Jessica, I’ve long been an admirer of your work. Thank you for writing this. It’s wonderful to know that, as a fellow (unpublished) writer, we share the same worries about gender and class, and stress about getting words on a page.
To balance a creative life inside the capitalist structures we inhabit is devoutly to be wished! Thank you for sharing this flash of light/burst of feeling xx
Jess, so much of what you mention in this post is “stuff” I’m also writing and thinking about. From the fish gutting great grandmas to the idea of pleasure. It’s great to read your work again xx
Somehow as I am making moves to change my relationship with myself, my creativity and my writing, it feels as though I am in a surging wave of people who are done with their old habits, done with the voices in their heads telling them that they cannot. It feels really lovely to not be alone in this change and especially to be sharing a journey with an author I adore, thank you for sharing
Thank you so much for sharing this Jess!! Thank you for sharing your wisdom, deep thinking and bloody gorgeous writing. Very excited for this substack. Already so much to think about! Sending hugs xxx
Thanks for sharing... I’m going to buy and read Saltwater right away. I write - I write to tell stories in different and playful ways. I don’t intend to reveal myself in my stories but unwittingly I always do. Both my parents were working class but I sort of find myself straddling the class system - university educated, a high school teacher for most of my life and a homeowner. Not rich but also not in poverty. Never imagined I could be a writer until I turned thirty. Still can’t believe I am - published that is. I love it that people sometimes read my work and say something about it... sometimes good things. And they do that for you too. And there are people out there who want more of ‘you’ to read. Hold all these thoughts close to your heart, Jessica.
Jessica, I’ve long been an admirer of your work. Thank you for writing this. It’s wonderful to know that, as a fellow (unpublished) writer, we share the same worries about gender and class, and stress about getting words on a page.
To balance a creative life inside the capitalist structures we inhabit is devoutly to be wished! Thank you for sharing this flash of light/burst of feeling xx
Jess, so much of what you mention in this post is “stuff” I’m also writing and thinking about. From the fish gutting great grandmas to the idea of pleasure. It’s great to read your work again xx
Somehow as I am making moves to change my relationship with myself, my creativity and my writing, it feels as though I am in a surging wave of people who are done with their old habits, done with the voices in their heads telling them that they cannot. It feels really lovely to not be alone in this change and especially to be sharing a journey with an author I adore, thank you for sharing
Thank you so much for sharing this Jess!! Thank you for sharing your wisdom, deep thinking and bloody gorgeous writing. Very excited for this substack. Already so much to think about! Sending hugs xxx
Thanks for sharing... I’m going to buy and read Saltwater right away. I write - I write to tell stories in different and playful ways. I don’t intend to reveal myself in my stories but unwittingly I always do. Both my parents were working class but I sort of find myself straddling the class system - university educated, a high school teacher for most of my life and a homeowner. Not rich but also not in poverty. Never imagined I could be a writer until I turned thirty. Still can’t believe I am - published that is. I love it that people sometimes read my work and say something about it... sometimes good things. And they do that for you too. And there are people out there who want more of ‘you’ to read. Hold all these thoughts close to your heart, Jessica.
Wonderful. Love the dumplings, Manchester and Greece stories. 😊
Great read, thank you!