Begin Again

Here's what you can expect from my Substack community: honest essays on faith, motherhood, creativity, health, ministry, and more. Plus plenty of content just for fun!

Welcome to my cozy corner of the internet!

Maybe you are here from Instagram or my former email community (the OG Wild Abide). Maybe you are new to following along with my life and writing or maybe you are a rare few who have been along for the ride since I was an 8th grader blogging in 2008. Blesssss. However you stumbled into this space, welcome! I am beyond thrilled you’re here.

I’ve been writing online in various capacities since 2008. Which somehow was 16 years ago? Is that real life? Over time, I’ve changed… along with the breakneck pace of the internet. From writing for my photography business to starting an online community called The Wild Abide complete with a merch shop, live events, and releasing a self-published devotional book, my online writing has taken many forms.

In 2020, the internet got noisy. Yes, it’s always been loud, but I tried to release a book during a pandemic and despite hustling my heart out, felt like I was screaming into the void. Add to that the social, political, and spiritual unrest that was happening in our world, and I was going through my own inner unrest and struggling to find my voice.

Then in 2021, I had a 1 week notice and I became a foster mother of 3 amazing siblings overnight. While I thought it’d be temporary and surely, we’d be one of those foster families with kids in and out of our home, two of those kids never left and two more of their siblings moved in a year later. For forever.

The blur of motherhood is real. I don’t resent or regret losing parts of myself in the process. I like who I am today. I love my life. It’s all worked out in a way that gives me deep peace. But I’ve missed writing. It will probably never look quite like it once did, with copious amounts of free time, but I’m hopeful there’s new depth to how I see the world and communicate now.

Why Substack? And why now?

I first heard about Substack from

Kate Eskuri, DNP

who is one of my favorite creators on the internet. It turns out, this platform is so cool. While there’s freedom here to do a variety of things (podcast-type audio recordings, community chats, short-form content), the main bread and butter is long-form writing.

Yes. That’s my jam. (To go on the bread and butter ;))

I’ve taken time to lurk and what I’ve found has excited me. People are sharing essays and blog-style content in a way that reminds me of 2008, but with better technology. It has the feeling of a more intimate and personal space. Because Substack is fueled by a subscription model instead of ads, the focus is on connection with the reader instead of views, traffic, and advertisers. There are lots of possibilities for this platform and that excites me.

The itch to return to writing and creating and sharing with the world has been strong lately. I’ve settled into my life, into having four kids in our home and being a stay-at-home mom, in a way that has freed up some brain space. After losing my first pregnancy recently, the urge to take on a new project feels therapeutic.

But I don’t just want to write for myself. Yes, I love journaling. Yes, I want to play with fiction ideas privately this year. But for me, the magic has always come through community.

You make this worthwhile. Writing for you makes my work feel a little less like navel gazing and a little more like “Let’s share our stuff, I’ll go first.” And when I’m tempted to think, who would want to read about my life and what I’m learning? I remember that my favorite authors are Hannah Brencher and Shauna Niequist. I love a good memoir, but I think I love reflections from life in the form of short essays the most. It’s always been what I’ve been drawn to since I was a teenager. It’s not for everyone, but it’s for someone and the chances are, if you are still reading this, it’s for you.

This is a community.

I don’t want to preach at you. I want to engage with you. I’ve always wanted my writing to feel like you’re curled up on my couch with a cup of coffee or tea.

I’m excited for discussion threads and Q&As (where I ask you for input too) and more chances to interact beyond DMs. Maybe a virtual book club? Your feedback and ideas are valuable. Instead of shouting into the abyss on Instagram, this is more like a cozy pen pal situation.

So like… what’s your niche?

I hate niches. Sorry. I’ve tried. I always feel so boxed in and burned out so fast. That’s not to say I’m without clarity and direction. If you’re here for expert advice on one topic, you aren’t in the right place. If you’re here to connect with a human who will share their life with you, you’re in the right place.

You’ll find essays here on faith and following Jesus in the messy middle. You’ll find writings on motherhood, infertility, and loss. I’ll share about creativity, health (mental and physical), and the books that I’m reading. I want this to be a space for mostly deep chats with fun lifestyle shares mixed in.

As far as paid subscriptions go, I’m offering that feature from the beginning because there is some content I’d love to write about in a slightly more private setting. If I’m going to share more in-depth about healing from my miscarriage or church hurt, I’d rather have that content behind a paywall for people who are invested in my writing (for less than the cost of a cup of coffee). I’ll continue to add additional features for paid subscribers as well.

There will always be a mix of free and paid content, so don’t let budget keep you from subscribing and being part of the crew!

Let’s see where this takes us!

I’m just so excited to connect. You being here and coming along on this journey with me is such a joy.

Drop a comment below saying hi! Tell me about your life and what you’d like to see in this space! Oh, and if you have been following my writing over the years, let me know when we first connected. If you have been here since 2008, I probably owe you a free paid membership. ;)

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If you are feeling like “this Substack thing is so intriguing!” Then join the club! I’d love to follow along with your writing as well.