What is this?
Welcome to The Process, a newsletter about pursuing a creative life in the face of modern distraction, exhaustion, and just all-around harsh vibes.
I want to connect with people who have not grown up thinking of themselves as artists, or who did and were somehow alienated from their own creative potential along the way.
How do we nurture the parts of ourselves that are sustaining, perhaps a little dreamy? How do we do this if, in the rest of our lives, we have to be organized, analytical, logical? How can we experiment with new forms in a world that prizes specialization? And what lessons can we learn from creative activities as disparate as dance and cooking, knitting and writing, woodworking and photography?
Maybe hardest of all, how do we keep making when we’re just plain tired?
How often will you get a newsletter?
Honestly? Once in a while. This is not an “every Friday” type newsletter. I’ll write you when I have something to say — and invite you to respond if you feel like it. That seems to be approximately once a month, but can be as little as twice a year. But to protect the rest of my creative life, I’ve decided my goals for this newsletter are pleasure, connection, and discovery. It’s not another job. This is also why I don’t charge. If you like what you read, you could consider clicking one of the links to my publications. Substack will invite you to pledge or something if you click “subscribe,” but you can just ignore that.
Who am I?
My name is Irina Dumitrescu, and I’m a scholar of medieval literature and a writer of essays, criticism, and memoir. You can learn more about my writing and my research at: irinadumitrescu.com.
Where can I read more?
You can find all of my work linked to on my website, irinadumitrescu.com .
