Vol. 71: Is this thing on?

Allison Punch
June 09, 2023

Hello friends, long time, no talk! At the end of March, I announced I’d be moving this newsletter to a monthly format so I could focus on other creative projects after taking Kima Jones’ workshop The Sweat Btwn. Well, turns out that monthly newsletter didn’t work – at all. It felt very high pressure to write only once a month and instead I went ghost.

I’ve missed you, I missed this newsletter, and to be honest, it’s going to take me a minute to get back into the swing of things.

The good news? I made progress on my non-newsletter writing projects – at first. I have an 11-page draft of an essay and while it’s only beginning to get to the meat of the project, it felt good to make progress. Most importantly, in the spring, I adjusted my lifestyle to better leave space for my craft – going to bed early, waking up early, writing dates with a friend, exercising, trying to focus my reading on memoirs and narrative nonfiction, reducing my social media usage, finding joy in keeping my apartment clean; some of these are things I was doing previously but I refocused my mind in service of my writing practice.

Then, work shit hit the fan. Our 500-person conference was two and a half weeks ago and I’ve just barely caught up on sleep. I dealt with challenging interpersonal relationships that required me to do some internal reckoning with myself, my values, and how I was showing up. Now I’m building back up my writing practice while trying to be kind to myself. I’m lucky that I have four-day work weeks during the summer, so I have a bulk of time I can dedicate to my projects if I’m accountable to myself (and my accountability buddy, Lauren!).

I’ve always been intimidated by living a creative lifestyle. It felt inaccessible or incompatible – probably due to internalized capitalism, my upbringing, and my desire for stability. It feels like a very vulnerable thing to admit. It's also embarassing - I have a laundry list of financial privileges – two income household, generational wealth safety net, no student loans due to aforementioned generational wealth, a hot Capricorn wife who works in finance, etc. – that so many are able to thrive creatively without.

It’s so easy for me to get caught up in the other demands of daily life that sometimes I wonder if I really have what it takes to be a writer. I’ve been saying for years – decades – that it’s what I want, and this spring I finally felt like I’d hit my stride. Then I lost it. I’m sure it’s not forever, but I’m trying to remain patient and humble with the time it takes to regroup.

Books, Books, Books

Shocking no one, I’m also in an ongoing reading slump! But I’ve still managed to read some great books during my hiatus.

Recent Reads

I finally finished Honey & Spice by Bolu Babalola on audiobook thanks to Libro.fm and this was an absolutely delightful romance novel that features a fake relationship against the backdrop of a tight knit community of Black students at a predominately white university in England. The characters were richly portrayed, the steam and chemistry impeccable, the narration was excellent, and they even did fun audio effects to showcase Kiki’s radio show and Malachi’s documentary interviews. Highly recommend!
During my work stress era, the only media I consumed was problematic fave Friends, for the (redacted) time so I could sleep at night, so I checked out Matthew Perry’s Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing from the library. It was a fascinating, very sad look at his addiction
You know those books that bust your slump then promptly put you back into a reading slump because they’re so unputdownable and compelling but then you can’t figure out what to read after? I read and loved Rebecca Makkai’s I Have Some Questions For You, which. I don’t know how I feel about her exploration of cancel culture politically but it was a very engaging read which I needed. Highly recommend for a beach read this summer.
I read & loved Hijab Butch Blues by Lamya H. As a queer person of faith, I’ve often experienced an assumption that all queer people have a strained or difficult relationship with religion. It was beautiful to read about Lamya’s love for Islam; the story is told in chapters that showcase a story about their life through a story from the Quaran, and even as they detailed the difficulties she experienced with internalized homophobia and the experience of building queer community while fearing losing their family of origin and connection to their culture. I also really appreciated their portrayal of racism, colorism, Islamaphobia, and colonialism – there is so much in this book and it’s so well done.
I read & loved Above Ground by Clint Smith then immediately gifted a copy to my best friend. I could read anything Clint writes, but this collection of poetry centered around fatherhood/parenthood is incredibly moving. This book put my baby fever on haywire and there is one mention of pregnancy complications, so if you’re dealing with infertility, it may be hard.

Currently Reading

I’m absolutely enthralled with Monica Potts’ (New York Times bestselling!!!) The Forgotten Girls: A Memoir of Friendship and Lost Promise in Rural America, part memoir, part reportage that follows Monica’s youth and her best friend Darci, and traces her experience growing up, leaving, and returning to rural Arkansas to explore the declining life expectancy for women. I love books that use the personal to explore society and Monica does it SO well.
I’m almost done with Brandon Taylor’s Filthy Animals and always in awe of how he takes small moments and infuses them with so much intimacy and tension. This has also been a great book to ease back into reading.

Small Business Corner

Omsom came out with Saucy Noods and I’m obsessed. I topped them with any combination of fried tofu, scallions, cilantro, green beans, and edmame, but I’m sure they would be just as delicious on their own as an easy, delicious meal. I’ve had the Soy Garlic, Coconut Lemongrass Curry, and Black Garlic flavors so far and my favorites are definitely the Black Garlic and Coconut Lemongrass Curry.
El Itis Fermented Chili Sauce also released a new flavor, California Gold Rush, that includes pineapple and is delightfully spicy. She also restocked her flagship flavor. Great on sandwiches, veggies, eggs and an easy way to upgrade your meals while shopping a small Black woman owned business.
My bestie and her husband launched their small business Green Heron Goods with beautiful, personalized copper home goods made of repurposed materials that would make excellent gifts.

Community Care

Happy Pride month! While there have been amazing strides the past few half decade, the backlash against the LGBTQ community has been swift and ongoing. Specifically, the trans community who is among our most vulnerable has been consistently attacked through legislation banning life-saving, gender-affirming care, book bannings, protests against Drag Queen Story Hours, and cultural narratives that directly contribute to violence against trans communities. I’m highlighting a couple of opportunities below but would love to hear from readers of other organizations they’re giving to.

Yes, it’s Friday

Okay, it’s not totally unhinged to send my newsletter on Friday but it is definitely a first. In full transparency, I wrote most of this newsletter last Friday, June 2, and fully intended to send on Tuesday but between my wife testing positive for COVID, isolating, and taking care of her and the dog while dealing with terrible air quality (stay safe, friends!), it’s been… a lot. It’s good to be back and also reduce a bit of the self-imposed pressure by sending out a newsletter regardless of the day of the week.