“The brain appears to possess a special area which we might call poetic memory and which records everything that charms or touches us, that makes our lives beautiful.”
— Milan Kundera —
Hello, and I hope 2025 has kicked off well for you and yours.
When it comes to reaching career goals, 2024 was a big year for me. Not only did I publish my first book which became a best-seller in multiple categories in Amazon while being featured in places like Publishers Weekly and Big Think, but two of my client's books were also published — Irreplaceable by Kevin Kelley and You Belong Here by Kim Dabbs
To my utter delight, both were selected by the Financial Times as Must Reads on the same day while Kim’s book went on to win the Best Indie Book Award and Kevin’s was chosen as one of the best business books by The Next Big Idea Club.
As proud as I am of my book, I’m equally proud to have played a role in bringing Kevin and Kim’s books to life. How to design community and create belonging in today’s fractured world is my dream space and I hope to keep writing in this lane (but only if the people are as cool and devoted to their cause as Kevin and Kim).
"I’m proud of the films I’ve done because of the people I’ve worked with."
— Johnny Depp —
The year ended on a high by doing a bunch of interviews and storytelling workshops as well as starting a thriving writing community on Substack. I also recorded a course on how to tell memorable personal stories with my friend Will Myles — which I’ll be talking more about in the coming days as it will be released at the end of this month.
All said, it was a good year and I can't thank you enough for your support and coming along for the ride.
Throughout 2024, I shared a bunch of short stories and insights from the world and the good people in it. But like in all projects, there are some loose ends and I wanted to share some of my favorite things that didn't find their way into this newsletter (or if they did, and I'm including them here, it's because I adore them).
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On quotes that I read again and again
“There's an African proverb: 'When death finds you, may it find you alive.' Alive means living your own damned life, not the life that your parents wanted, or the life some cultural group or political party wanted, but the life that your own soul wants to live.”
— Michael Meade
“The bigger the issue, the smaller you write. Remember that. You don’t write about the horrors of war. No. You write about a kid’s burnt socks lying on the road. You pick the smallest manageable part of the big thing, and you work off the resonance.”
— Richard Price
“To love. To be loved. To never forget your own insignificance. To never get used to the unspeakable violence and the vulgar disparity of life around you. To seek joy in the saddest places. To pursue beauty to its lair. To never simplify what is complicated or complicate what is simple. To respect strength, never power. Above all, to watch. To try and understand. To never look away. And never, never to forget.”
— Arundhati Roy
“I like things that are labor-intensive: you make a little thing and another little thing and another little thing, and eventually you see a possibility.”
— Kiki Smith
“The only calibration that counts is how much heart people invest, how much they ignore their fears of being hurt or caught out or humiliated. And the only thing people regret is that they didn't live boldly enough, that they didn't invest enough heart, didn't love enough. Nothing else really counts at all.”
— Ted Hughes
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On the things I watched again and again
(in addition to The Bear and the first season of White Lotus as the writing in each of them are tops)
Heart Valley: A Shepard’s Life Lessons (20 minutes)
My parents sent this to me. I’ve watched it a few dozen times. When life gets complicated, it grounds me. It’s about a Welsh shepherd named Wilf Davies who works his farm alone, eats the same meal every day, and has never left his valley. I put this first for a reason. Will epitomizes simplicity, embraces the beauty around him, and feels immense gratitude for the things we often take for granted.
I could quote the whole thing but here are a few of my favorites (at least for today) —
- “Routine is very important. For me and work. It keeps your mind occupied, you know. This is my holiday.” (Can you imagine if you viewed your daily routine as your holiday?)
- “I like to be present, polite, and always helping somebody. Highly regarded qualities.”
Wes Anderson’s Adaptation of Four Roald Dahl Shorts
If you like Wes Anderson films or Roald Dahl stories, you’ll love these shorts. If you aren’t familiar with Wes Anderson films or Roald Dahl stories, you’ll love these shorts. The sets, acting, tone, and of course, the writing and dialogue are all gold.
The Last of the Sea Women
This stunning and deeply moving piece of art defines the power of the human spirit. It chronicles the Haenyeos — a band of South Korean grandmothers who have spent the entirety of their lives diving to the ocean floor without oxygen tanks to harvest their livelihood. I won’t ruin the plot too much, but in today’s modern world, their tradition is at risk. But rather than throw in the towel, the grandmothers fight to protect their way of life while inspiring a new generation to join their cause.
- “When they discover dead Haenyeos at sea, strangely enough, the Haenyeos net is always full of abalones and other seafood. As if death lured them with the bait of luck. The day they died, they must have found a jackpot.”
A Man Named Scott
I’ve mentioned this documentary various times this year. And that’s for a good reason. For me, Scott Mescudi (aka Kid Cudi) exemplifies what it means to be an artist. He is the first rapper to be truly vulnerable in his work and he opened the doors for others to do the same which has inspired a generation to talk more openly about their emotions..
Here’s Pharrell Williams on Scott Mescudi —
- “Where we come from made huge impressions on us; huge impressions on our spirits and our bodies and what we wore and how we talked. So when you mention Cudi (Scott Mescudi) and the ever-growing, ever-expanding generations of folks who do not adhere to boundaries, we’re doing it because we’re human. And it’s our right. We can’t edit what we were exposed to and what helped form the way we see the world, so we’re not going to edit the result. We now have the opportunity; we are in front of cameras, we are behind microphones, we are behind keyboards, we are the pushers of pencils and pens. And no one can tell us how to express ourselves.”
The Kings of Tupelo (Dessert)
This 3-part documentary is the perfect example of real life being stranger than fiction. Talk about characters. And twists. And turns. And don’t get me started on the genius of Moo Cow.
And without a doubt, my go-to shows to either grab a laugh or get inspired were as follows:
- Behind the Actors Studio (Youtube)
- My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman (Netflix)
- The Mark Twain Awards (Youtube)
- Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis (YouTube)
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The one article I read countless times
My friend Rob Healy is one of the most talented, intelligent, and thoughtful people I know. I mean just check out his background. I’ve devoured every post he shares on Instagram, but the one below reigns supreme for me:
The Death of Witnessing: How a 2004 Susan Sarandon Rom-Com Holds the Key to Solving Our Cultural Chaos
Here’s the Susan Sarandon quote from the film Shall We Dance that inspired the post. I hope you enjoy Rob’s beautiful brain as much as I do.
“We need a witness to our lives. There are 8 billion people on the planet … I mean, what does any one life really mean? But in a marriage, you're promising to care about everything — the good things, the bad things, the terrible things, the mundane things … all of it, all the time, every day. You're saying, ‘Your life will not go unnoticed because I will notice it. Your life will not go un-witnessed because I will be your witness.”
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On music I listened to again and again (I probably went overboard here)
This year I went back to my basics and listened to a lot of John Prine, The Grateful Dead, Willie Nelson, The Walkmen, The National, etc.
That said, I have music on twenty-four hours a day. My go-to place for new music is my friend Kevin Alexander’s Substack On Repeat Records as he turns me onto a lot of stuff I haven't come across before. And if you enjoy scattered Spotify lists, here are the 300+ songs that I listen to way too much.
Quick aside: reading lyrics while listening to music is a seriously underrated way to improve the rhythm of your writing.
Favorite songs to listen to first thing in the morning
Favorite NPR Tiny Desk Concerts
Post Malone and Dan Deacon’s performances — I love how the two of them just do their thing and make the stuff they want to hear in the world.
Favorite songs for story inspiration
Favorite rock songs
Favorite indie songs
And to end this message, I hope in 2025 you have moments that rival the happiness displayed by the drummer in this video of Dua Lupa performing her hit song Training Season.
Talk about someone loving life and a guy I’d love to spend a day with.
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That's it for today. Pfff, that took way longer than I thought it would;).
Keep your eyes peeled for a message next week. I'm starting my teaching gig in Barcelona this month so the dates you receive these messages may be a bit scattered for a bit until my calendar levels out.
Onwards.
—Michael
PS: The best way to help me keep the lights on and to keep newsletters like this one free is to grab a copy of my book and leave an honest review on Amazon or Goodreads.
Shy by Design: 12 Timeless Principles to Quietly Stand Out
It makes for a great gift for any of your shy or reserved friends, colleagues, and family members who have something to say but struggle to bet on themselves.