Writing for you (but also for me)

what I want is to make a living as a writer

Shade Cactus is a subscriber-supported newsletter of habitual travel adventures, poetry, and other lovely ways to appreciate the aesthetic. Cool kids subscribe. I appreciate you!

Tbh I’m usually writing in bed, like while I type this

To start: how dreamy is my writer haven bedroom? A weekend project gone right.

Candle lit, books stacked, music playing (sorry that you can’t hear it — it’s probably Jack White, Noah Kahan, or, more likely, some metal music like Beartooth or Halestorm).

Many people have the dream of being a writer, and I know I’m not special in this way. Of course, being a writer is simple. Writers write.

Writers cobble words together, yes, but readers create meaning from those words. Isn’t that interesting? No matter what I intend to mean by my words, that intention doesn’t matter. The reader’s (your) literal “read on things” is what matters.

Prickly thoughts abound

When I started my Substack last year, I wrote on my About page something like, “I don’t know what this is going to be. We’ll find out!” and if that doesn’t earn me some kind of award in marketing… pretty much anything else will. Because that is bad marketing.

But it was honest!

A cool thing about writing is that the more you write, the better you understand what it is you write about.

Here’s a bit of what I shared on my About page (feel free take a look, I rewrote it last week!)

Shade Cactus is where being a cozy homebody and always planning your next travel adventure come to meet.

Here, you’ll marvel the mundane and wish for your wild, while reveling in rest. (We also really appreciate alliteration around here.)

You’ll learn about how to support your habitual travel adventures alongside your happy home base (even the one inside your own head). I’ll attempt to make you laugh, and who knows, maybe sometimes you will!

Sounds fun, yeah?

What I want is to make a living as a writer

That feels embarrassing to write. And it feels embarrassing that it feels embarrassing. It feels cringe-worthy and earnest and way too honest.

Especially here on Substack, where the caliber is high and the readership is limited. Why do I think my words should make me money?

Shade Cactus is my writing, and I’m learning how to value it as my art — living online — which I created.

I was watching a video by

Sarah Fay

about this, and she makes a great point: if I go to the grocery store, I don’t expect to walk my full cart of food out the doors without paying. It’s a type of paywall, if you will.

• Or another example, specific to art: if I go to a potter, I don’t expect to receive this beautiful vase they’ve built with their hands for free. I would pay them, of course.

• Or another example, specific to writing: if I go to a bookstore, I don’t expect to walk out with stacks of books (ie, writing) for free.

• Or another example, specific to the internet: if I order something on Etsy, I don’t expect them to deliver it to my house without paying for it first.

I could share many more examples, but the main message is that we don’t expect to receive goods and services for free, except when they’re written on the internet.

We’ve created something special here

I look through my subscriber list, and random names pop out, like someone I went to college with! My mom! A woman I met at yoga! So many others I’ve never met! And I think, wow, that person has chosen to have me in their inbox?! What a thrill.

Thank you, subscribers!!! I’m beaming.

As I continue to build up my writer haven here on the internet, with my travel itineraries, prickly thoughts, poetry, and other essays, I’m practicing putting your money where my mouth is. 😉

Because this is for you. You deserve to delight in your every day and uncover new ways to create a habitual travel mindset in your life and home.

And it’s also for me! Having the dream to make a living as a writer means asking for money in exchange for my words. I’ve wrestled with the decision to no end, and here’s where I’ve ended up:

Free subscribers will continue to have access to

• Allll my love for you!

• Two “prickly thought” essays per month

• Comment section to reflect with other like-minded, curious souls on free essays

• Short readings in my Notes section (a cactus only needs so much water)

Paid subscribers will have access to

• All free content (like, duh!)

• Earnest Moments: a special subscriber chat to share what you’re feeling really earnest about (books, art, your dog’s new haircut, new bedspread, latest hiking adventure, anything lighting you up)

• Monthly Scroll: a generous, thorough roundup of books I’m reading, videos I’m watching, and other aesthetic activities and art that are feeding my soul that month

• Habitual Travel Itineraries: where to eat, drink, hike, play, explore, and live a habitual travel life (if there is a month without a travel itinerary, there will be an additional essay that month)

Your free and paid subscription supports me as a writer. Truly, I appreciate you!

Earnest Moment! Morning hot tub in the Rockies

Whether you sign up for free or upgrade to a paid subscription, I hope you’ll join me on this wild adventure (or cozy tea time at home) — it’s all a part of the ride.

To become a paid subscriber (seriously, have I said thank you?!)

• Monthly subscription for $7/month

• Yearly subscription for $50/year

… but here, we celebrate the seasons! As we begin to inch out of February and into my new ritual of sharing on Shade Cactus, you can subscribe for a yearly subscription at a discounted rate until March 20.

Equinox Special: Subscribe for only $35/year until the Spring Equinox on March 20.

(The usual price of $50/year will begin following the first year.)

Knowing you have chosen to have my words arrive in your inbox is not something I take lightly.

With all the other distractions in life, my hope for Shade Cactus is to be a space where you’ll feel uplifted, your curiosity thoughtfully encouraged, and your laughter loud.

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If you’re new here…

Hi! I’m Jordan, and Shade Cactus is where being a cozy homebody and always planning your next travel adventure come to meet. Here, you’ll marvel the mundane and wish for your wild, while reveling in rest.

You’ll learn about how to support your habitual travel adventures alongside your happy home base (even the one inside your own head). Subscribers can expect weekly newsletters from me (and my forever undying gratitude!)

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