P.S. A Proposal for My Readers

Might you consider treating me to a monthly Spritz?

A Birthday Spritz!

Dear Readers,

Today is my birthday, and one of the many things I’m celebrating is having written this newsletter for over a year! I am delighted and honored to have you as my 600+ readers, and I thank you for supporting and sharing my writing.

I’m wondering if you’ll join me in my birthday celebrations and consider becoming a paid subscriber to this newsletter (if you aren’t already). If you’re already a paid subscriber, grazie mille!

Writing is my vocation and my profession. I work just as hard to write a personal essay for a free newsletter as I do a reported article for a paid publication. Here, in Missives from a Metropolis, I’m a one-woman show: the writer, reporter, researcher, copy editor, photographer, proofreader, and publisher. 

Up until now, I’ve used this space to publish either excerpts from my book-in-progress or topical tales from my daily life in Rome. While I will continue to use this forum for both types of essays, I’d also like to offer you more. 

Here’s where I need YOU:

What more would you like to hear from me? What more would you like to know about Italy that I can tell you and that a Google search will not? Please send me any suggestions you might have or give me an excuse to research a topic for you.

I will be launching a new series of pieces called “P.S” for paid subscribers. They will be post-scripts to my regular missives — journalistic nuggets of knowledge and insight about Italy. 

I might address topics like these:

—What’s the latest jargon among Italy’s teenagers?

—How strongly do I feel about Cacio e Pepe versus Mac n’ Cheese?

—What’s the code word for having a cappuccino after lunch in Italy?

—What’s it like going to the Vatican’s pharmacy or post office?

—What is MacDario in Tuscany’s Panzano?

—Why are hundreds of types of bottled water sold in Italy but the best comes from Rome’s drinking fountains?

—Any idea how superstitious Italians are and what they will do to avoid bad luck?

—Christmas in Rome: A peek at the Vatican’s outdoor exhibition of nativity scenes from around the world.

I am asking you to consider subscribing to my work as a validation of my creativity. Think of it as if you were buying a magazine or newspaper to read a published article of mine. Or that you were offering me a Spritz every month. It’s your choice how much you want to pay for a monthly subscription. Think of what you pay monthly for a streaming or magazine subscription — and pledge half of that here, for instance. Substack makes monthly or annual donation suggestions when you click on the below button but you can decide to alter it however it works for you.

If such a proposal doesn’t appeal to you, please carry on in reading me for free as I promise to keep writing, and you’ll always remain on my mailing list. Nothing will change unless you change your subscription status. 

I’m boldly yet humbly writing you with this proposal simply because, aside from world peace, this is my birthday wish!

A morning, birthday walk in Villa Ada with our dog, Zabaglione.