For all of you who’ve been asking: Hello! Again launches this week! Don’t miss an installment. You can subscribe here.
Some background: Most of us at Between Carpools also have other gigs which we slowly cut back on over the years, as we devoted more and more time to BCP. For me, one of the most significant parts of my “outside of BCP” professional life was ‘Hello Cooks,’ the column I wrote weekly for Ami Magazine’s Whisk for a period of over 10 years–from May 2012 until I stepped away at the end of November of 2022–over 500 consecutive weeks (excluding Chol Hamoed)!. The column was initially supposed to be about food, but most often, it wasn’t. As, food isn’t life and there were other things on my head. I know that some of the BCP and Hello Cooks audience overlaps, but a lot of it probably doesn’t, hence this little intro for those who might be unfamiliar. Now, let’s continue…
For all my dear, devoted Hello Cooks readers.
First, I want to thank you for asking, “Where’s Victoria?” over the past few weeks when you didn’t see my column in its usual spot. It’s given me chizzuk to hear that you noticed I’ve been missing. I’m sorry that I hadn’t been able to give you a heads up. It had simply come time to step back from the stress of the magazine world. I have a lot of hakarat hatov to Ami for the enriching and fulfilling journey of the past 12 years.
You, the reader, deserve the credit for giving me a reason to keep writing. I’d be alone, at my desk or on my couch (yes, often, the yellow couch). I’d be staring at a Google doc, trying to get down the ramblings in my head, and never imagining that there was a person on the other side who was actually interested in reading.
But, yet, you were.
Every single time someone would comment in person or email, I’d feel embarrassed all over again and think, “Someone actually read that?”
Sure, there were the columns that I knew were good. Like when I wrote the story of the car service driver who delivered a dirty diaper. But most other times, I was just writing what I thought was my nonsense. But then you’d tell me how it impacted you and I’d feel so humbled and invigorated.
After a short break, now it’s time to write again. But this time, I’m sending it straight to you.
No magazine layout, no printing press, no shrinkwrap, no supermarket checkout. And hey, no proofreaders either (I’ll try to do my best). Just my column, via email.
Starting now, you can subscribe to Hello! Again.
That’s what it’ll be called. Because, as you know, we’re not just Cooks. We’re so much more than that.
Now, I’ll answer your questions.
Why are you doing this if you’ll still have deadlines?
I will tell you why. I like the person that I am when I write, better than the person who doesn’t write. When I need to come up with a topic every single week, I think about life more. It forces me to be very observant about everything around me, it forces me to find opportunities to be inspired by conversations I have with others (and to remember them!), and it forces me to sit down and think. And think. And write.
Today, life is so fast. If I wasn’t writing, I’d keep running along with it.
Why are you charging money?
Because I’d never get around to writing the column if I didn’t. But still, I wanted it to be nominal so that cost wasn’t a factor. Hello Cooks was always on my mind. It takes a lot of thought. It takes quiet time. I wouldn’t give it the time if I wasn’t forced to (when people are paying, I am forced to). Also, bonus: One cool feature of this email subscription is that early subscribers have their price locked in forever! That means if/when I raise the monthly rate in the future, you early birds stay locked in at $3/month. So I get to reward loyalty, and I like that.
Why don’t you write Hello Cooks on Between Carpools?
A few reasons.
One, Between Carpools has a very wide audience. I don’t think that all of you would appreciate Hello Cooks. If you already appreciated it, great. But I tend to say some wacky things. Like why you shouldn’t eat ice cream on Friday afternoons. My readers are already used to me. If you’re curious, I welcome you. But I think there are people in the wide world out there who won’t like it and who might be critical. I rather keep it within a tight knit group.
Two, Between Carpools is a free site. Like I wrote above, I know that I would not be disciplined to write Hello Cooks if it was optional. If people are paying, even a little, then I absolutely have to dedicate time to write. Hello Cooks type-of-writing is more time consuming that the typical posts that I write here on BCP.
Three, I am less concerned about this one, but it could come up. I think in Ami, my page was my page and everyone knew it was my views. Plus, in print, it’s not so easy to hit “reply.” I don’t want to have to be concerned or self-conscious if what I think/what I’m saying is different than what my Between Carpools partners think. Say, they may think it’s totally fine to eat ice cream on Fridays. What if they have a problem with the fact that I said that? What if Between Carpools readers are outraged? I don’t want to be responsible. If someone has a problem with something I say, they can send me an angry email and it doesn’t have to reflect on anyone else.
What are some things that are nice about email vs. print?
I always tried to keep my work separate. I had to be careful when I spoke about Between Carpools or other projects in Hello Cooks, because I didn’t want to promote my own interests in a publication that wasn’t mine. But Hello! Again will be mine.
What if my neighbor or someone who wants to subscribe doesn’t have internet access?
There are also phone/text/email options. Leave a message or text the Hello! Again mailbox at 732-806-0816. You can also email hello@victoriadwek.com.
You do need email to receive the column. (If I ever see that there’s a need for another way to access, I will figure that out then.)
Can I share Hello! Again?
Nope, that’s against halacha and the law to forward the emails. Need to forward to your husband to print? Of course, that’s fine. I trust that my readers are yirei Shamayim. For more information on sharing Hello! Again, see the bottom of the About page.
What’s the difference between the free version and the paid version?
Only paid members will receive Hello! Again emails. Free members will only hear from me a few times per year, when I feel like sharing something with a wider audience. When you subscribe via the home page, you’re automatically signed up for the free version and will only receive the weekly Hello! Again emails if you upgrade to the paid version here.
What to know a bit more? See the About page here.
The post Victoria Dwek + Hello Cooks: What’s Next? appeared first on Between Carpools.