Subscribe
Sign in
Home
Essays + Reviews
Craft Lessons
The Art of Interviews
Diaries
Roundups
Rejected
Archive
About
we don't need escapism in 2026, we need optimism
on the rise of escapist fiction and what it means for us and the stories we tell
Jan 27
•
Haili Blassingame
14
2
the hot bookseller: or a story about trying to date like it's 1998
maybe don't hit on employees at your local bookstore???
Jan 12
•
Haili Blassingame
91
14
6
my 12 favorite substacks of the year
<3
Dec 29, 2025
•
Haili Blassingame
44
20
8
Most Popular
View all
leave ocean vuong alone, fuck!
Aug 14, 2025
•
Haili Blassingame
712
79
129
where are all the literary romance writers?
Nov 28, 2025
•
Haili Blassingame
658
127
72
how i sold my debut novel in a week
Jul 25, 2025
•
Haili Blassingame
348
75
27
let katie kitamura have her $24 lip gloss, damn!
Apr 19, 2025
•
Haili Blassingame
288
40
40
my modern love essay changed my life
Oct 15, 2024
•
Haili Blassingame
258
34
24
i'm a literary fiction writer but i read more romance in 2024 than any other genre
Jan 2, 2025
•
Haili Blassingame
124
29
14
Diaries
View all
10:41
writer & the city: the sophomore novel slump
Dear diehards,
Aug 12, 2025
•
Haili Blassingame
4
2
writer & the city: saturday protests in the nation's capital
what is the point of protest anyway?
Apr 5, 2025
•
Haili Blassingame
1
4:35
diary: missed connection in december
to the guy on the red line: 1998 called and she wants her craigslist ad back
Dec 16, 2024
•
Haili Blassingame
5
3
6:03
writer & the city: this novel wants me dead
back to revision jail, but with the promise of parole
Oct 31, 2024
•
Haili Blassingame
4
9:59
writer & the city: reporting live from revision jail
Listen now | oh, just on the 10th round of revisions for this godforsaken novel
Aug 17, 2024
•
Haili Blassingame
10
2
2
15:25
Roundups
View all
03 | what i read and listened to this week
plus spells I cast on the country, oops!!
Sep 2, 2025
•
Haili Blassingame
15
2
2
02 | what i read and listened to this week
another lazy list
Jun 1, 2025
•
Haili Blassingame
12
5
1
01 | what i read and listened to this week
the laziest list you ever did see
Feb 13, 2025
•
Haili Blassingame
15
winter is upon us: a december roundup
the best things I've bought this winter with my own big girl money
Dec 10, 2024
•
Haili Blassingame
23
2
i'm not like other autumn roundups!
season re-reads + fall and her mysteries + an october oracle reading
Oct 2, 2024
•
Haili Blassingame
7
1
Craft Lessons
#2 Craft Lesson: Demystifying Voice in Writing
what people mean when they say a piece of writing is "voice-y"
Sep 16, 2024
•
Haili Blassingame
8
1
#1 Craft Lesson: Writing Tension
the thing that makes you turn the page
Aug 21, 2024
•
Haili Blassingame
6
2
The Art of Interviews
The Art of Being A Full-Time Writer
with New York Times bestselling author Jami Attenberg
Sep 9, 2024
•
Haili Blassingame
58
2
11
The Art of Being an NPR Host
with 1A host Jenn White
Aug 28, 2024
•
Haili Blassingame
7
4
1
This site requires JavaScript to run correctly. Please
turn on JavaScript
or unblock scripts
