NEW! I’m on Substack.

Hi! I have some news: I’ve started a Substack.

Right now, you may be thinking, “Great!… Um, what’s a Substack?” Or, if you know what Substack is, you may be wondering about the difference between me blogging here and me blogging there. In brief:

• Substack is a hub for people to blog, post book excerpts, art, and just about anything they’d put on their website. Because it’s a hub, though, more people have the chance to find your Substack than they might find your website or blog.
• Substack acts like a newsletter. When you subscribe (at the free or paid level), my new posts are automatically emailed to you, instead of you having to check this website for new posts and getting my newsletters.
• There are many (many!) interesting people on Substack, so I’ve made some recommendations of other Substack newsletters you might like.
• Substack is a way for writers and artists like me to keep going through different tiers of subscription: free and paid.

This is an important point I want to share with you. I can’t tell you how grateful I am that you’ve read one or more of my books, like Yoga Mind or Cherries in Winter; that you’ve done knitting or drawing meditation with me; that you’ve found my work and liked it. The only problem is, it’s hard for me to keep doing these things.

The rules of publishing have changed; it’s extremely difficult to get a book published today. For many years, I wrote essays for magazines, but those beloved paper periodicals have dwindled to a precious few, replaced by the free and immediate on the Internet. In order for me to keep writing books people have said made them happier, the kind of personal essays I wrote at O, the Oprah Magazine, and to create new projects, like my upcoming graphic novel series, I’ve needed to find ways to keep this little workshop going.

Substack is one of those ways. Thanks to subscribers who’ve chosen the paid level, I’ve been able to keep writing and making the things you want. The cost of the paid Substack subscription is $5 a month. (I generally post at least once a week, sometimes more.) Here’s what you’ll get on Substack:

Free level:

• Access to public posts (of which there are now many!)
• Ability to join the growing community and comment on posts
• Regular doses of positivity with purpose

Paid level:

• Everything the free level gets, plus subscriber-only newsletters, including updated Yoga Mind essays
• Extras, such as mini-ebooks, chances at giveaways, my upcoming graphic novel series, and more!

I hope you’ll join me; just click here to subscribe to my Substack.