My initial plan when kickstarting the Behind The Selador posts was to write these about the behind-the-scenes of my life once a month. The last Behind The Selador was published on May 30th. It is now July 30th.
June, actually, was a good month. The issue is, I felt as if June was a month wherein I just did what I said I was going to do in Behind The Selador #1, and so it felt strange to make #2 just me saying that’s exactly what I was doing. So I waited a little longer and concluded that it makes sense to write Behind The Selador posts whenever I have stuff worth talking about. Now I do. Unlike Behind The Selador #1, however, this update will focus more on Substack and freelancing generally.
What I’m Working On
Two months ago, an American-based literary magazine reached out and asked me to write an article for them. It was a flattering message to receive, and it also got me thinking: I need to freelance more. Writing for publications is something I have always wanted to do, but until now it has been on the back burner. I love Substack because you can write whatever you want whilst building up a monthly income, but there is something to having a piece you wrote be published physically amongst a load of other contributors that is so satisfying.
So, I have been writing freelance pieces on the side. I have a few publications (Substack-based and otherwise) I’d like to get my stuff into. At the moment, I have a 5000 word piece that’s been sent out to my favourite publication on this platform. I won’t say who it is, but with enough luck you’ll ideally be made aware of it once I’m in it.
As for the Substack, there have been some increases in the paid posts (not an increase in price but in content). As I always say, paid posts will only be for additional content and not the foundation of the content I have established over the last however many years I’ve been going on Substack. The “additional” content is the Quotes of Note series and the rambling videos. For both, occasional free posts will be available to read/watch.
Speaking of Quotes of Note, I got the idea partly from Sebastian Junger’s THE SECRET TO GOOD WRITING and Karl Ove Knausgård’s Seasons Quartet series. In the former, Junger picks a book and expands on the writing style of said book; in the latter, Knausgård picks an item and writes about the item straight from his instinct. Thus, forming them together, you get this: Quotes of Noten takes a quote from a book, fiction or non-fiction, and I expand on said quote from instinct. Only two posts from this series currently exist: a quote from War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy and a quote from Suttree by Cormac McCarthy. I highly recommend giving either of them a read.
Next, of course, I posted my first video to Substack. It felt strange talking to a camera without a script, but once I felt comfortable, I realised it’s something I want to do a lot more. Tonight I plan to record another video which will be free to watch/listen to. I want to talk about finding books and how I came to fall into the types of books I read myself. I can only speak from my point of view, but if what I say is useful, then that is a bonus. I’ll be uploading the video on Sunday, so be sure to download it and let me know your thoughts.
Lastly, the old YouTube. For YouTube, the same remains as it always has: video essays. My next video essay will be on Knausgård, and following this, I’ll be piecing together my video on the Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya. Where I go from there is completely up in the air.
Thank you all for the support. This Sunday, the usual posts will continue as always. Hopefully, sometimes in August, I’ll be able to get published in a few more magazines. If so, I’ll certainly be mentioning it in #3.
What I’m Listening to
No Fear by Iceage (2026)
Going to Babble On by The Strokes (2026)
I’m God by Clams Casino (2020)
The Primitives Talk by Zach Hill (2010)
Be Nice 2 Me by Bladee (2018)
King of Song by Marching Church (2015)
Five Years by David Bowie (1972)
Everything Merges With The Night by Brian Eno (1975)
Black Out by Pavement (1995)
No Place to Fall by Townes Van Zandt (1978)