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Irene McGuinness's avatar

This was haunting. Real. I must have not subscribed to your page until after this post because i don't remember reading it last year. I envy your tenacity and subsequent opportunity to live in Europe and write. It was a brave decision to pack it all in and go. It was this reflecting of yours that drew me in. And then it was a coup to be picked up by Liz Gilbert. Having read her work, seen her speak in person, and followed her for years, her endorsements added to your following. However I lean into your challenges abroad as it picks away at a chord in my longing heart. I live through other peoples' journeys that parallel my longings. Liz is long past that for me. And I've taken a hiatus from her for a while as a result. But you... I appreciate your honest challenges as you've written here. How you find spaces to ink your pages and what it takes to do that. Much like I appreciate other writers such as Suleika Jaouad who I've followed from Day 1 with her Isolation Journals. My journey with SJ is linked to our ongoing cancer challenges. She gives me hope in a scary health journey. ...I've digressed. I enjoyed this piece as I envisioned you sitting in the cafe with sounds around you. Listening. Writing.

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Freya Rohn's avatar

Fascinating the ways that we crave and need solitude as writers, and yet the constant admonishments--from within and without--to always be connecting, to be social, that there is something inherently wrong in solitude. I'm fascinated by such topics as well--I've written a bit about anchorites (mostly women) and other women writers who similarly were branded as "recluses" (Emily Dickinson of course, also Gunvor Hofmo (norwegian poet), Djuna Barnes, May Sarton, Alice Koller...to name a few). I can't help but think that seclusion or solitude is a radical act in a patriarchal, capitalist world. An act of refusal and empowerment. (sheepishly sharing a link to my essay about Julian of Norwich and anchorites: https://freyarohn.substack.com/p/a-guide-for-anchoresses)

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