"Research as a Leisure Activity" is practically my middle name - most days I am sat amid piles of comics for a history and accounting of their number, sticker albums for a Companion (attempting to get dates for them all, page counts, and original prices, along with how many stickers they contain), and books for various guides, indexes and histories...
While I disagree on detail - pdf's are a very poor substitute for actual documents - it is something which has always been a part of my life, in one way or another. That post earned a subscription straight away.
Now that's cool! Comic book research is now on my radar, and I'm a comic book fan too. You are loved by God himself. Keep going! This is your time to shine! I love you, my brother.
And, apparently, now involved in sticker album research. I am not quite sure how I took it from six pages to 26 in less than three days, but that happened:
The copy I'm working on is currently sitting at 39 pages, and I fear if I upload *that*, declaring myself done, it'll merely gain another dozen pages before the end of the week.
Thank you for reading my post! I’m extremely inspired by how others do leisurely forms of research—so many people create very specific information-organizing systems, notetaking methods, and more…all to support a research question that they’re personally passionate about.
Loved reading your example (and totally understand that others prefer paper to PDFs…I often do too!)
I’m “over the moon” you shouted out Will Dowd 😜! I read his substack end to end! Loved this recent one about Zora Neale Hurston. He is proof you can post infrequently and write something very long that people will read
It was such an interesting reading! My first acquaintance, actually, with Substack as a platform and their writers, one of which I am self now. I came to Substack absolutely by chance and started publishing my memoir "Wrong Country" about the former Soviet Russia, hoping that that strange, now historical country with their utopian political regime would be interesting to the American public. Recently, in some ways I see the unfortunate elements of resemblance of then and now of both countries, my former and my present.
I always panic a little when people ask me what I do for fun. I don’t know why it never occurred to me that research was an acceptable answer! I love doing research or general planning as a leisure activity, I’m going to use that answer now haha
Also, my Substack is brand new this week, so I figured I would give it a shout out: beckyfmartin.substack.com
Josie and Aubrey are two of my favourite artists and they often feel like a secret. Thank you so much for sharing their incredible work. I think their work is essential reading.
Not sure I understand the research is a leisure activity? Medicine of emotional intellectual and physical sobriety and psychological research pertaining to our collective health in the world is not leisure as we face untold amounts of survival threats.
"Research as a Leisure Activity" is practically my middle name - most days I am sat amid piles of comics for a history and accounting of their number, sticker albums for a Companion (attempting to get dates for them all, page counts, and original prices, along with how many stickers they contain), and books for various guides, indexes and histories...
While I disagree on detail - pdf's are a very poor substitute for actual documents - it is something which has always been a part of my life, in one way or another. That post earned a subscription straight away.
Now that's cool! Comic book research is now on my radar, and I'm a comic book fan too. You are loved by God himself. Keep going! This is your time to shine! I love you, my brother.
And, apparently, now involved in sticker album research. I am not quite sure how I took it from six pages to 26 in less than three days, but that happened:
https://archive.org/details/sticker-albums
The copy I'm working on is currently sitting at 39 pages, and I fear if I upload *that*, declaring myself done, it'll merely gain another dozen pages before the end of the week.
Thank you for reading my post! I’m extremely inspired by how others do leisurely forms of research—so many people create very specific information-organizing systems, notetaking methods, and more…all to support a research question that they’re personally passionate about.
Loved reading your example (and totally understand that others prefer paper to PDFs…I often do too!)
Oh wow, I can’t thank you enough for including my essay in this! 🥹 So excited to dig into all of these other recommendations.
Likewise!
Katherine, Thank you so much for including me here! I'm really honored and so grateful for your kind words!
I’m “over the moon” you shouted out Will Dowd 😜! I read his substack end to end! Loved this recent one about Zora Neale Hurston. He is proof you can post infrequently and write something very long that people will read
Excellent selection! (Also, research is thrilling—I totally get it!)
G
Yes!! Will Dowd!!
It was such an interesting reading! My first acquaintance, actually, with Substack as a platform and their writers, one of which I am self now. I came to Substack absolutely by chance and started publishing my memoir "Wrong Country" about the former Soviet Russia, hoping that that strange, now historical country with their utopian political regime would be interesting to the American public. Recently, in some ways I see the unfortunate elements of resemblance of then and now of both countries, my former and my present.
You are all loved by God himself.
Golly, thank you. Thrilled to bits to be on this list. Equally thrilled to dive into these other amazing Substacks. Such pleasure.
I always panic a little when people ask me what I do for fun. I don’t know why it never occurred to me that research was an acceptable answer! I love doing research or general planning as a leisure activity, I’m going to use that answer now haha
Also, my Substack is brand new this week, so I figured I would give it a shout out: beckyfmartin.substack.com
Love the notion of research as play
Congrats on the 100! Keep these Reads coming--the diversity of material is always great.
Josie and Aubrey are two of my favourite artists and they often feel like a secret. Thank you so much for sharing their incredible work. I think their work is essential reading.
Not sure I understand the research is a leisure activity? Medicine of emotional intellectual and physical sobriety and psychological research pertaining to our collective health in the world is not leisure as we face untold amounts of survival threats.
This is a wonderful edition of Substack Reads! Great recommendations from @Katherine May!