Ain't A Grand
Writing is free...for now
WHAT I COOKED
I roasted fresh okra, grape tomatoes, and feta and made a dish.
WHAT I WROTE
I started blogging in 2004, so I have been writing online for 22 years. First, I was on Blogspot (before Google acquired it). Then, I was on Typepad (RIP). Then, I bought my domain (NichelleStephens.com) and moved my blog to WordPress.
Now, I rarely post on my personal blog. Currently, I write on my Substack.
Substack is my fourth newsletter platform. In the past, I have used to employ newsletters Topica, Constant Contact and MailChimp.
I have been writing newsletters for so long that people have mistakenly thought that my last name is Newsletter. (LOL.)
I want to write a book. I need to write more than once a week, so I am going to post more often here.
Jami Attenberg has inspired many people to write with the Jami Attenberg 1000 words challenge. I remember when I met Jami before her first book was published. We both performed at this reading series up in Morningside Heights near Columbia University. She gave out copies of her zine/chap book of Instant Love which would eventually become her first book.
Discipline is necessary to be a writer. I lack discipline. However, sometimes I think of something to write as I am walking, showering, or running errands. I remember Michael Keaton’s character in the movie Night Shift (1982) and he carried a tape recorder to record good ideas. I try to collect good ideas and write them down. I do more than one type of writing. Some of my ideas are premises for jokes. Some are for future essays.
SIDENOTE: Jay-Z did a freestyle at the Roots Picnic last weekend, and young people keep talking about how old he is. Last year, Clipse was praised for their album, Let God Sort Em Out. Jay-Z is 57. Malice is 53. Why is ageism conditional?!
When people ask me my age, I don’t tell them. I am not vain. I just know that people and systems are ageist. I am already Black woman. I don’t need another “ism” to be formed against me.
Toni Morrison published her first novel when she was 39, and she became famous when she was in her fifties. There is no age barrier to being a writer. I have to keep writing to stay alive.