Friends, neighbors, readers, good folks, fellow countrymen, etc.:
I love writing. I love sharing my work. I won’t stop.
But damn, it’s like Substack started taking steroids this year. It has turned into something that I no longer recognize as a tool for sending a simple newsletter. (I didn’t come here for more Like buttons and news feeds!) And it no longer serves the basic impulse of mine to get my stories, essays, poems, and art out in front of the folks who want to see it.
So this is the last missive of mine coming to you as The Thread via Substack.
This particular iteration of my newsletter has served me well for the past five years, and I’ve loved the conversations I’ve shared with you all in response to my work over the past five years. I trust I’ll find a new tool.
This week also marks the start of a new journey for me as I begin a new job as Lead Writer & Storytelling Strategist at Stowers Institute. The Institute conducts discovery science in ten labs at its research campus in Kansas City, Missouri, and I’m joining an amazing team doing incredible work in neuroscience, evolutionary biology, regeneration, molecular biology, and more. I get to spend my days visiting labs, looking through microscopes, learning (!!), writing, and sharing the stories of scientists and their discoveries. I’m stoked.
Thanks again for reading The Thread over the past five years. Thank you for buying my books and art, for attending exhibitions and readings, or for simply hitting the reply button and saying, “Hey, thanks for writing that one.” It has meant a lot to me to share with you all. I’m looking forward to all of the ways we might continue sharing in our journeys together. Please keep in touch.
Peace like a river, Love like a spring,
Grace like the sun moving through everything,
Andrew
P.S. I’m keeping your email addresses handy for whenever I decide on the next iteration of a newsletter. It might even just come to you (gasp!) as a basic email. :)