it's headed, and how we might interpret it.
Matthew Ogle's POME
A poetry newsletter from the brain behind Spotify's Daily Mix feature, Pome is a brief love letter sent to your inbox almost every day. Ogle's poetry selection and regular delivery is a bright spot for many, cutting across the weekday mundanity and boredom.
Shaun Usher's LETTERS OF NOTE
Letters of Note is a newsletter about letters. In his dispatches, Shaun Usher, author of Letters of Note books, talks about written exchanges between cultural icons, leaders, writers, artists, and creatives who found the right words for their correspondence when putting pen to paper.
Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan's THE INTERNET PERSONIFIED
In her free, autobiographical newsletter, author of seven books and The Compulsive Confessor blog, Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan muses about events, stepping stones, milestones, and everything between living and loving.
Laura Olin's Newsletter
Olin's diverse selection of links for the week is a welcome respite from the heaviness of weekday weariness. Dry humor pervades her writing, and her internet finds are unusual and noteworthy.
Mark Faruenfelder's BOOK FREAK
Mark Frauenfelder is a blogger, illustrator, and the former editor-in-chief of MAKE. His newsletters inhabit short pieces of advice on life, living, and creating, as extracted directly from books.
Rohini Kejriwal's THE ALIPORE POST
Kejriwal's The Alipore Post has long been a digital haven for Indian writers and artists. Her weekly newsletter carries poems from fresh-on-the-scene poets, contemporary art by Indian artists, and links to relevant videos, articles, and songs.
Austin Kleon's Newsletter
Every Friday, the Steal Like an Artist author sends out the links of ten things he deems worthy of his time, attention, and care. Kleon's curation features his art and writing alongside those of artists and creators who inspire him.
John Warner's THE BIBLIORACLE RECOMMENDS
The Biblioracle Recommends is a book recommendation digital publication from longtime Chicago Tribune book columnist John Warner. Warner also leaves relevant links alongside his reading picks and suggestions.
Ann Friedman's THE ANN FRIEDMAN WEEKLY
Journalist, essayist, author, and podcast co-host Ann Friedman writes a newsletter every Friday about her weekly discoveries on the internet and the socio-political climate of America, with a side of informative (and often humorous) pie-charts illustrations.
Mason Currey's SUBTLE MANEUVERS
Subtle Maneuvers is a bi-weekly newsletter by Mason Currey, author of Daily Ritual books. The newsletters delve into the creative structure, rituals, and routines of artists and writers, and how they schedule their time to accomplish projects in the face of daily obstacles.
Maria Popova's THE MARGINALIAN
The Marginalian (formerly known as Brain Pickings) is the Figuring author's free weekly newsletter. Popova's digests bear her incisive, deeply researched, and intelligent reflections on art, science, poetry, and philosophy.
Ann Kjellberg's BOOK POST
Kjellberg, the literary executor of Nobel Laureate Joseph Brodsky and former editor at the New York Review of Books, runs this newsletter-based book-review delivery service. Readers receive comprehensive critiques of up-and-coming titles directly in their mailbox.
Abhivyakti Singh's THE KASHI TELEGRAM
Not a shy plug, but an animated, waving-my-hands-in-your-face shoutout to The Kashi Telegram newsletter, where I give a roundup of the week's internet finds, review books, interview creators who inspire me, and leave links to publishing news, articles, and profiles.