I have some cool news! I’m announcing a new addition to the newsletter: A subscriber-only live chat.
It’s a conversation space in the Substack app—kind of like a group chat or live hangout. I’ll post short prompts, thoughts, and updates—on abortion, feminism, recommendations and more—and you can jump into the discussion to chat with me and/or each other.
I’m super excited about this, and I think it’s going to be a great way to support and expand the already-incredible community we’re building here. After all, a huge part of the reason I launched this newsletter was to create a space for feminists to be able to talk with each other without sexists and assholes derailing the conversation—live chats fit right into that mission.
The timing also feels right: I’m rolling it out just in time for the midterms (I’ll start a chat thread tonight as the results roll in, giving us a space to commiserate and hopefully celebrate). And given everything that’s happening on a certain blue bird-logo’d platform, I want to make sure we have a space to connect with each other live.
Right now the chat feature is only for paying subscribers; so if you want to join in, please consider upgrading your subscription if you haven’t already.
The logistics…
To start up, you’ll need to download the Substack app. That’s where all the chatting happens. This part is important: Messages about new chats are not sent over email like my regular newsletter posts, but via push notifications. I know, I know. I don’t love them either. But if you want to know about new chats—and join the conversation as its happening live—you’ll need to enable push notifications on the app. (In theory you could also check in on the app when you want and see if there are any new chats to join, but that will make it harder to join conversations as they’re happening.)
Detailed instructions are below, but I’ve already started my first chat thread—just a place for people to introduce themselves and say hi. So come on over and drop me a line!
As always, thanks for being a part of this community.
xJessica
How to get started
Download the app by clicking this link or the button below. Chat is only on iOS for now, but chat is coming to the Android app soon.
Open the app and tap the Chat icon. It looks like two bubbles in the bottom bar, and you’ll see a row for my chat inside.
That’s it! Jump into my thread to say hi, and if you have any issues, check out Substack’s FAQ.
I have a few good things.
My building manager filled holes in the floor boards with steel wool and left the material unsealed. I think a mouse tried to get in because my cat pulled the steel wool out one day, and swallowed a strand, then threw it up. I was nearly in tears with concern for my cat, and that day was the day I had my only holiday plans. The emergency vet confirmed the cat is fine and my friends were able to reschedule for the following day.
My friends hadn't seen each other since the summer so it was great to have such a nice time together in person (outside our weekly chats).
It's been three years since I escaped an abusive relationship. I still working on understanding this terrible therapy experience, and was reviewing an exchange in which I was pressured to change my behaviour to stop acknowledging sexism and misogyny in favour of being more compliant and passive. When I declined, she warned me that if I didn't someone would "come back with a fucking knife" when I still refused to acquiesce to the pressure was told I would "get the chop". These are actual quotes suggesting egregious violence would not be unwarranted if I remained non-compliant. It's so wild to listen to how I was a slow boiling frog, but I got out. (edit: the good thing is the exchange validated my leaving the relationship and my choice to connect more with other feminists).
My “one good thing”: My older daughter is on pace to graduate with Honours in Physics from McGill University before her 21st birthday!