Last week Lena Dunham announced her latest project, Lenny, a weekly email newsletter for young women. Launching in September with Dunham’s production partner Jenni Konner also at the helm, it’s billed as “Rookie‘s big sister.” Excellent news for anybody vaguely bummed that their adolescence pre-dated Tavi Gevinson’s much-loved website for teenage girls.
Mission statements aside, it’s Lenny’s email newsletter format that makes this news exciting. The humble e-newsletter is having a moment, with a wave of writers, bloggers, and ‘cool internet women’ harnessing the intimacy of blogging, to share short stories, sex advice and music recommendations all packaged up and sent directly to your inbox.
We’re increasingly used to having internet content come to us, from tweeted recommendations to articles shared by friends on Facebook. But sometimes the fated endless scroll becomes a bit soul-crushing. Away from the competitive hubbub of a Twitter timeline, the singular voice of the email newsletter feels careful and considered. Like podcasts, they appeal as one of the internet’s ‘older’ mediums which are coming back in vogue as formats to be consumed on your own terms. And like a letter from a friend, an email newsletter can be instantly devoured, or saved for careful reading during the commute.
It should also be said that it’s also just really great to find something in your inbox that isn’t telling you about holiday offers or high-street sales.
In honor of the medium, we’ve compiled our very favorite emails newsletters written by women. From surreal gifs playlists compiled by Obama’s former communications advisor, to erotic fiction and must-listen pop-playlists; hit subscribe and await the goodness.
Laura Olin’s newsletter for The Awl changes theme, form and frequency from week to week. Past editions have consisted illustrations of Beyonce flossing her teeth, or the fascinating results of a Q&A survey about parenthood (and whether or not to partake). Whatever comes your way, you know it will be good. Side note: Olin was social media strategist for Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign. *Snaps fingers*
Erotic fiction written from Brooklyn-based writer and artist Larissa Pham, dispatched by Nerve.com. Short, sweet, sticky and delivered weekly to your inbox. Good for reading on the bus and getting hot under the collar without anyone knowing.
Updates from American journalist, podcaster, and pie-chart drawer Ann Friedman, who succinctly compiles her obscenely prolific online reading habits into a weekly digest. Good if you’re the kind of person who experiences internet culture FOMO, or if you just want a break from Netflix binging.
Monthly endorphin-filled pop music playlists from London-based music curator Talia Kraines. Made up of classic oldies and new demos, the New Obsessions newsletter is an antidote to music ruts, or those rose-tinted “pop music isn’t what it used to be” word-vomit monologues that periodically resurface.
Brittany Jezouit’s The Podcast Broadcast
Remember last year when everybody finished listening to Serial and didn’t know where to find new podcasts to fill the void? Wading for new podcasts is hard, requiring the creativity and patience of those people that always find enviable bargains in places like TJ Maxx. Let Brittany Jezouit be your guide to the best audio storytelling and podcasts out there. If you’re new to podcasting, refer to her introduction guide, ‘Back To Basics.’
Jessica Stanley’s READ. LOOK. THINK
Australian ex-pat Jessica Stanley compiles thoughtful and fail-safe lists of recommended reading. If you’re prone to standing in front of newsstands cluelessly gawping at glossy magazines thinking They’re all shit, then Jessica’s READ. LOOK. THINK might be on the right track to giving you what you want.
Written and edited by women, for women, new blog UK-based The Coven also comes in newsletter form. If you’re a fan of US sites like The Hairpin and The Toast, The Coven looks set to offer equally satisfying critical essays, pop culture fun-poking from this side of the Atlantic.
The Furbelow by Chelsea G. Summers
Intimacies, short story drafts, and life lessons from writer and Adult Magazine columnist Chelsea G. Summers. Revealing and generous, Chelsea’s newsletters are inbox gifts to be savored. Each one feels like a bite-size version of a friend-date with the older woman figure you need in your life, who has an ease and access to the answers of questions that feel elusive to twenty-somethings.
Credits
Text Stevie Mackenzie-Smith