Bravo, Jeremy. Well said. Anxious now to see what you have to say in the future; not because I expect you to anticipate my needs, but because I want to see what you want to offer.
Oliver Burkeman in the book, 4000 Weeks: Time Management for Mortals, has a great story about what you’re going through:
“The Finnish American photographer Arno Minkkinen dramatizes this deep truth about the power of patience with a parable about Helsinki’s main bus station. There are two dozen platforms there, he explains, with several different bus lines departing from each one—and for the first part of its journey, each bus leaving from any given platform takes the same route through the city as all the others, making identical stops. Think of each stop as representing one year of your career, Minkkinen advises photography students. You pick an artistic direction—perhaps you start working on platinum studies of nudes—and you begin to accumulate a portfolio of work. Three years (or bus stops) later, you proudly present it to the owner of a gallery. But you’re dismayed to be told that your pictures aren’t as original as you thought, because they look like knockoffs of the work of the photographer Irving Penn; Penn’s bus, it turns out, had been on the same route as yours. Annoyed at yourself for having wasted three years following somebody else’s path, you jump off that bus, hail a taxi, and return to where you started at the bus station. This time, you board a different bus, choosing a different genre of photography in which to specialize. But a few stops later, the same thing happens: you’re informed that your new body of work seems derivative, too. Back you go to the bus station. But the pattern keeps on repeating: nothing you produce ever gets recognized as being truly your own. What’s the solution? “It’s simple,” Minkkinen says. “Stay on the bus. Stay on the fucking bus.” A little farther out on their journeys through the city, Helsinki’s bus routes diverge, plunging off to unique destinations as they head through the suburbs and into the countryside beyond. That’s where the distinctive work begins. But it begins at all only for those who can muster the patience to immerse themselves in the earlier stage—the trial-and-error phase of copying others, learning new skills, and accumulating experience. The implications of this insight aren’t confined to creative work. In many areas of life, there’s strong cultural pressure to strike out in a unique direction—to spurn the conventional options of getting married, or having kids, or remaining in your hometown, or taking an office job, in favor of something apparently more exciting and original. Yet if you always pursue the unconventional in this way, you deny yourself the possibility of experiencing those other, richer forms of uniqueness that are reserved for those with the patience to travel the well-trodden path first.
I receive several book newsletters but yours is by far my favorite. It’s always interesting and so well written. Also, you include us your readers so much by asking about the best book or books we read the previous month or our favorites in a specific area. I am looking forward to reading more of your essays and book recommendations. Keep writing and reading.
I’ve been listening to the Art of Manliness for years (could be 10-15) and likly reading your posts on Substack for about a year (could be less). Prior to this post, I hadn’t made the connection between the two. I look forward to reading the essays you write in the future.
Please, feel free to read and write whatever the hell you like. Don't cater to the masses - there's a reason your followers are here and not on Booktok. We're not the masses.
Dungeon Crawler Carl is pretty weird. You might have a blast with it. Also, I think you should do Wuthering Heights for the big read next year to please the masses.
I always love your posts about books. But I used to like them better than than I do now. I can’t afford a paid subscription now. So I miss some of what you write.
You should read what you truly love and then tell everyone about it. Don’t worry if they like it or not. Too many book podcasts talk about the same books. My dear daughter in law has a book club that has been going for four years. She picks all the books. No one else gets to choose. She picks some great books. We are currently reading my most favorite book of all time, Gone With the Wind. This is about the sixth time I am reading it. After all the great literature I’ve read since my last reading of it I didn’t know if it would still be my favorite, but it is. This is probably the last time I will read this book. I’m 69 years old. And I am savoring every word. I know this pulitzer prize winner and one of the most widely sold novels ever, gets a lot of bad press nowadays. Too bad. Our book club meeting for the halfway point had 21 ladies. Almost none of them had ever read it. They are all loving it!!
So don’t worry about what kind of press a book gets. If you love it, there will be others that love it too!
I think I've been following you for nearly the entire time you've been doing this, and this is great to hear, not that I ever thought the quality of your newsletter was dipping, but I'm glad you are thinking through these things and I'm excited for what you discover as you get back to reading what you truly want. Thanks for years of recommendations and I look forward to what you have for the future!
I tend to be more of a lurker here and rarely comment but I wanted to say I've always enjoyed your book tastes, but more importantly I enjoy how you write and think about books. I've been contemplating starting my own substack focusing on both books and movies just for my own pleasure and giving myself a creative outlet. Your essay here just struck a chord with me and is something to think about if I pursue that endeavor. I subscribe to several book substacks, but yours is by far my favorite one. I like your new thought process on this and am excited to see the direction you take this newsletter.
I appreciate all your work has done for me in the past and find your latest essay to be both gracious and thoughtful. Thank you. I'm intrigued about your work going forward!
You're asking the right questions. I'll offer two resources:
The Courage to be Disliked by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga. This book, and its sequel, The Courage to be Happy are excellent. I wish more people were familiar with Adlerian psychology and these two books are an approachable introduction.
Bravo, Jeremy. Well said. Anxious now to see what you have to say in the future; not because I expect you to anticipate my needs, but because I want to see what you want to offer.
Thank you, David!
..."and more sailing into the waters of the weird, sometimes dense, and often random"...
I suspect the more you do it for you, the more we'll enjoy the ride. Count me in!
Glad to have you aboard, Bill.
Oliver Burkeman in the book, 4000 Weeks: Time Management for Mortals, has a great story about what you’re going through:
“The Finnish American photographer Arno Minkkinen dramatizes this deep truth about the power of patience with a parable about Helsinki’s main bus station. There are two dozen platforms there, he explains, with several different bus lines departing from each one—and for the first part of its journey, each bus leaving from any given platform takes the same route through the city as all the others, making identical stops. Think of each stop as representing one year of your career, Minkkinen advises photography students. You pick an artistic direction—perhaps you start working on platinum studies of nudes—and you begin to accumulate a portfolio of work. Three years (or bus stops) later, you proudly present it to the owner of a gallery. But you’re dismayed to be told that your pictures aren’t as original as you thought, because they look like knockoffs of the work of the photographer Irving Penn; Penn’s bus, it turns out, had been on the same route as yours. Annoyed at yourself for having wasted three years following somebody else’s path, you jump off that bus, hail a taxi, and return to where you started at the bus station. This time, you board a different bus, choosing a different genre of photography in which to specialize. But a few stops later, the same thing happens: you’re informed that your new body of work seems derivative, too. Back you go to the bus station. But the pattern keeps on repeating: nothing you produce ever gets recognized as being truly your own. What’s the solution? “It’s simple,” Minkkinen says. “Stay on the bus. Stay on the fucking bus.” A little farther out on their journeys through the city, Helsinki’s bus routes diverge, plunging off to unique destinations as they head through the suburbs and into the countryside beyond. That’s where the distinctive work begins. But it begins at all only for those who can muster the patience to immerse themselves in the earlier stage—the trial-and-error phase of copying others, learning new skills, and accumulating experience. The implications of this insight aren’t confined to creative work. In many areas of life, there’s strong cultural pressure to strike out in a unique direction—to spurn the conventional options of getting married, or having kids, or remaining in your hometown, or taking an office job, in favor of something apparently more exciting and original. Yet if you always pursue the unconventional in this way, you deny yourself the possibility of experiencing those other, richer forms of uniqueness that are reserved for those with the patience to travel the well-trodden path first.
Stay on the fucking bus, my friend!
Oof, love it! Thanks Jeff!
He's as smart as he is handsome!
For what it's worth, I think you're already authentically weird. 😆
THIS
haha at least the IRL version of me, is!
I receive several book newsletters but yours is by far my favorite. It’s always interesting and so well written. Also, you include us your readers so much by asking about the best book or books we read the previous month or our favorites in a specific area. I am looking forward to reading more of your essays and book recommendations. Keep writing and reading.
Thanks so much Shirleen, that means a lot!
I commend you on your discovery and genuinely look forward to what comes of your voyage back into the authentic “waters of the weird.”
Thank you, really appreciate it.
I’ve been listening to the Art of Manliness for years (could be 10-15) and likly reading your posts on Substack for about a year (could be less). Prior to this post, I hadn’t made the connection between the two. I look forward to reading the essays you write in the future.
Please, feel free to read and write whatever the hell you like. Don't cater to the masses - there's a reason your followers are here and not on Booktok. We're not the masses.
Dungeon Crawler Carl is pretty weird. You might have a blast with it. Also, I think you should do Wuthering Heights for the big read next year to please the masses.
I always love your posts about books. But I used to like them better than than I do now. I can’t afford a paid subscription now. So I miss some of what you write.
You should read what you truly love and then tell everyone about it. Don’t worry if they like it or not. Too many book podcasts talk about the same books. My dear daughter in law has a book club that has been going for four years. She picks all the books. No one else gets to choose. She picks some great books. We are currently reading my most favorite book of all time, Gone With the Wind. This is about the sixth time I am reading it. After all the great literature I’ve read since my last reading of it I didn’t know if it would still be my favorite, but it is. This is probably the last time I will read this book. I’m 69 years old. And I am savoring every word. I know this pulitzer prize winner and one of the most widely sold novels ever, gets a lot of bad press nowadays. Too bad. Our book club meeting for the halfway point had 21 ladies. Almost none of them had ever read it. They are all loving it!!
So don’t worry about what kind of press a book gets. If you love it, there will be others that love it too!
I think I've been following you for nearly the entire time you've been doing this, and this is great to hear, not that I ever thought the quality of your newsletter was dipping, but I'm glad you are thinking through these things and I'm excited for what you discover as you get back to reading what you truly want. Thanks for years of recommendations and I look forward to what you have for the future!
I tend to be more of a lurker here and rarely comment but I wanted to say I've always enjoyed your book tastes, but more importantly I enjoy how you write and think about books. I've been contemplating starting my own substack focusing on both books and movies just for my own pleasure and giving myself a creative outlet. Your essay here just struck a chord with me and is something to think about if I pursue that endeavor. I subscribe to several book substacks, but yours is by far my favorite one. I like your new thought process on this and am excited to see the direction you take this newsletter.
I really, really appreciate the kind words Randy! I'm so glad it struck a chord.
I appreciate all your work has done for me in the past and find your latest essay to be both gracious and thoughtful. Thank you. I'm intrigued about your work going forward!
Thank you Carol! Glad to have you as a reader!
Love this. Trust yourself. You can’t please everyone.
Yes yes, thanks Elizabeth!
You have a wonderful voice Jeremy. It’s always nice to visit Read More Books and the community.
You're asking the right questions. I'll offer two resources:
The Courage to be Disliked by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga. This book, and its sequel, The Courage to be Happy are excellent. I wish more people were familiar with Adlerian psychology and these two books are an approachable introduction.
Wholes and Nestedness (https://open.substack.com/pub/entelechy/p/wholes-and-nestedness?r=17gex3&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false) from my own newsletter Entelechy. It's the first in a series of essays for the "well-intentioned". I expect you'll find it a useful mirror for your current set of questions.
Thanks again for your newsletter. I've enjoyed many of your book recommendations over the last few years.