I miss getting letters in the post.
There's nothing quite like the excitement that accompanies receiving something delivered from a dear friend. While I no longer get regular snail mail from my penpals (blame the internet), I've found something that fills me with similar levels of joy: email newsletters.
In my mind, newsletters are the new snail mail (stay with me, please).
Newsletters aren't just fodder for your trash folder, they can be genuinely useful. Hopeless romantics, read interviews about love. Plant-lovers, hear from a green-fingered urban gardener. Freelancers, find out how to get regular work and a steady income.
Here are some of the best-loved newsletters offering up wisdom on how to live your life better.
Conversations on Love
A newsletter which explores love one chat at a time, Conversations on Love investigates different matters of the heart through the medium of interviews and personal essays. Written by journalist Natasha Lunn, it features interviews with Esther Perel, Alain de Botton, Diana Evans, and Jeanette Winterson. "I try to dig up truths that help readers to better understand their relationships — and themselves," says Lunn.
Noughticulture
For plant lovers and green-fingered millennials, Noughticulture is a newsletter about gardening as well as everyday sources of joy. Alice Vincent, author of Rootbound: Rewilding a Life, shares her adventures in urban gardening "40ft up" in south London. It's beautifully written and often reads like poetry.
The Roundup
A weekly newsletter full of ideas, useful tips, recommendations, and articles to read from the folks at Women Who — a community for working women founded by Otegha Uwagba. The Roundup will land in your inbox every Wednesday — the perfect antidote to hump day blues.
The Single Supplement
Happily single and tired of being asked when you'll settle down? Firstly: good for you. Secondly: subscribe to this uplifting and thoughtful newsletter for single women. Written by journalist and fellow singleton Nicola Slawson, you'll find words of encouragement, notes on societal pressures, and honest reflections on what it's like to be a 30-something single woman in a world that wants you to couple up.
The Professional Freelancer
Contrary to what Sex And The City might have told you, being a freelance writer isn't always the most lucrative of professions. (In my own experience, I found it really tough to make ends meet.) But this newsletter, written by journalist Anna Codrea-Rado, is all about making a sustainable living as a freelance scribe. This weekly mail-out will teach you how to get regular work and earn a steady income.
Freelance Feels
Speaking of freelancing, Freelance Feels covers mental health and wellbeing for anyone who's self-employed. Written by journalist Jenny Stallard, this monthly missive provides advice and experiences about the challenges that come with being your own boss.
Read a Girl
For bookworms wanting to increase the number of women authors in their reading pile. Expect a monthly recommendation of a book written by a woman. Read a Girl is made for readers wanting to broaden their reading lists, or people simply looking for a good tip for their next read.
Half and Half
A newsletter about "immigrants, food, and how Britain is shaped by both." Written by Rachael Krishna, this is a fascinating deep dive into British food culture and immigrants' relationship with food.
The Naughty Step
Calling all exhausted parents. Self-described "knackered journalist, knackered mum" Robyn Wilder pens a newsletter full of parenting hacks, interviews with parents doing things differently, guest columns, recipes, and night-feed reading. The Naughty Step costs £1/month ($1.30) to receive the email every other Saturday, or £3.50/month ($4.55) to get it every Saturday.
Sofie (Sits Down with a Cup of Tea and) Writes a Letter
Your fave Danish comedian, fat acceptance activist, and non-binary human Sofie Hagen has a brilliant fortnightly newsletter featuring funny stories, advice, news about gigs, and thoughtful mental health commentary. Every other Wednesday, Hagen talks about sexuality, gender, pronouns, fatness, and therapy. Guaranteed to make you laugh and feel things.
The Hyphen
Emma Gannon — author of The Multi-Hyphen Method — brings you a brand new newsletter "all about living a life more curious." In it, you'll find career inspiration, podcasts to listen to, as well as lovely book recommendations. If you're a fan of Gannon's Ctrl Alt Delete podcast, this is for you.
