Hi! I found you through the Substack post - I, too, have been writing and thinking about Didion recently. I used to be a superfan based on having read The Year of Magical Thinking, Blue Nights, Play It As It Lays and Slouching Towards Bethlehem. After spending the month attempting to read some of her fiction (could not even finish) and more of her nonfiction... I would now describe myself as someone who appreciates her personal essays and memoirs, less so her fiction and political/cultural criticism which I find self-centered and borderline mean.
I keep thinking that if she were young today, she would definitely have had a Tumblr.
Oh wow i read you all the time! Yeah I think Joan Didion could be very mean and self satisfied when it comes to the social issues of that movement. In other areas she’s thought provoking and insightful.
I think we do sort of look at her with rose tinted glasses.
I consider myself a new fan of Didion after picking up a book of hers over New Years. In response to your question on why anyone would want to write like her, I find myself drawn to figuring out what exactly about her writing makes it pleasantly dated. So it’s less about imitating her writing style, but using her as an inspiration in showing how well words can capture the essence of an era.
I love this reflection. I think many people want to write like her, and that’s ok but what I think makes her such an icon is how, as you mentioned, she was always rooted in her time. Her work is like a time-capsule.
I’ve always felt the same way about not relating to Didion as a young Asian girl from a third-world country whose lifestyle and perspective is completely detached from hers, so great that you highlighted this!
just found you through notes, someone reshared your article and i absolutely loved it. I'm currently reading the joan didion / eve babitz book and it makes me realize that joan shouldn't be idolized in the present the way she has been since her death. I'm glad that women writers from that time period are finally shining through but she should remain just that : an artist from a moment in time. it's so easy on substack to idolize her because she's a 'thought daughter' but she was tiny, white, straight, when most of us aren't
Absolutely! And thanks for reading. That’s the feeling I wanted to capture. She’s not exactly a representation of all women and especially not all women in the present time.
I’ve been teetering through a lot of personal essays and historical cultural criticism lately and have often found myself both a fan of and somewhat still grappling with Didion’s work—especially as we experience a new wave of literary readers upholding her as the pinnacle. I, too, find some of her commentary to be a bit crude, especially in comparison to her peers of that generation. However, I think that ultimately comes down to lived experience, perspective, and her more contrarian-object journalistic viewpoint
i think this is such a beautiful perspective to hold - to know the limits and extent of a piece of work or a writer, and still know where it fits in the history of context and content. this was such a wonderful read. your last line was also a brilliant note to end on - i really enjoyed this piece !!
I love reading Didion, but I agree with you that a lot of her work is "pleasantly dated," and that, as writers, it's important for us to consider the time in which we live and our own individual voices. Thank you for this perhaps unpopular perspective on such a popular writer!
Hi! I found you through the Substack post - I, too, have been writing and thinking about Didion recently. I used to be a superfan based on having read The Year of Magical Thinking, Blue Nights, Play It As It Lays and Slouching Towards Bethlehem. After spending the month attempting to read some of her fiction (could not even finish) and more of her nonfiction... I would now describe myself as someone who appreciates her personal essays and memoirs, less so her fiction and political/cultural criticism which I find self-centered and borderline mean.
I keep thinking that if she were young today, she would definitely have had a Tumblr.
Oh wow i read you all the time! Yeah I think Joan Didion could be very mean and self satisfied when it comes to the social issues of that movement. In other areas she’s thought provoking and insightful.
I think we do sort of look at her with rose tinted glasses.
this is like that saying "be yourself, everybody else is taken" but 10x better
Thank you so much for reading
I consider myself a new fan of Didion after picking up a book of hers over New Years. In response to your question on why anyone would want to write like her, I find myself drawn to figuring out what exactly about her writing makes it pleasantly dated. So it’s less about imitating her writing style, but using her as an inspiration in showing how well words can capture the essence of an era.
Definitely. But I think even her language is dated. It's beautiful language, but it's very much from that era in my opinion.
I love this reflection. I think many people want to write like her, and that’s ok but what I think makes her such an icon is how, as you mentioned, she was always rooted in her time. Her work is like a time-capsule.
I’ve always felt the same way about not relating to Didion as a young Asian girl from a third-world country whose lifestyle and perspective is completely detached from hers, so great that you highlighted this!
Thank you so much :)
just found you through notes, someone reshared your article and i absolutely loved it. I'm currently reading the joan didion / eve babitz book and it makes me realize that joan shouldn't be idolized in the present the way she has been since her death. I'm glad that women writers from that time period are finally shining through but she should remain just that : an artist from a moment in time. it's so easy on substack to idolize her because she's a 'thought daughter' but she was tiny, white, straight, when most of us aren't
Absolutely! And thanks for reading. That’s the feeling I wanted to capture. She’s not exactly a representation of all women and especially not all women in the present time.
love this piece!!
I’ve been teetering through a lot of personal essays and historical cultural criticism lately and have often found myself both a fan of and somewhat still grappling with Didion’s work—especially as we experience a new wave of literary readers upholding her as the pinnacle. I, too, find some of her commentary to be a bit crude, especially in comparison to her peers of that generation. However, I think that ultimately comes down to lived experience, perspective, and her more contrarian-object journalistic viewpoint
Thank you so much :’)
i think this is such a beautiful perspective to hold - to know the limits and extent of a piece of work or a writer, and still know where it fits in the history of context and content. this was such a wonderful read. your last line was also a brilliant note to end on - i really enjoyed this piece !!
this was so refreshing i love it
LOVED this!
I love reading Didion, but I agree with you that a lot of her work is "pleasantly dated," and that, as writers, it's important for us to consider the time in which we live and our own individual voices. Thank you for this perhaps unpopular perspective on such a popular writer!
yes b*tch I loved this
Very interesting perspective here, thanks!
i love the last two lines!
so so well put !!!!
Your newsletters are becoming a consistent fave
Thank you so much 🥹 that means a lot