Your read of the day! 👇🏼👇🏼👇🏼

Casual swearing used by politicians, CEOs, etc. to sound “passionate” & “real” has become the cultural equivalent of when all of our parents joined & ruined Facebook.

As ever.

Just to be clear: Today was his official declaration of war on the United States, and all its people.

“At some point” is telling, but I’m more focused on @chrismurphyct.bsky.social referring to “the opposition” as other people. The Dems are now just admitting they’ve abandoned us.

Some true things (a non-exhaustive list): --Kindness is never a mistake. --Libraries are wonderful. --You should drink more water than you are. --If you're grouchy, eat something. --No one is perfect. Pedestals are not safe for anyone. --Love is the answer to a lot of questions. --You are valuable.

Chuck Schumer, in an hour from now: The president plans to flood the streets with military personnel to oppress innocent people, but what he should be flooding the streets with is tax credits for the middle class!

We’re seeing in real time the costs of our education system (mostly) teaching WW2 as it related to American history only. Many of us learned about Pearl Harbor, the holocaust, and how we saved the day & unless we decided to learn about pre-1939 Germany on our own, that’s about it.

Everything is a lot, but at least I finally went to the new Brooklyn horror bookstore, Twisted Spine & got these beauties. 🖤

“Did they only bring back Kimmel because they thought everyone would be raptured by tonight?” is a super normal thought I just had because we live in truly stupid times.

To any UK Taskmaster fans out there, two questions: - Is Phil’s whole vibe *always* “season 1 Xander Harris?” What’s his deal? - So “gray yogurt” is just a thing everyone accepts as normal?

More like this, please.

Big news at my former agency! You’re in good hands, CB authors.

Didnt catch this last night & love the commitment. I wish there were more fun moments like this in the mostly joyless broadcast.

Jeff Hiller wins!!!! 😭 Best part of the Emmys (and year?) so far. If you still haven’t watched the absolute joy that is Somebody Somewhere, please treat yourself!

Reminder that one thing that made this site good initially was that we sorta agreed to not re-post a bunch of objectionable crap by assholes into our friends’ TLs, even if just to say “look at this asshole.” The vibe was better when we just blocked those chumps and moved on.

in retrospect, there’s probably never been a name as threatening as “America Online”

I Want to Burn This Place Down (Ecco, 2025)

Love that I could hear Dennis Duffy as he says this. “Hey dummy, just because I’m hot doesn’t mean I need to do stuff.”

I did the @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social scavenger hunt yesterday & before the news tries to say otherwise, it was a DELIGHT! Super organized and friendly and full of nerdy NYC history facts & strangers cheering each other on. The Mamdani team was so impressive.

Is it me or are similes reproducing in manuscripts lately like gremlins doused in water? (😉) I am finding myself slashing more of them than ever & distracted by them in submissions. Authors: be judicious w/ similes. Make them count, & trust your descriptions to do the work the rest of the time!

This is such a fun way to get people excited about a political process while learning NYC history & getting out and about in the city. Cuomo is trying so hard to mock this because genuine sincerity & enthusiasm elude him.

Not only is there a new Spike Lee movie in theaters this weekend, but I also just saw Weapons & PLEASE go see this excellent horror film in theaters. It is an experience. There’s an abundance of non-franchise & original movies coming out & I am here for them.

100% Most Spike movies are, but Summer of Sam especially. Go watch it on this sweaty NYC weekend.

Writers: I am currently scheduling editorial services for October & November - let's work together on that novel you swore you'd finish by the end of the year! Check out what I edit, who I am, & how to reserve your spot here: www.nextchapteredits.com

I'm sorry you're so lonely that you're on the verge of radicalization, have you considered talking to someone about their interests and learning something new?

One of the reasons I like Bluesky is that it’s not the anxiety-inducing self-promo game that Twitter was & we can just chill out here. But! I will say I did buy @peterbcounter.com’s book because I followed him on Bluesky first & thought he was interesting.

If your social feeds this week have contained only the world’s horror and none of the profoundly moving words from poet Andrea Gibson, please search their name. In their good-bye to life, and in the depth of love they inspired in their friends, they gave us everything we don’t deserve but need. 💙

Trend of the week - getting signed up for random Substacks against my will. (Please don't do this, writers!)

Never a good sign when book people are talking about David Brooks… 🙅🏻‍♀️

Experts say a possible cure for the epidemic of male loneliness is to resist and abolish ICE.

Spoke with a nice staffer in Gillibrand’s DC office just now & he had to listen to me almost cry while expressing my anger & disappointment in her. Calling matters. If you don’t get through to one office, try another: www.gillibrand.senate.gov/office-locat...

Andrew Cuomo won’t take a hint that New Yorkers don’t want him. It’s almost like he’s a notorious abuser who won’t take no for an answer.

Love this. I've been rolling my eyes at headlines crediting Mamdani's connection with "the youth" for his win. Yes, it's a huge part of it. But everyone I know who canvassed for him are in their 40s & 50s and I saw folks even older out there too. The party shift isn't just generational.

Hey NYC, let’s all not rank Cuomo again today just for fun!

In non-political news, this morning I realized the 7,000-word unnecessary backstory I cut from my WIP can be repurposed as a standalone folk horror short story, so at least there’s that. 🖤

Trying to explain to my former Gen Z intern what the second Iraq War was like (he was 1 when it started), and honestly: Just know that every war in my lifetime has been started by a Republican president. Please remember that, no matter what bucket of lies the GOP tries to sell you, younger voters.

I usually forget to share newsletter pieces because I tend to dismiss it as “just a little thing I do.” And it is, but on Saturday I wrote about staying home with my feelings while everyone else marched & maybe you’ll relate. buttondown.com/SarahLaPolla...

Watching this video on repeat as a form of therapy. 🔥

“Widely coveted.” I mean, girl, I guess.

Writers: I’ll be updating my full ms editorial services/rates at the end of summer! I have spots open for Aug. & Sept. if you want to reserve at my current rates from now. Info here: www.nextchapteredits.com

Every headline I’ve seen has referred to Jonathan Joss’s death as a result of “a dispute.” It wasn’t. He was murdered. This statement from his husband is devastating.

👇🏼 (Agent & publisher friends, before you get sold on AI to do a “quick edit” for your authors, please remember your freelance colleagues!)

If you call yourself a writer but you are using AI to complete yr story you aren't writing you're playing MadLibs And dnt compare AI to Spellcheck That's like comparing a Terminator to a dictionary. You're playing semantics But u probably dont know what that word means cuz u ain't really a writer

Can we have them be co-mayors, please? As a treat?