10 Reads from Midlife Writers To Help You Through This Week

And also maybe do you want to write a book?

Here in the US, it’s the day before our Election.

None of us know what’s going to happen. We don’t know who will win, or how they will win, or what the immediate reaction will be, or what comes after the victory/loss.

I do know one thing. During times of anxiety and uncertainty, I read to make sense of my world, to quiet or distract my mind, to process what’s happening, to think through possibilities, to immerse myself in storytelling.

Here are 10 posts by midlife writers — many from our Midstack community for women writing on Substack — that I’m thinking about:

1. This poem by

   Hilary Connors
   of
   Hilary’s Harvest

2. This piece of advice from

   Melinda Wenner Moyer
   in “How To Manage Election Night (and Beyond) With Kids”: “Experts told me you don’t have to lie to your kids and say Everything will be fine — but they did say it’s important to emphasize that you will take care of them no matter what.”

3. These “beautiful remarkable things” by

   Charlene Alofs

4. Reflections on a year on Substack by

   Beth Kempton
   : “What I Really Want You To Know”

5. This essay on “Choosing Love Over Fear in Menopause” by

   Kristi Koeter
   in
   Almost Sated
   and its call to cultivate a different mindset about growing older in a world of fear about aging

6. This argument for “Personal Narrative as a Force for Cultural Progress” by

   Brooke Warner
   in
   Writerly Things with Brooke Warner
   : “What we writers can do, what we do every time we sit down to write, is to keep shining that light. Personal narrative is testimony. Your voice and your story will matter equally, regardless of the outcome of Tuesday’s election. Writing changes the culture. Your story matters.”

7. This essay on learning (unsuccessfully) “How To Scream” where

   Lisa Renee
   of
   The Long Middle
   writes: “What does this mean? Why and when did I lose the ability to roar? I’m sure I filled the big world with my own thunder when I was a tiny girl — why now, when the world is so rage-making and life has piled up the insults for 60 years, now when there’s so much to scream about, am I unable to access it?”

8. This essay by

   Jeannie Ewing
   of
   I Grow Strong Again
   on how “good writing acts as both window and mirror.”

9. The positive news meant to soothe our minds in “Your Body Wasn’t Built To Handle Three Trump Elections” by

   Liz Plank
   of
   Airplane Mode with Liz Plank

10. This beautiful story of love, chosen family, and intergenerational friendship by

    Chris J. Rice
    in
    Oldster Magazine
    .

Is it time for your book? Do you have a book inside you?

Our next four-week, hands-on writing workshop will start November 13th. It’s for midlife women who want to write a book. The workshop is four weeks of planning: getting clear on your “big idea,” your goals, your vision, your book’s structure, and your options for publication.

💬 What are you reading right now to help you through this week? Tell us in the comments.