MichaelVanKerckhove.com. Illustration by Borja Cabada
Reboot
Hello! Again! With 2022 almost a wrap, I wanted to reignite this little newsletter and play catchup before the New Year.
It’s been another minute (okay several) since I last sent an issue. Like more than two years! My planned triptych did not get past the first issue—in which I contemplated Fiction vs. CNF and my penchant for the historical. All things mentioned are still on the table. (The bullet journal thing did not take off, however, but I am still using that space for good.) Since then, the continued pandemic, a new job, etc. left my writing mostly in a state of journaling and “spewing.” Late 2021 saw the glimmer of something when I started cobbling things together for a piece about walking around my neighborhood at the height of things. If/when I finish it, it’ll probably be more only piece specifically about Covid. We all have to have at least one of those, right?
New Website
This past summer, I was really feeling the need for a writerly reboot (including this newsletter). This meant of course the actual writing and building on successes from earlier in the year. But in an effort to tidy up my digital space (along with my writerly brain), I dove into the complete overhaul of my writerly website. Gone is the clunky self-hosted Wordpress site that I’d started back in 2008 as a WP.com blog. It had grown outdated these last five years since I launched it, and I’d been neglecting upkeep in the back end. Plus it was just, a lot.
Jumping ship to Squarespace allowed me to burn it all down and reassess, reorganize, and rebuild. Now I have a place where I can confidently send friends and fans and anyone else to learn more about myself and my work. Check it out:
New Writing
2022 was off to a good start with my first started-finished-published piece since before the pandemic. In January, the fine folks at the music essay tournament March Xness published my essay Weights and Pulleys as part of their March Faxness (covers) Extracurricular Series. The piece takes on Cry Cry Cry’s cover of R.E.M.’s “Fall on Me.” I’m quite proud of the piece and was in my happy place throughout the process (okay, I felt all the feels) as it connects music to the personal—and beyond.
My Valentine’s Day was spent sharing a new piece with all those gathered at O’Shaughnessy’s Public House for Is This a Thing? All about why I just can’t quit Saturday Night Live. Another fun (and honestly overdue) piece connecting my life to this pop culture behemoth. I published the resulting piece, Right Here. Here., over on my Medium.
A Return to the Mic
While February saw my post-ish-Covid return to Is This a Thing?, I first got back behind the mic for the first time since the pandemic started last October. My writerly pal Jill Howe kicked off the open mic edition of her Story Sessions at the fabulous Sauce & Bread. So I dusted off a few things from the archives and returned this other happy place. Now I need to writer some new stuff to try out in front of the very welcoming an supportive Story Sessions audience.
I did try to snag a show booking for this past November, but it fell through. Hopefully a future edition of that show! In general, I do need to get back to attending more events now that many of the shows are back up and running—and grab a spot or two along the way.
The Year in Books 2022
2022 for me was the Year of the Audiobook thanks to the Libby app and my Chicago Public Library card. Except for a few books on CD, I’d never really gotten into them. But they were vital to my reading goals for sure. And allowed me to read my 500+ page print WWII book (see photo above) in anticipation of the miniseries while also enjoying some short story collections and memoirs read by the authors, etc.
Check out my Year in Books at Goodreads:
Oh and I Made a TikTok
Not sure how inevitable it was, but I hopped onto TikTok because Why not? I am GenXScorpio, and thus far I have a couple videos to try things out. One without me and one where I read one of my favorite high school poems. I’d actually thought of doing a high school poetry series on Instagram during lock down. But now I can post both places. It’s been fun, and I’ve found some other cool stuff on there. I will post more eventually….
Onward…
Meanwhile, I’ve (re)discovered Google Docs & Sheets. Woot! I mean, I use them all the time for work (especially those darn Sheets…) but I’ve recently started using them for writerly things. Late to the party, I know. I’ve started a new tracker for lit mags and other info. Started a few new essay ideas on separate Docs and got my phone all synced up so I have everything on the Go. Go me!
Still, I can’t leave those Docs floundering. I must continue to pick them up and give them love. New writerly goodness for 2023 and beyond…
Wishing all of YOU a Happy New Year and much success in your own endeavors.
Thank you!
Thank you so much for reading. It means a ton. See you again soonishly! (For real, this time….)
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Cheers,
Michael