Welcome to The Weekend Edit, a Saturday ritual from The Good Trade featuring our top 10 links of the week and handpicked recs from our editors.
Happy Saturday,
The past few weeks have opened space for me to read again. I’ve been pulling from the old books stacked by my reading nook with no real rhyme or reason, just what’s near.
One evening it’s a dog-eared, fifteen-year-old copy of bell hooks’ All About Love, the next it’s The Favorites — a soapy novel about ice dancers gifted to me months ago. I’ve also just started Isola and The Wilderness, stay tuned for notes!
Writing helps us make sense of ourselves and the world; reading offers the gift of being seen, of slipping into another way of being for a while.
When I started The Good Trade I wanted it to be a space where women could share their stories and expertise with honesty and heart. Over the past decade, we’ve explored many topics through our essays. Some of my personal favorites: how to say your truth, how to fall in love with your life again, how to take things one day at a time, and how to embrace earnestness.
In that same spirit of finding new voices, today I’m sharing a few emerging Substack writers our team has been loving. And since discovery is best when shared, this full edition is free for everyone.
💛 Today’s Weekend Edit Includes:
→ What our 280,000+ readers clicked most this week, from essays to recipes and beyond
→ How to create the perfect fall aesthetic, writing prompts, poems about friendships and refillable candles from a reader-owned company
→ The emerging Substack authors we’re loving across categories
→ An invitation to our virtual gratitude gathering coming up on Friday, November 14th! 🙏
Each weekday, The Daily Good newsletter features personal essays, product guides, and good news. Here is what our 280,000 subscribers clicked most this week, ranked in order:
Tips for creating the perfect fall aesthetic no matter where you live. [Essay]
Light therapy sad lamps to beat the winter blues. [Browse]
Why we think it’s a good thing to be a little delusional. [Essay]
Butter focaccia (or shio pan focaccia) to pair with literally any dish. [Recipe]
What it means to celebrate Samhain and how to do it. [Essay]
A simple sun printing project perfect for documenting nature’s beauty. [DIY]
The playlist we like to play while we dilly dally and daydream. [Playlist]
Writing prompts for when your mind feels busy. [Pin]
We can’t wait to try these refillable candles from a reader-owned company. [Shop]
Sweet poems to send to your best friend. [List]
I’m really into Substack right now — there’s something nostalgic and wholesome about the growing community here. It reminds me of my early blogging days back in 2010, when my husband, sister, and I ran a local Kansas City blog (a friend acquired it when we moved to LA in 2014, but you can still scroll through our old restaurant reviews 😂).
Substack feels like those early internet days, when showing up online meant sharing useful info and sincere stories. While the platform highlights its “top sellers,” what excites our team most are the smaller, emerging voices.
I asked our editors to share a few of their favorite Substacks right now:
Something Similar: I discovered Rose Blacque through her essay “what we give” which explores the complexities of what is lost, given, and received in mothering. With so much writing being AI-generated these days, her essays have reminded me what it feels like to read prose that penetrates every layer and then lingers. — Kayti, Sr. Content Strategist
Drawing Links: Writer and artist Edith Zimmerman depicts scenes from her daily life in upstate New York, where she’s sober, a runner, and living with her husband and two daughters. Her comics are simple to the point of being poetic — and often interspersed with flights of imaginative fancy. — Ashley, Sr. Editor
Mixed Multitudes: For lists that read like poetry, Stevie Rozean’s substack centers her personal reflections through an artistic lens — “a peek into her art journal,” as she puts it. She provides endless inspiration for nurturing the creative within. — Kate, Community Manager
Daybook: Created by poet and illustrator Lena Moses-Schmitt, this Substack features beautiful long-form essays, comics, and drawings that invite you to wander with her — contemplating everything from windows to Milton — with a tender poignancy that always delights and surprises me. — Stephanie, Contributing Editor
Mother Curious: What’s it like being the first mom in your crew? WriterAnnaliese Godderz explores how to flourish as an independent who also happens to be a full-time mom. Start with this essay. — Brianna, Editorial Assistant
Plant Based: Katie Stone’s Substack is one of my favorite places to learn about the latest trends and health and wellness — through the lens of someone else’s refrigerator! She inspires me to grocery shop, meal prep, and nourish myself more mindfully. — Grace, Head of Growth
Dear Somebody: Meera Lee Patel shares colorful and inspiring artwork, along with notes about what she wants to remember each week, which inspires me to write my own! — Emily, Editorial Director
Amrita Singh: This Substack writer offers a no-nonsense take on all things fashion, but with a humorous twist. I love her sharp and witty wardrobe advice that inspires me to be stylish on my own terms. — Silsila, Contributing Editor
The Eastside Rag: The writer John Fulton has the pulse on everything happening in LA’s Eastside, from restaurant openings to celebrity sightings and architectural real estate listings (my favorite!) I learned about his Substack through a QR code taped to a telephone pole outside my house that read “want Eastside gossip?” — AmyAnn, CEO
Of course, I’d be remiss not to highlight the wonderful Substacks of our own editors:
phone notes by Kayti Christian shares essays on motherhood after IVF and infertility.
How To Go Freelance by Grace Abbott distills a decade of practical and spiritual wisdom from her career as a freelance creative, offering guidance for a life of joy, abundance, and freedom.
Pinky Promise by Emily McGowan explores scrappy creativity and her practice of making creation part of daily life, with musings that complement her work at The Good Trade and inventive ways of solving everyday problems.
The Mood Board by Brianna Schubert offers inspiration for joyful, colorful living with creative prompts, musings on creativity, and a monthly roundup of beauty and ideas.
Big Feelings by Kate Arceo features personal essays on motherhood, resilience and wellbeing.
Finishing Lines by Stephanie Fallon is a special November newsletter where she’s tackling her fear of finishing by writing a full novel in 30 days. Subscribe (for free!) and cheer her on.
And here are a few Substacks we’re all loving by theme, many from within our own community of readers:
Happy reading!!
xx, AmyAnn
Our next virtual gathering is Friday, November 14 — Join us for an hour with fellow Good Trade community members for a time of meditation, reflection, and discussion centered on gratitude. We’ll gather at 12pm PT on Zoom, subscribe today to join us →
Subscriber discount: Reader owned business ReCandle Co. is offering our community an exclusive discount toward their heirloom quality refillable candles – use code GOODTRADE20 for 20% off your first purchase. 🕯️
We hope The Weekend Edit helped you start your Saturday with some peace and calm. For more from The Good Trade, explore our website for heartfelt editorials, honest product reviews, and community-sourced resources for more mindful living and follow us on Instagram @thegoodtrade.
