Substacks recommended by Fran Gardner

Recommended by Fran Gardner

Very Quiet Custard

By VeryQuietCustard

Very Quiet Custard is a substack about kids lit, books, movies, physical media, and vintage goods aka the good stuff

Gentle writing, sweet and delicate, like custard.

- Fran Gardner

Tsundoku and Strawberries

By Bridget Godwin

Essays on life's transitions authored by a doctor mom who surrounds herself with books.

Living in 3D

By Amy Brown

Life lessons in embracing desire in every decade from a late-blooming woman in her 60s, still in the process of becoming. We thrive by planting our roots in all three dimensions at once: mind, body and spirit.

Grizzly Pear Jr.

By Justus

word art from the suburban desert

Justus is an incredibly talented photographer and a viewer of the world through a quirky lens.

- Fran Gardner

Ring Around the Basin

By Sue Cauhape

Poetry, stories, and essays about the beauty of the Great Basin, Truckee and Santa Cruz, and Utah. Welcome to Ring Around the Basin.

Illustrated Life

By Amy Cowen

Connecting the dots between creative habit, drawing, writing, memory, gratitude, and making art in the margins. Plus, free Illustrate Your Week prompts for keeping an illustrated journal to document YOUR life. 🏳️‍🌈

Amy writes from the heart, and she does it well. She’s been doing it for years and yet her voice is still fresh and cogent.

- Fran Gardner

Bookworm

By Amy Wang

What I'm reading

Footnotes and Tangents

By Simon Haisell

Slow reads of great books. Book guides and a reading community to help you get more from the best stories.

Juke

By Tonya Morton

A creative journal with dirt in the corners.

Good writers explore music and life

- Fran Gardner

Trish Tails

By Dishkitty

Hi. I draw a diary comic every day. Some of them are pretty good! Sign up, you'll love it.

About half shot

By Eric Mortenson

Oregon, family, journalism, bad golf, history, politics, writing, cooking, gardening. dogs and cats, and probably some other things.

An old colleague at The Oregonian who’s offbeat and funny.

- Fran Gardner

Administrivia by Deb Amlen

Adventures in fermenting, wine making, growing food, and the world at large.

Rob Melton

Education, writing, humor, family, photography, nature

Telltale Crumbs from Maggie Stiefvater

Fiction. Craft. Mixed Media.

I’m all about story, but I read Maggie Stiefvater because I’m trying to figure out how her mind works. She’ll be writing along and suddenly there’s this bomb of an idea.

- Fran Gardner

Your Local Epidemiologist

By Katelyn Jetelina

Providing a direct line of "translated" public health science to you

Everything Is Amazing

By Mike Sowden

A newsletter about asking better questions & a romp through science in search of a good "wow!" you can feel down to your boots.

It’s science with feeling and a big dose of quirkiness

- Fran Gardner

Subtle Maneuvers

By Mason Currey

A twice-monthly newsletter on the creative process, with lessons and insights from novelists, painters, poets, filmmakers, and musicians delivered to your inbox every other Tuesday. From the author of Daily Rituals: How Artists Work.

The Corners by Nadia Bolz-Weber

Grace for fuck-ups. Prayer for the impious. A space for spiritual misfits.

#The100DayProject Newsletter

By Lindsay Jean Thomson

#The100DayProject is a free, global art project. Every year, thousands of people all around the world commit to 100 days of creating. Anyone can participate (yes, that means you!). Subscribe to get updates and daily creative prompts.

Culture Study

By Anne Helen Petersen

Think more about the culture that surrounds you

Her writing about community and connection resonates. She lives on Lummi Island in Puget Sound.

- Fran Gardner

The Half Marathoner

By Terrell Johnson

A running newsletter that isn't (just) about running

Becoming

Recommended by Fran Gardner