Substacks recommended by Debby Waldman-What To Believe

Recommended by Debby Waldman-What To Believe

Regular takes on what matters in America, and music, and life, from a reporter who's spent a lifetime covering it all.

The unvarnished, naked truth about living, working, loving, moving, and surviving in a woman’s body. Winner of the 2025 Webby Award for Best Independent Publisher.

The writing is great and the stories are compelling.

- Debby Waldman-What To Believe

Auraist. The best writers on Substack.

By Sean

Trusted by 50K+ readers, we pick the best-written books from US and UK new releases and prize shortlists, and publish articles by world-class authors on prose style and AI writing. Plus the satire The Demon Inside David Lynch.

I'm always looking for something new to read, and the Auraist offers titles I've heard of along with plenty of intriguing options that are often overlooked by mainstream media.

- Debby Waldman-What To Believe

Gateway Elderwomen

By Jody Day

Transforming elderhood without motherhood.

Oldster Magazine

By Sari Botton

Exploring what it means to travel through time in a human body, at every phase of life.

The Campus Reporter

By Connie Sommer

Higher education is under siege. From AI to politics to the culture wars, I break it down and explain what you need to know. I’m a journalist—words in NYT, WaPo, Vogue and more--who moonlights as a college essay coach.

Whether you're interested in what's happening on US college campuses because you're sending a kid to college, saving up to send a kid to college, teaching at a college, or view campus life as a microcosm for what's happening in the rest of the country, The Campus Reporter is well worth a read. Connie is an excellent writer and reporter who backs up her perspective with accurate research and delivers her message in prose that goes down easy, even when news is less than encouraging.

- Debby Waldman-What To Believe

MUTHR, FCKD

Deep thoughts and petty bullshit about feminism, pop culture, and the human condition by journalist Vivian Manning-Schaffel. Gen XXX. Unbothered.

Amazement Seeker by Rona Maynard

Celebrating discovery in art, writing and the moment as it flies

Jay Blotcher

Jay Blotcher has been a nonfiction writer for forty years, trafficking in surreal but true personal vignettes. His essays appear in ten anthologies. As a book editor for hire, he has worked on 90-plus projects since 1991, from fiction to memoirs.

The Bittman Project

By Mark Bittman

A home for those who believe food is everything and should be treated that way. We celebrate the joy it brings us, but also focus on the very real challenges of making it sustainable and available for all.

Because I've known Mark since forever and the constants about him are his commitment to good food and letting other people know where to find it, how to make it, and who's doing it best. Plus, he's an ideal blend of funny and cynical.

- Debby Waldman-What To Believe

Tema's Takes on Books, Writing & Travel

By Tema Frank on Books

Tema (rhymes with Emma) writes about books -- especially historical fiction --, the joys and frustrations of writing, and travel.

Letters from an American

By Heather Cox Richardson

A newsletter about the history behind today's politics.

The Gray Rhino Wrangler

By Michele Wucker

The Gray Rhino Wrangler is a space for informed, constructive discussion and debate with a goal of improving business and policy responses to the obvious, probable "gray rhino" risks facing the world.

My Psychotherapist Was a Creep

By Liz Brown

My psychotherapist was a creep. This is my story.

David Roberts || Sparks From Culture

Weekly personal essays on wealth, status, and family from someone with generational wealth, writing with transparency.

Snaps

By Deirdre Lewis

sketches, flash fiction, musings and observations

Amy’s Substack

By The Excavation Diaries

Packrats in love try to figure out how to have the right amount of stuff, one of who is trying to write a seriously funny-ish book connecting it all to a tragic family event.

Emily’s Substack

By Emily's writing and artwork

Writing (about illness, caring, dying, death, grief and more) and artwork (mostly paintings of Neve)

Emily writes (and makes visual art) about love and grief in a way that invites readers to experience a genuine connection.

- Debby Waldman-What To Believe

Ballad of the Blue-Eyed Cowboy and Me

By Jill Rothenberg

Romance, ranch life, and the reality of a city girl at who will probably never, in the words of singer Alan Jackson, "go country."

POSTCARDS from CANADA

By Alice Goldbloom

It's time to stand up and tell Americans and the world what defines Canadians and makes us unique.

Joy Ride

By Jennifer Chen

A monthly dose of joy, good things, creativity prompts, and gratitude.

It's the literary equivalent of a breath of fresh air.

- Debby Waldman-What To Believe

Seeing Sh*t in Books: A Lit Scholar Pontificates on Writing

By Sara Murphy

Because that’s all literary scholarship is, really. Shaking words around like a kaleidoscope and finding out what you can see. Few things in life are more fun. And few things can teach you as much about how to think, how to write, and how to live.

Fern Musing

By Fern (writing FernMusing)

Fern muses on the war; books & publishing; Israel & Jews; memoir & lit agenting; Covid & health; $5/day travel & quirky retirement; work-life balance & homeschooling; and all things writing, especially if funny.

Debby's Substack: What to Believe

Recommended by Debby Waldman-What To Believe