Play It Again, Jim
Why Do I Send Newsletters?
Sometimes it’s a good idea to step back from our routines and ask why we do certain things over and over. Like this newsletter every month. Well, almost every month.
So why do I send them?
Sure, it’s to promote my books, and I’m grateful to every single person on my mailing list for being a reader, or at least a potential reader, and allowing me to appear in your inbox to share my books with you. Thank you, sincerely.
But that isn’t the most important reason, at least not anymore.
Certainly, I send the newsletter to gain insights from the responses I receive, what readers like or dislike about my stories, their perceptions of some of the characters, and pleas not to kill someone off (e.g. Sindy Steele).
But perhaps more important are these reasons:
Connection to old friends. Many of you will recognize yourself here if you’ve responded to my newsletters. It’s funny how certain topics have brought messages from friends I haven’t heard from in decade. It gives me a clue as to what they’re like now, and it’s interesting to see what struck a chord in them to cause them to respond.
Continuing dialogue with friends and readers that I see or hear from regularly. Some of my friends respond almost each month which is nice way to just stay in touch. I’m not a big phone person so this is often ideal for me.
Finding new friends. I genuinely love to hear from readers I’ve never met.
Finally, writing the newsletter makes me think about things I often don’t take the time to reflect upon. Some are serious issues like life and death, or what may come after, or the dangers and ramifications of a nuclear war; others aren’t so serious, like my least favorite books, or maybe the things that annoy me the most (like people who take forever to order in a restaurant, or who make it so damned complicated … don’t get me started again).
Occasionally I check to see who has unsubscribed. It’s almost always a name I don’t recognize. And then, every once in a while, it’s someone I know. Of course, I then wonder … Was it something I said? But I have to let it go.
I do answer every response, including even a few scams that the newsletter seems to attract. They run my book through an AI app and then they use the AI summary and insights on my books to tell me how much they love my stories, which of course they have never read, and would I like to be featured on—you name it, Good Morning America, or an interview on 60 Minutes, or NPR—for a nominal fee, which they call an “investment.”
It’s kind of ironic to be scammed by people (or computers) using AI, the very centerpiece of my novels.
But I digress.
Why do I send these newsletters? Because they’re fun. I make them as good as I can, but I don’t worry about them like I do the novels, spending hours trying to decide on a single piece of punctuation. They’re more personal and less formal, like having a chat over coffee and croissants, a way for us to stay connected.
I hope you enjoy reading them, because I enjoy writing them. I think I may have even enjoyed writing this one.
EJS
P.S. Do you have a question or suggestion for me for future newsletters? I’d love to hear from you, as always. ejsimon@ejsimon.com