Welcome to this week’s Friday thread, coming to you a little late, since I’ve been down the rabbit hole of next Tuesday’s essay.
Today, I’d just like to hear how you’re doing. My weekly columns are a decent barometer of how I am — a little more meditative than usual this week, a little miffed about my broken toe and the remaining six weeks of recovery — but there are now more than 900 of you, and I often only hear from a handful. No worries if you prefer to read incognito, but I’m curious about what some of your hot topics are these days. Anything in academe or in your post-academe life that has you particularly excited or peeved? Any big questions that you are wrestling with that this community could tackle with you?
I want to thank everyone who has upgraded to a paid subscription. I now have at least six months of podcast guests funded, and I’m hopeful that more of you will join us, so you can hear what Sarah Trocchio has to say next month. Just a reminder: if the monthly or yearly subscription is out of reach for you, but you’d really like access to the archive, the podcast, or private Friday threads, just let me know and I’ll comp you for a year, no problem.
I have yet to offer a private Friday thread, but my vision for that was initially to engage more sensitive issues and to use the paywall for some measure of protection against the random Google search. Is this appealing to those of you who have upgraded to a paid subscription? If so, what are some questions or topics you’d like to pursue with a smaller group of paying subscribers in the months ahead? As always, if you prefer to email me directly at dolezaljosh@gmail.com, I’m always happy to hear from you.
Other updates:
I’m presently knee-deep in interviews for a piece of extended reporting on academic librarians. Many of the morale and purpose questions that increasingly trouble faculty members are even more deeply felt by librarians. It is an honor that so many people have trusted me with their stories. If you are an academic librarian or know someone who might be a good source for my story, I’d be grateful for any other leads.
I’ve been hard at work with Mary L. Tabor, who writes Only Connect, and Sam Kahn, who writes Castalia, on a new collaborative that we are calling Inner Life. We have been inspired by the Iowa Writers Collaborative, and our vision is to foster open conversations about literature and the arts in a common gathering place, where we will share our own work and feature others each week. Stay tuned as we prepare to launch Inner Life.
Our family had a lovely weekend in Pittsburgh last week. Okay, there was some drama with the kiddos, who haven’t been on a road trip in a long while, but we ate some delicious food (Sally Ann’s, anyone?), enjoyed the National Aviary, and brought home some bounty from the Italian store pictured below. Linden was especially pleased to have identified two blue mackaws at the aviary (she learns things from watching shows like Rio, it turns out). There is a working-class vibe in Pittsburgh that reminds me of northwestern Montana, and there is a healthy Czech and Slovak population there with an intriguing history. I’m not accustomed to seeing a lot of Slavic faces in crowds, and there were some distinct echoes of Prague and Sokolí in the City of Bridges. One of my good Iowa friends is a Pittsburgh native, and when I spoke to Sarah Trocchio on Tuesday for our next podcast episode, I learned that she was raised there, too. Good vibes in that town.
Take care, everyone, and see you on Tuesday.
Pennsylvania Macaroni Co. Photo by Joshua Doležal.
I'm so happy to hear that you are talking to academic librarians. That is a group of people near and dear to me and you are correct that faculty issues are librarian issues.
Thank you for the promise to focus on the lives and concerns of academic librarians. Many of the literature and writing students at the university from which I retired are now being encouraged to pursue degrees and work in library and information science, rather than in literature, as viable literature teaching positions are more and more difficult to find. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing, but I wonder whether that's really good long-term advice for graduating students to follow, considering general trends in higher education. Obviously, what's happening in classrooms has a direct and immediate impact on the need for libraries and information retrieval. Thanks for anything you can do to highlight the connection--and the challenges!
You've written that academia went well until the last 6 years. You've discussed the work pressures and family situation, but it sounds like there was more, a dissatisfaction with what the worklife was. Can you explore that in a post?
I'm asking because of my own disatisfaction (understatement) and, honestly, the few peers I have that are in this situation that I can openly talk to. You know the stigma.
Thanks for this suggestion. I address some of this in the following post from last year, but there is plenty to circle back to on that front. Perhaps this could be an experiment for a private Friday thread, which I could then use as a touchstone for a longer post.
I would love a "paywall enables more sensitive threads" Friday dealie for subscribers, but I am also at some 'sensitive' moments in my career right now and am thus biased.
Glad to see you're collaborating with Sam at Castalia! He's eclectic in his tastes and unlimited in his scope, which makes for great reading.
At this early point, is there anything specific you can say about Inner Life other than "open conversations"? Iowa seems to take the e-zine by collective tact, which is something I'm excited to see more on the platform.
Thanks for your interest, Kevin! We'll try to lay everything out in our launch post, aiming for Feb 3, and then we'll be posting twice weekly, on Tuesdays and Fridays. Still determining some of the other particulars, but Mary, Sam, and I will be regular contributors, and each week we'll also feature someone else. It's an experiment, and we'll see how it goes!
I'm so happy to hear that you are talking to academic librarians. That is a group of people near and dear to me and you are correct that faculty issues are librarian issues.
Thank you for the promise to focus on the lives and concerns of academic librarians. Many of the literature and writing students at the university from which I retired are now being encouraged to pursue degrees and work in library and information science, rather than in literature, as viable literature teaching positions are more and more difficult to find. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing, but I wonder whether that's really good long-term advice for graduating students to follow, considering general trends in higher education. Obviously, what's happening in classrooms has a direct and immediate impact on the need for libraries and information retrieval. Thanks for anything you can do to highlight the connection--and the challenges!
I have a request.
You've written that academia went well until the last 6 years. You've discussed the work pressures and family situation, but it sounds like there was more, a dissatisfaction with what the worklife was. Can you explore that in a post?
I'm asking because of my own disatisfaction (understatement) and, honestly, the few peers I have that are in this situation that I can openly talk to. You know the stigma.
Thanks for this suggestion. I address some of this in the following post from last year, but there is plenty to circle back to on that front. Perhaps this could be an experiment for a private Friday thread, which I could then use as a touchstone for a longer post.
https://joshuadolezal.substack.com/p/how-much-why-do-you-see-in-your-work
I would love a "paywall enables more sensitive threads" Friday dealie for subscribers, but I am also at some 'sensitive' moments in my career right now and am thus biased.
Thanks! If you have any topics in mind for such a thread, I'm open to suggestions here or privately at dolezaljosh@gmail.com.
Glad to see you're collaborating with Sam at Castalia! He's eclectic in his tastes and unlimited in his scope, which makes for great reading.
At this early point, is there anything specific you can say about Inner Life other than "open conversations"? Iowa seems to take the e-zine by collective tact, which is something I'm excited to see more on the platform.
Thanks for your interest, Kevin! We'll try to lay everything out in our launch post, aiming for Feb 3, and then we'll be posting twice weekly, on Tuesdays and Fridays. Still determining some of the other particulars, but Mary, Sam, and I will be regular contributors, and each week we'll also feature someone else. It's an experiment, and we'll see how it goes!
That sounds great, I'll keep an eye out for anything at all on February 3.