Hey, what you’re reading is almost a year old!
If you like flashback episodes on TV... you'll like this edition.
Seasons Greetings from my Dog Nephew, Boomer.
Happy Saturday & Happy December,
It’s December already.
(Cliche acknowledgment…)
I know, everyone is saying it, but I can’t resist…
Where has the year gone?
And, of course, I ask that every year.
But this year, it feels like time has passed faster than the speed of light, which again is normal, but I’m referring to this in a different sense.
Since launching What I’d Rather Be Talking About last December, I’ve witnessed time and the year passing in terms of Thursdays and Saturdays when I release new issues.
Looking back, when I released the first issue last December, I was as green as a freakin’ Christmas tree.
I had no idea what I was doing.
I had all the doubts that accompany a new venture:
Would anyone want to read my newsletter?
How would I come up with new topics each week?
How would I promote it?
(Plus about a million other things.)
But, thanks to the encouragement from Substacker & consultant extraordinaire Jessica Murnane, I forged ahead into Newsletterland.
And I’ve NEVER LOOKED BACK.
I’ve fumbled. And experimented. And gone through all the growing pains that come with being a newbie.
Yet, you awesome readers continued to show up, give me feedback, subscribe and support, and share What I’d Rather Be Talking About with your peeps.
So, first, I want to say… THANK YOU!
To show my appreciation, I curated a collection of newsletter highlights from the past year.
My favorite is the last one, as it marks another important date I want to address… so be sure to stick around until the end for that.❤️
Before I get too sappy, let’s hop in my Substack time machine to revisit the year.
See you back in December, 2023…
Abbey
How it all began…
In early November of 2022, I hired consultant & creative Jessica Murnane (ofSemi-Important Things with Jessica Murnane) to help me with my website and freelancing game plan. I told her I really wanted to start a newsletter but wasn’t sure which platform to use. She encouraged me to give Substack a try. When I hesitated, she said, “Seriously, just go for it. What have you got to lose?”
Well, as you know, I did go for it… in early December of 2022.
When I went back to the archives to read that first newsletter, I was a little nervous. I thought reading it would feel like looking at a school picture from grade school. Kind of creepy, if you know what I mean. Would it sound like a third-grader wrote it? Or, sound sophomoric? (Editor’s note: sophomoric is one of the hardest critiques for a writer to stomach.)
Actually, my 8th-grade picture is much scarier than that first newsletter.
But when I looked back at the first issue, I wasn’t embarrassed like I thought I’d be. To be sure, it wasn’t rock star writing, but while reading it, I could tell it came 100% from my heart. I remembered how excited I was to launch and how psyched I was to curate content for that first issue.
Take a look at that first newsletter - it includes some holiday tips, podcasts, and some great advice/books if you’re missing a loved one this holiday season. Click below for that first issue.
