In Praise of Thought, on Substack

I started a Substack* and the kind of work you've read here in the Journal section of the website will now exist solely on that platform.

*Yes, we all need another Substack.

The name is obviously derived from the collection of poems I published a few years ago with the same title—not because I can’t think of new and interesting titles, but because this one seems to encapsulate what the writing on the Substack is about so perfectly.

You can expect essays on writing, mostly—the series “In Praise of a Line,” for example, will continue—but also cultural criticism on the intersection of literature, philosophy, technology, politics, and culture, as I’ve long been concerned with.

I think a body of work (or even a piece of it) is most interesting when placed in greater context, and vice versa. Thus, I wrote about loving dogs via Joy williams, Palestine via Isabella Hammad, the bombing of Beirut via Ghada Samman, and even the assassination attempt on Trump in the context of Wislawa Szymborska's poetry.

The Substack will be monetized for certain subscriptions only. Namely, paid subscriptions will provide the privilege to comment, for a reader to engage further. Still, I’ve decided that the bulk of my writing will be available to non-paying subscribers for now. I'm most excited that the platform has allowed my writing to reach new readers. I hope you will follow my work there and subscribe.

Elizabeth