Creator Spotlight - Kathleen Sykes

The writer and publisher of The Charrette newsletter answers a few questions for us

Today’s creator profile features Kathleen Sykes, a freelance writer with social media management experience who publishes The Charrette, a newsletter on the Substack platform. The Charrette focuses on the intersection of the arts, politics, history and public opinion and it’s full of great, thoughtful writing. Kathleen agreed to be interviewed and here’s her answers to our questions.

Here’s Kathleen!

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When you were a teenager, what did you want to become when you grew up?

As a teenager, I went through several iterations of what I wanted to do. I was swept up in Romantic notions of grand adventure, so all my "career paths" had that undercurrent. Primarily, I wanted to be a ballet dancer. I had done ballet since I was four, and I loved its emotional, intellectual and physical challenges.

I was always scheming about ways to convince my parents to let me go to great dance conservatories like Harid, Kaatsbaan or Interlochen. Luckily for them, while I was good, I was never quite that good.

Later, I explored modern and contemporary dance. I marveled at companies like Rambert, Pilobolus, Alvin Ailey and Nederlands Dans Theater. The work they were doing was revolutionary — their choreographers and artists understood the future of ballet. Around that time, I wanted to be a choreographer. Christopher Bruce and Jiří Kylián were my idols.

Towards the end of high school, however, I had a mental health crisis that put me in the hospital for a week. I decided dance was no longer in the cards. I loved it, but I realized it took too much out of me and gave nothing back. It was time to look for other creative outlets.

Do you prefer writing by keyboard, do you prefer pen and paper, or do you have another favorite method?

It depends on the end use. If I have a complete idea that I need to write down quickly before all my ideas disappear, I default to my computer. For everything else, I prefer to write by hand.

I recently resurrected my ability to write in cursive. (You should see some of my early cursive from earlier this year. I clearly forgot how to write some letters!) I started writing letters to my friends and to myself. There’s something therapeutic about having your ideas written where there is only one copy in the world, it might get destroyed, and no one will ever see it again.

I also love the idea of writing letters that only the intended will ever see and understand their meaning. There are few places today where your soul has such privacy. Museums have letters in their collections where curators are still trying to discover what was meant, who wrote it and who it was for.

Most importantly, writing by hand adds value to what you write — emotional, physical and spiritual.

I also subscribe to the Bullet Journal Method school of thought. Once you write something down by hand, it’s harder to forget. It’s like you write it into your soul.

What's the story of how you came to publish your first novel?

Someday I’ll have an incredible novel that will knock your socks off. Until then, I’m still waiting for a story to solidify.

But since I don’t have a novel, let me entertain you with a few related stories:

• When I was five or six, I stole my dad’s note paper and some of his multi-colored pens (the ones with different colors you can depress, and it makes a different color ink cartridge come out) and wrote a story called “The Baby Blue Spider.” I have no idea what possessed me to write about a blue infant spider because I hate bugs, but it delighted my parents — particularly the part where the spider got so mad he turned “square.”

• I keep notes of funny stories people tell me or strange things I observe in case I need to create a character someday. Here are some of my favorites:

  • A guy takes a girl out to the park for a date, whips out his saxophone, and starts playing “Careless Whisper” by George Michael over and over and over and over… She’s bored and wants to go home. This is their first and last date.

  • A man who gets onto the Facebook marketplace and passive-aggressively messages people that they won’t get any buyers at that price. He waits for the price to go wayyyyy down and then buys it — just for sport.

• I got an A on every spelling test I ever did, but I’ve had to retake multiple math classes.

What's one thing about being an author that most people don't understand?

I would say about every job I’ve had in my career: Just because everyone can do it doesn’t mean everyone should do it.

Writing is one of those careers that, technically, everyone can do. We live in a society that is so literate (which is a good thing), that everyone has the baseline skill of writing. As a writer, we have to differentiate ourselves from others. That can be frustrating after you have spent a lifetime perfecting your skill to be compared to people who aren’t practiced writers.

I worked doing social media marketing for 10 years, and it was a similar situation. Everybody and their dog has a social media account, so everyone thinks they know how to do social media marketing. For that reason, social media marketers are paid poorly.

Writing, and writing well, has been devalued. I’m a freelancer, and I do a lot of content writing — current market rates are dirt cheap.

It’s difficult to dedicate time to a skill that is undervalued and hardly pays the bills. If I could tell hiring managers, publishers and clients anything, it’s “You get what you pay for!”

Do you do any writing exercises or other work to further develop your writing skills?

I don’t have a regular practice, but I do have some rules of thumb I follow:

1. There’s no substitute for being well-read. Read lots of articles and books from accomplished writers — even (and probably especially) those you disagree with.

2. Set time aside every week to write notes down by hand. Your ideas and style stick when you have to write it down. What’s not working will trim itself from your muscle memory.

3. Keep a journal. Fully exploring your emotions and experiences make for richer, more colorful writing in the end. Don’t be ashamed of the things you write.

4. Keep things short. We can’t all be Tolstoy.

5. When you return to edit, see what you can say without actually saying it.

How do you feel about the freelance life? Are you a huge fan or do you ever crave more security and stability?

It depends on the day! I do like having multiple sources of income and not having to be beholden to one boss. I am new to this, so it is unstable right now. One of the things I didn’t anticipate starting my own business is how much introspection I would need to do. I’m finding out a lot about myself, what I can offer and what my limitations are.

Sometimes I think, “Yeah, maybe it’s time to apply for a full-time job…” But I also get the sense in the coming years, not having a job that depends on the whims of a company that can hire and fire at will might be a better decision.

I believe that you're a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. What's something about being part of that religion/church that many people don't realize (or understand)?

This is a tough question because it’s both so personal, but also so important to me. I could give you the first lesson we give those learning about the church, as I did on my mission, or launch into a full 10-page rant of apologetics. I don’t think your readers want to read that, and it certainly won’t capture all the nuance or tiniest bit of what I feel.

Let me sum it up with a few points instead:

• We believe Jesus Christ is our savior and redeemer. He paid the price for our sins and made it possible for us to live again, to be reunited with our families after death, change our futures and resolve (or at least find peace with) the pain and difficulties we experience in this life.

• We believe the Bible is the word of God. Even though eons of time, culture, oral histories, various translators and politics have resulted in imperfections in the book, we still believe it is a sacred and inspired work. We also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God, and it is a confirming witness to the divinity of Jesus Christ and what is written in the Bible.

• God did not stop speaking with humankind with the death of the Apostles. God is the same as he was in the Bible, and prophets, miracles, apostles, teachers and godly authority exist on the earth today. These mysteries can be revealed to anyone who asks God in good faith.

• Humankind has an inalienable right to religious liberty and freedom. Coercion is wrong, and every man, woman and child should have the right to believe and worship according to their own conscience.

• I am not perfect, and this is why I need church. I used to be a very angry person. I know that my faith has changed my heart.

Do you see yourself using Substack for the long haul (i.e. five years or more)?

I really — like REALLY — like Substack. The interface is great, they have excellent discovery tools and I love the premise that people can just start their own subscription without having to code an entire website. It makes great writing accessible to everyone, and I appreciate that it has put me into contact with opinions I don’t always agree with.

I was particularly impressed when they worked with The Free Press (formerly Common Sense) to design a new website using the platform. That way, they retained their readership, it’s getting fed into the app and it looks as good, if not better, than many existing news sites.

I do have some issues with the CMS — the back end is a bit messy, the data is rudimentary and I would like to see better content tools in the future like wrapped photos — but otherwise, I love it.

Are you right handed or left handed? Does this have any impact on your creative work or life in general?

I am right-handed, and this made my life blessedly easier when I was a fine-art major in college. All the lefties seemed to be constantly covered in charcoal and paint because of the weird logistics of our studios… or at least more charcoal and paint than I and the other righties were.

I do, however, like to do hand sewing and embroidery. It has made my right wrist a little weaker over time.

Pretend you wake up one morning and you learn that the Internet has been destroyed. What's the first thing that you do?

Celebrate.

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Thanks to Kathleen for agreeing to be interviewed!