Sloane Crosley and I Text Our Way to a Summer Series on Substack

Launching this week. A very serious literary correspondence. And the days of texting that led us here.

The Voice Message Series Drops This Week

Sloane Crosley and I recently met and decided to do a summer series together. Voice note messages will appear here on Substack soon. An ephemeral dialogue of literature and comedy that will exist as but a memory by Fall. Our first installment arrives this week.

And subscribe to Sloane immediately, even if her account is but a shell—her words.

I Meet Sloane at Sunset On a Roof

Last week, I’m at at a party.

(Yes, I was able to push through my resistance to attend because the host was my cousin and she picked me up in her uber on the way. She also provided an outfit. Growing up, both our mothers, in reaction to hesitation on attending any event, would offer in sing-song, you never kno-ow, you could meet your husband there.)

I see Sloane across the way. As a long time a fan, I fly to her.

Her face is very pleasing to me up close. Her smile reminds me of a friend’s from growing up, but I beat that feeling back that — surely it’s dangerous to be enchanted because someone’s teeth hit their bottom lip on a smile that’s served me well before.

Within a minute of talking, I find myself swirling in a meta-compliment I realize I can’t land clean. How can I resist referencing her first book? I want to bring up I Was Told There’d Be Cake, specifically “the part about the toy ponies.” It was the first time I read her.

The robust compliment I am hoping to wow her with is not materializing. I muster something like: “The toy ponies…and those well-meaning fellows…”

I whisk the words, trying to quicken enthusiasm into a proper notion…

“I was actually thinking about how my bringing up the the ponies to you, as if you haven’t heard this a million times, is the fan version of the suitor bringing you a toy pony. I am not the first to reference the ponies to you, nor I will not be the last. Yet I am, like the fools, thinking this will somehow draw us into intimacy.”

Sloane is generous, affirming that my insight is correct. Internally, this pleases me though it also confirms my status, according to my own theory, as well-meaning fool.

If All Else Fails, Pitch a Collaboration

I shoo things over to a discussion of Substack, telling her we should do something strange over here — an appendage to a career, not its heart. I think I sound like a douche drawing this distinction, but she interrupts, understanding exactly what I’m going for:

Right…like something the greats do on the side.

Precisely.

Sloane does have one concern. She notes that fiction writers often do personal non-fiction on Substack and it’s thus clearly delineated from the real work. How do we, who traffic in narrations of our lives, do something else over here without poisoning or sapping the source?

We exchange numbers and I text her that night.

The Romance, Annotated by Me

She approved the posting of these screenshots.

Regarding our endeavor…

heh heh

I start floating visions.

I try to hard-sell her on launching a full Substack—join me, the water’s warm—but for now she is but a summer mistress, only willing to acknowledge the faintest possibility of staying on for more.

I suspect there will be a clamor, but don’t scare her away. A gentle subscribe right now would be ideal. Linked again at the bottom.

I was ready to go live. Surely, she could shoot the video neck up? I don’t press the issue.

Sloane remains skittish about Substack.

…

…

Next, Sloane introduces some icebreakers. Sudden turns towards more structured conversation usually make me nervous, yet I feel at ease.

I consider whether or not to mention I’ve read The Hours by means of saying how humiliated I am to have only read The Hours.

…

Nice.

I scroll back up later to revisit this line the apology I so richly deserve and think, damn, she’s good.

The book I was referencing was Daily Rituals by Mason Currey, but we breeze past it.

Would you believe it, we agree.

…

…

Is everyone following? Good. We decided, in the end, that our summer series will offer a correspondence via audio notes.

We have since begun this back-and-forth and this week, we will share the first of that series.

This is a Good Time to Subscribe to Sloane

Even if her account is currently but a shell.

Really looking forward to this.

-Jacqueline

PS. The referenced Ponies snippet from her first book so long ago.

What had I said? I’ll never tell.