Hello friends,

The close of autumn has long been a time of celebration and thankfulness and transition into a more reflective, winter season. In South Korea, Chuseok is a time to honor ancestors and celebrate the harvest; the Wampanoag celebrate the harvest of the “three sisters”: corn, beans, and squash; and in ancient Greece, they celebrated Thesmophoria—a women-only 3-day festival honoring Demeter, the goddess of grain and harvest. While seasonal rituals like this have helped humans connect, reflect, and acknowledge shifting seasons, I think we can also use this seasonal approach to think about our goals as writers and the "subcultures" we create.

I’ve been living in Southern Italy for a couple months (I'm testing out the digital nomad life) and have been thinking a lot about cultural rituals and values.

When you start actually living in, and not just visiting a different country, you notice more of the little differences between the cultures. Certain contrasts can make you feel more at home than you do in your birth country—for instance, I love that people take their time to talk with each other, eat dinner later, and make room in the day for a nap. "Tranquilla"or relax, don't worry, is a phrase uttered often. This fits my natural way of being better than the hustle bustle of the U.S.

Yet other local variations can feel odd. I've gotten somewhat used to not having a clothes dryer, but not sure how well I'll adapt to the the fact that few homes don't have hefty enough electrical systems to handle a dishwasher, oven, and heater running at the same time.

This kind of living between two cultures provides an opportunity to become more aware of my values, habits, and ways of living. It can also help someone question what still works for them personally, or doesn't. Most of the time I find it invigorating; and as someone who loves to think about identity and belonging, it's also absolutely fascinating.

I heard an Italian expat living in the states once say that the slower, laid-back Italian culture is great until you need your toilet fixed. Of course, there is no perfect-for-everyone culture. But there are spaces and places that can very quickly make one person feel ill at ease or another feel right at home.

Growing up in a place, with the rituals, the language, words, and manner of speaking, the values and customs, contributes to how we form identity and what resonates with us. Depending on our own personal cultures and whether or not it resonated with our innate way of being we may not feel at home where we were raised, or also feel at home across the world.

When it comes to creating your author brand you are also creating your own subculture, one with it's own values, language, rituals, and customs. So do you know the kind of reader who would feel right at home in the culture you're creating?

You know those moments when you think to yourself, where have these people been all my life? Or conversely, who are these people, get me outta here? We have those moments with books and an authors too.

When it comes to building your brand and connecting with your readers/community, it’s important to be conscious of what kind of micro-culture you are creating.

What sort of people do you want to feel at home with your work? Who are you writing for? What do you both value or hold dear? (And if you're thinking, I only write for myself, I'll challenge you to think on this: if you were truly writing only for yourself why would you publish?) How does this culture you're creating show up in your writing, communication, newsletter, interviews, socials, etc.

Joan Didion's, “I write to find out what I am thinking," quote has always resonated with me. But if we want our readers to discover our work, we have to help them find us in the first place. So, I'll add-on to Didion's words for our purposes: “I write to find out what I am thinking and I work on my brand to help more of my people find themselves in my writing.”

Here are a few reflections for you think about when it comes to your own brand culture as you prepare for winter, the year's end, and what's to come.

I hope these questions help you realize how much has happened this year--how proud you can be of what you've accomplished, even if that's just surviving it--and reflect on the kind of cultural values you want to double-down on as you continue to build your brand and community of readers.

Also, in case you haven't seen it yet:

The Psychology of Book Buying (What Authors Need to Know) Read my latest Substack post where I break down the psychological steps of the process your readers go through when buying a book and why it matters so much. Read here. ​

In gratitude,

Andrea

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