If you missed Part 1, I’m sharing all the Substacks I’m subscribed to, in the hope that you can find some gorgeous reading material for this Slanket-and-Bailey’s week we have coming up (or, as I’ve always enjoyed it being called, the Christmas Perineum). You can find part 1 here:
As before, I’ve attempted some kind of categorisation for some of these, but bear with me because I don’t think The Wheel are going to be knocking down my door any time for help anytime soon:
Niche interests & deep dives
a.k.a. one of the things I love about Substack the most: the fact that people use it as a platform to talk about fairly niche things that they’re passionate about, but haven’t necessarily found a home elsewhere. There’s nothing I love more than people sharing their enthusiasms!
byMonica describes Dearest as “irreverent but loving” and I couldn’t explain her monthly dispatches in the world of antique jewellery and online auctions better. I love poring over her picks, and learning the story behind each piece.
byAmelia’s only just joined Substack — literally in the past couple of weeks — but I’ve been subscribed to her Tinyletter for years, and I always clear my schedule when it arrives in my inbox. You might recognise her as the author of that secret crisp flavour Guardian article that was doing the rounds recently — every single rabbit hole she goes down is fascinating, and the world is a better place for it.
byAnne’s investigations and interviews with New York keep me tethered to one of my favourite places in the world, and to what makes it so interesting: the people there. Love from Ellie, writing this on a train with a 3 hour 20 minute delay between Grantham, UK and Retford, UK.
byThe Lunar Dispatch is a brilliant concept, with each edition tied to a particular moon. That way, I learn about 2 things in every edition.
A feast for your eyes and your brain, The Retrologist is a celebration of retro design. As a sucker for vintage Americana, this is everything I could want and more.
byI love these brief deep dives, which are always written by a super interesting person on a super interesting topic.
byDaniel interviews some exceptionally creative and brilliant people in Desire Paths, all of whom are carving their own way in the world: it’s like inspiration squared. The solo editions are great, too.
Internet & Culture
(I mean, at this point, what do these category words even mean? What is culture? What is the internet? [Non existent on this train, I tell you. hahahasendhelp]
by Nick & Kate have a creepy way of often writing exactly what I was thinking, without me knowing it yet. Time and time again I read a piece from them and go “oh god yes that’s it!” It’s a newsletter all about life online, and its ramifications offline too.
byThe only reason I’d even half be able to keep up a conversation with a true Gen Z (or, god forbid, a Gen Alpha) or my friend Harry, who is the most online person I know, is because Ryan & Allegra are across what’s going on in the zeitgeist, and I’ve just realised there’s no way of talking about the internet without sounding about 112 but trust me when they make scary things funny and funny things funnier.
byI feel this one almost needs no introduction: Hunter’s takes on the famouses of the world are some of the only takes that matter. Belly laughs abound.
bywho you might recognise as the WP who inspired this whole series — Will’s a brilliant writer with lots of fab stuff to say. (He’s a longform journalist in a [corporate job person]’s body — his investigation into a flatearth convention left me flabbergasted.)
byWhen I said above that Hunter Harris’ takes were some of the only ones that matter, that was because the other ones are Evan’s.
byNews and thinkpieces from brilliantly unapologetic fangirls? Inject it into my veins.
I love Rachel’s explanations of celebrity and culture, really digging into the whys as well as the whos and the whats.
Authors
Another nebulous category! Substacks from authors whose books I read and loved.
I love Otegha’s writing about everything, from her books to her articles to her tweets, and now we get a monthly deepdive on her favourite fashion finds. Divine.
byPandora’s thoughtful recommendations and nuanced conversations were a mainstay of The High Low, and she brings them to us on her Substack Books + Bits, where I always either learn something new or find something new to love.
byI adore Samantha Irby, and here’s proof: I guffaw at every single edition of who was on judge mathis today? that she releases, despite the fact that I don’t know who judge mathis is, have never seen it, and don’t even know if it exists on British TV. She is so brilliant.
byIf you follow me on instagram, you know I make no secret of my love for Bella’s writing: she helped me understand my OCD and anxiety in a way I’d never seen represented before. Every newsletter she writes is as generous as it is thought-provoking.
byAnother writer who I felt incredibly seen by, as the kids would say: Daisy’s Substack is full of sparkling gems on unleashing your creativity and standing in its power.
byIf you haven’t read We All Want Impossible Things, I implore you to do so: it’s one of my favourite books of the year. I was thrilled to find that Catherine brings her signature ease and hilarity to substack.
I mean, does this need any explanation? IT’S LIZ GILBERT.
byAmanda is the author of wordslut, Cult-ish and the upcoming The Age of Magical Overthinking — she’s basically everything I want to be.
byI’ve followed Nova’s work for years now, and love now following her here, the perfect place for larger conversations.
byI had the pleasure of meeting Madeleine earlier this year, and she’s as lovely in person as she is in your inbox.
byI adore Seyi’s brilliant work with Glitch, so she was an immediate follow on here too.
byJustin turns his hand so deftly to everything he touches on: from Madonna to the patriarchy, and everything in between.
byI’m a new subscriber to It’ll Be Fun, They Said, and that one’s on me frankly: I should have been following from the very start, because Jess’s writing is warm and funny and brilliant.
byCame for the Rightmove roundups, stayed for absolutely every word Sophie Heawood commits to page/screen.
byI’ve never cried at a book like I cried at Nobody Will Tell You This But Me, Bess’ memoir of her relationship with her grandma. It was poignant and hopeful and hilarious and devastating all at once, and Bess weaves all of this masterfully in her Substack too.
byThroughout her career as a journalist working in the music industry, Hannah’s always approached her work with sensitivity and nuance (she’s the author of one of my favourite books, Fangirls: Scenes From Modern Music Culture.) Here, she releases BTS/unreleased snippets of interviews, as well as original pieces.
Bolu could write the shipping forecast* and I would devour it — she is the author I will always credit with getting me back into reading with her brilliant book Love In Colour.
*I don’t know what the shipping forecast is
Roundups
Ok, it’s about to get meta - a roundup of the Substacks I subscribe to that are also roundups.
byEleanor’s roundups are always full of fascinating links to things I’d never have found otherwise — as the name suggests, these are interesting times, and she chronicles them brilliantly.
byIf you, like everyone else on this earth, are a fan of Cup of Jo, you’ll love Big Salad from Jo herself.
byPreviously Girls’ Night In, Downtime is a brilliant delivery of links, recipes, books, and bits — like a curation of all the coolest, cosiest and cutest things you could find.
byCaitlin is the person I like to pretend I am at dinner parties; and the way I can successfully pull off that ruse is via her newsletter, which rounds up fascinating stories and articles and plonks them under my nose.
& byWhy wouldn’t you want an incredible letter or list delivered to your inbox? As well as being a veritable treasure trove of people throughout history, both of these newsletters are excellent examples of content tied to particular times of the year — Valentine’s Day, for example. I’d love to know how he categorises the catalogue…
byA round-up of the “quiet, odd and poetic web”. A lovely antidote to hyperproductivity.
this is great. as a newbie here, I can't wait to jump on in!
❤️️❤️️ Appreciate you!