An annual roundup
Plus, words are hard and I need your advice!
2023 was a big year of growth for this tiny newsletter! Thanks for your help with that, and for trusting me in your inbox. That feels like a really big deal, one that I don’t take lightly.
I’ve found foodstuff to be really sustaining for me, especially as I work towards finishing my dissertation and as I try to imagine what life after it might look like. The more I write the newsletter, the more I practice recipe development (if you can call what I’ve been doing recipe development), the more I want to continue with it. At the same time, my writing brain is so tired.
This year I’ve really had to confront a hard truth: I’m not, nor will I ever be, a prolific writer— at least not in the way I once imagined. Despite how much I do it, how much I think about it, cry about it, read about it, need it, and so forth, writing isn’t easy for me. Language isn’t easy. It feels so thorny all the time. It is. And that’s probably why I’ll always come back to it. But right now I’m a bit sick of sorting out words.
Instead of forcing myself to write something, and making you feel worse about not reading something, let’s both take pause. I’ll highlight some of my favourite posts from this past year. You can read them if you’ve not yet had the chance to… or not, no pressure!
Thanks for giving me the space to think and write about things I care bout in a way that works for me!
My favourite essays to write in 2023:
Most popular essay overall in 2023:
Tell me!
Did you have a favourite essay from this year (or a least favourite)? What kinds of essays do you enjoy the most? The ones that focus on pop culture stuff? The more personal ones? The more theoretical ones? Tell me what you like and what you want to see more of in the future.
I know that one day I’ll end up writing an analysis of my collection of wacky vintage food ads, something about murderous women cannibals/carnivores/chefs (ie. Im thinking Love Quinn, Dorothy from A Certain Hunger, and other characters in this realm), why I love the ad of Jeremy Allen White eating ribs in a barn (and am also unsettled by it because men and meat are unsettling), and something about apologizing around serving food/eating food.
What kind of recipe posts do you enjoy? In the new year I’m working on perfecting the following, but I need your help building out this list: vegan cheesecake, scones, lemon-polenta cake, white bean bolognese, adventures in vegan cheeses, more cocktail/mocktail/ drink recipes.
Reading
If you’re looking for some reading to tuck into over the holidays, I’ll be visiting and revisiting:
Alicia Kennedy’s “Finders and Keepers,” which is a short review of the film Foragers by Palestinian filmmaker, Jumana Manna. There are no screenings near me in the coming months, but check your area).
The poetry collection Rifqa by Mohammed El-Kurd.
Jasbir K. Puar’s The Right to Maim: Debility, Capacity, Disability, which has been made freely available through Duke University Press.
I’ll send out a short recipe roundup on the 15th as well as a collection of resources around navigating weird food comments during the holidays. Until then, stay cozy.
I really like when you post recipes, I try to replicate them at home - maybe you’ll enjoy one made by me!!
i adore all the essay ideas you’re playing around with potentially writing! my gut instinct was to say the pop culture pieces, but i think ultimately it’s a practice of what feels more genuinely like what you want to share with your audience. i think you’re doing a great job carving that space out for yourself and being able to experiment with different themes and structures will only make you more aware of what you love doing too! look forward to all that will come 🙂