Hello Hi

I tried something new and here I am

“Beginnings are hard. A blinking cursor on a fresh blank page can be intimidating for even seasoned writers.” You can say that again.

Welcome to my brand spanking new substack. I am not new to blogging or generally expressing my thoughts in writing. I am, however, very new to this type of expression… a weekly newsletter, and notes. My latest blog (I have had a few), throwingclay.org, is all about engaging with the messiness of life. It’s about getting stuck into it and figuring it out. There is no doubt that that approach to life will result in pain. There is also no doubt that colours will be brighter; your soul, fuller; your heart, more open; and your life, far more fulfilled. I have only been living in this way since 2020. 2020 was a wake-up call I took very seriously. I lost a few things in the fire and picked up a couple of massive bruises but, my God… my soul is on fire for life. Glennon Doyle was right: life is hard and beautiful. We can do hard things. Let’s unpack that over time. First… what brought me here, I hear no one ask. Of course, I’ll happily tell you.

I read a huge number of books for the love of reading. I often get asked to recommend books too. When that happens, I always freeze (in my head). It’s a tall order to recommend one book in a world full of incredible books. I talk about books too…incessantly. All of the above applies to podcasts too. I to random well-articulated thoughts from thought leaders on many different platforms that tickle my brain. You can imagine the incessant buzz in my brain.

To keep myself from talking the ears off the people who love me, to keep myself sane and to proactively provide book recommendations while sharing whatever bone of thought I am chewing on in a particular week, I started the Maven Mail newsletter. The name is inspired by Malcolm Gladwell’s book, Tipping Point. I often commit the unforgivable sin of confusing him with Adam Grant. It probably has to do with reading my first book from each of them in the same week and loving both. I apologise to them both. I really don’t see myself figuring it out anytime soon.

I’m still figuring out substack but I’m pretty comfortable with on-the-job training. As soon as I work this out, I will figure out the Gladwell Grant thing…xx