Happy Spring! Sibling Loss Book Club, Comics Lit Vol. 1 and more!

Hello All! 

And welcome to my newsletter, now on Substack. This is still a free newsletter. Sadly, the old home for my newsletter, Tiny Letter, closed and I needed to find a new spot. This is where I landed.

It's been a busy and beautiful Spring! After a very rainy winter in LA there was a lot of talk about super blooms, but we didn't have one, mostly because of the cold and rain that hung on well into April. And yet, it's still been a gorgeous spring here and I've enjoyed the flowers, cool breezes and mostly blue skies.

Sibling Loss Website and Book Club

As many of you know, my brother Michael died when I was 10 years old. It was devastating and yet, we kept living, and didn't talk that much about him, other than in passing. Over the years, my stomach would tie in knots every time someone asked me,

"How many siblings do you have?"

The present tense would throw me. 

"Well, I have three."

But that felt like a lie. I grew up with four. I feel like my four brothers provided much of the foundation (faulty or not) for my young life. But I didn't know how to talk about it and so I didn't. During the pandemic I was introduced to Lynn Shattuck's writing on sibling loss, she gave words to so many things I'd felt and thought. Her writing was a gift to me and helped me grieve, all these years later. And then we became friends. What a joyous surprise. 

Eventually, we began talking about expanding ideas Lynn has been working on for years. Along with Molly Fowkes, we are building a sibling loss community with a gorgeous website, designed and built by Molly (that will continue to grow and evolve). I'm so proud of all of our work. We have our first sibling loss book club next week, Monday, May 13th with author Anne Pinkerton and her book, Were You Close?(Another question I would get asked that would tie my stomach in knots). And we have many more book clubs planned.

Lynn and I are also co-editing an anthology on Sibling Loss, entitled, The Loss of a Lifetime: Advice from Grieving Siblings on Loss, Love and Hope. And as we edit the anthology, we are incredibly moved by all the writing of our peers.

Comics Lit, Vol. 1

Speaking of essay collections, I'm thrilled to share that Comics Lit, Vol. 1 will be published October 2nd. I contributed an essay on Black Widow and I loved the opportunity to think and write about all that she means to me.
Here's the fantastic cover!

Here are our pre-order links! You can purchase directly from the publisher for a 15% discount, or at full price at the usual A & B options. Here's a snippet of the blurb: "This essay collection illustrates that modern pop culture characters are direct descendants of classic works of literature."

Where I'm From 
A weekly dose of joy for me. So grateful for everyone who participates! Please let me know if you are interested in joining me. The more the merrier!

#127 Nicole Graev Lipson
#128 joj
#129 Joanna Rakoff
#130 Jocelyn Jane Cox
#131 Debbie Weiss
#132 Mimi Zieman
#133 Megan Hutchings
#134 Jenny Bartoy
#135 Annie Finch
#136 Diane Gottlieb
#137 Anna Abraham Gasaway
#138 Melinda Gordon Blum
#139 Nikki Andrew
#140 Alana Omolayole

Femme On
So many fun conversations with incredible people, and what a treat to sit down with George Ella Lyon for a chat for National Poetry Month. George Ella is a funny, honest and engaging person when talking about anything and her wisdom about creativity is a balm. Love any excuse to talk with her.

Most recent Femme On Creatives episodes:
*With George Ella Lyon: Alyson and George Ella discuss poetry, her Where I'm Frompoem, the creative life and more!
*With Sarah Gristwood: Ria and Alyson speak with best-selling feminist author, Sarah Gristwood, about her just released book, Secret Voices: A Year of Women's Diaries
* With Kim Rowe: Ria speaks with Kim and Alyson about a framework they created entitled; Me, Shining that focuses on female friendships and how they mirror parts of ourselves.

Most recent Fine Cut episodes:
Megan Hutchings - The family scene from the 2006 film, Candy.
Jessica Waite - The reunion scene in the 2015 film Room.
Michelle Yang - The restaurant scene in the 2024 TV show, Mr. & Mrs. Smith.

What I'm Watching
Challengers I just saw this movie last night. And for anyone who knows me, Call Me By Your Name (also directed by Luca Guadagnino) is one of my faves. It's sexy as hell, gorgeous to watch and emotionally resonant. I would say the same for Challengers. Plus, I grew up watching and playing tennis and felt like they nailed so much of the dynamics, physicality and language of the sport.

What I'm Reading
A Ghost in the Throat by Doireann Ní Ghríofa  A compelling book about obsession and how it shapes our lives. Doireann is an Irish poet who finds herself wrapped up in her young family and in her stolen moments, the life and work of 18th century Irish poet, Eibhlín Dubh Ní Chonaíl. It is an exploration of female texts and their often invisible nature, at least in the eyes of history.
The Future by Naomi Alderman A fictional book (from the author of The Power) about a potential near future that starts out, a bit dark, but I think it finds its way through the challenges to a place I would call hopeful. And the research is incredibly impressive.
Impossible People: A Completely Average Recovery Story by Julia Wertz A graphic memoir about the ups and downs of recovery. I loved the graphic nature of this book, it took a potentially heavy story and infused it with levity.


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Much love, Alyson