Beginnings are hard
Should I really start a newsletter in 2026? Why yes, I think I will!
You stare at a blank page and wonder: where do I start? It’s the same no matter what you are doing. Whether it’s the beginning of an idea, a script, a new writer’s room, a dive into the ocean of a freelance career, or even the start of a new newsletter…
So how did I get here?
I’ve written newsletters before. In fact, when I moved to London and found out that not only could you read your poetry aloud to strangers, but you could do it every night, I started an event newsletter. I’d list the one or two literature events I’d be at, then list everything else happening in the U.K. for the month. At the same time, I also blogged about my experience as a Canadian who immigrated to the U.K. I did both for 3 years or so, and it really helped me build a community in a new country.
After that, I dabbled in different formats, sharing the news of my plays on stage or my films at festivals. I did online poetry projects, writing poems inspired by photos my sister took, but the newsletter and short bursts of writing felt disjointed, and I found it hard to keep up.
Fast-forward to a year ago…my friend encouraged me to start a Substack. I was really on the fence and just didn’t know what it could be about — horror stories, short fiction, new things I discovered that week — but none of it felt quite right.
Then, as I was watering my hordes of plants, I spotted a shell on my shelf and thought about a story from my life and how it related to how I look at creativity. It’s the kind of moment that happens in a writer’s room or when you’re working on a script. You take one tiny piece of your life and add it to a collection of other pieces and make something entirely new.
And so My Life in Tiny Pieces was born.
What to expect from My Life in Tiny Pieces
My plan is to do the following: start with a tiny story and an object that represents it. It will be something from my life and how it connects to my work, creativity, life, etc. It was the inspiration after all!
I’ll follow that up with sections such as:
What I’m working on this week - This will cover what I’m doing, and also how I approach it, like prepping for meetings, or starting a new outline, etc.
Things I’m loving - a link or two to books, music, shows, etc. that I’m liking right now/ listening to on repeat.
Huh? I didn’t know that - This will mostly be links to things I’ve learned that week. I expect a lot of this to be sciency and tech-forward, as that’s what I’m usually interested in, but it will be a hodgepodge.
Tip of the week - I may also add in a tip on something I had figured out when writing, so you know it, too!
I may include all the sections or just some; it depends on what works that week! If you have any thoughts or are interested in things not on that list, take my Reader Survey and let me know!
A tiny story of a shell
When I was eight, I was visiting my Grandma Taylor in the tiny town of Rimby, Alberta. My cousin, sister, and I were playing in the backyard when my aunt and my grandma returned from a garage sale, bearing gifts: my cousin got a Halloween Webble Wobble set, and I got… a box of shells. Now, I am (and was) a lover of science and rocks and many other inanimate objects, but what eight-year-old wouldn’t long for an interactive spooky house with a slide and a plethora of creepy characters to play with? Thankfully, my cousin shared with me, but, in that moment, I felt cheated that she got to go home with a toy with endless chances for play, and I got something that would sit on a shelf.
In the end, I’m glad I got those shells, as I still have them today. When I saw one of them on my shelf, it reminded me that sometimes people only see one side of you — whether it’s the last script you sent, the job you currently do, the hobby you share, or the knowledge that your niece/ grandchild had a thing for rocks/shells/science. This is probably why some writers/ agents/ managers will tell you to stay in one lane, so execs and others can remember what you specialize in (of course, I don’t think we need to put ourselves in any type of box, but that’s another topic for another day).
When I worked in advertising, I kept my filmmaking and my day job separate. I wanted to seem like a serious filmmaker, and I had been told in the past that my day job meant I was selling out, so I kept it to myself. Vice versa, I didn’t want my day job to know about what I loved to do, as I saw how they treated people who just “worked to live” instead of “live to work,” and I wanted them to believe I was the latter so I could keep my job.
It’s taken me a long time to share all the parts of me, including my winding career path. I’ve said yes to a lot. I’m curious, I’m adventurous. I even immigrated twice — in fact, until September of last year, I was actively an immigrant my whole adult life.
Sometimes I still get self-conscious about the strange and wonderful things I’ve accomplished in my life. Usually, after a story or two, someone says, “Wow, what haven’t you done,” or “You’ve done so much! Are you a vampire?” or they look at me as if I’m another hobby fisherman telling a tall tale about the “big fish” who got away. Then I get self-conscious about oversharing and clam up.
But it’s all of those yeses, those experiences, those wild moments in my life, that I can lean on in my writing. Those are the things that I can bring into a writer’s room, and they become essential when you create characters who take on the tiny pieces of your life and blow them out into something new.
Ben Watkins (showrunner/creator of Cross) once told me that everything we experience in life is like a language we have access to. The more languages we have, the more we can bring to our work. I love thinking about my old job in advertising, being a language I have rather than a yoke around my neck. It lends lightness to the good and bad moments of my life, turning them into puzzle pieces I can use later.
PROMPT: Write a list of your “languages,” no matter how small. You may surprise yourself with what you do know — and maybe even an idea may come from it!
What I’m working on this week
Setting up this Substack has taken a lot of my brain space, but the rest of the week will be focused on two things: finishing another draft of my parasitic horror feature and putting the beats of my first novel into Scrivener.
Horror feature: I ended last year in a mini-writers group my friend Dedi lovingly called “Finish your f-ing screenplay.” It was a huge help since you have to write fast and get your script out of your head. You also get feedback every week, which is fantastic when you are writing a feature. To be honest, the group pushed me in unexpected directions, and I think the script will be much better because of it.
To start revisions, I printed the script and will go through it, making small changes based on the notes I like, or marking where larger changes are needed. I have a couple of big global notes that need thinking through, so I will focus on them tomorrow.Novel: This is another project I’ve been thinking about for a couple of years, and over the holiday break, I figured out the internal and external motivation of the two main characters, and the whole structure just flowed out of me. My friend Bri suggested I use Scrivener for novel writing, so I’m giving it a try. My plan is to write a little every morning to start my day before I shift back into scripts and other business.
Some things I’m loving
My niece introduced me to KPop Demon Hunters, and I just can’t get enough. I adore the love this film (and EJAE) is getting (everyone loves an underdog story) — I was SO excited and happy and proud that EJAE won the Critics’ Choice Award for Best Song with her Golden co-writers Mark Sonnenblick, Ido, 24, and Teddy.
I’m also OBSESSED with Culinary Class Wars. The competition is great, the judges are tough but fair, and the competitors are kind to each other. This is British Bake Off turned up to 11. The second-to-last set of episodes drops tonight, and this show leaves you with the best/ worst cliffhangers. I HAVE TO KNOW WHO GETS THROUGH!!
That’s it for me this week. I hope you enjoyed my foray back into this newsletter/ blog hybrid world. Can’t wait to share more with you next week!
So glad you are here!
Welcome to Substack! I love the prompt! Looking forward to reading more!