I stumbled throughout Susie Mawhinney’s “A hill and I” the best way you uncover most good issues, utterly by chance. Her Substack promised “field conversations and blurry photography from a hill in SW France, wrapped in self-sufficient chaos, memoir obscurities and armfuls of love.”
Oh my, I assumed, this sounds means past the cliché, and it sounds intriguing.
Reading her intimate tales of rural French life, I discovered myself completely absorbed. Here was somebody sharing the true, unfiltered expertise of dwelling on a hill in Southwest France… not the shiny journal model, however the stunning, messy, genuine actuality. The form of writing that makes you are feeling such as you’re sitting beside her, cup of espresso in hand, listening to tales about life within the French countryside.
And that’s when it hit me: if Susie’s voice was this fascinating, what number of different extraordinary writers from France had been on the market, sharing their tales to small audiences, utterly unknown to the broader Francophile group?
SOI assumed, we have to repair this.
You know what struck me?
Instead of those writers competing for a similar readers, what if we lifted one another up? What if we created one thing that didn’t exist: a rising tidea rising tide that raised all French voices?
The concept felt so easy that it was revolutionary. Rather than hoarding our audiences, we’d share them. Rather than retaining discoveries to ourselves, we’d grow to be curators for one another. Rather than competing, we’d collaborate.
That’s it ! This wasn’t nearly constructing a listing. It was about constructing a group.
Here’s what I’ve found: when readers discover one genuine French voice, they grow to be hungry for extra. Someone who loves Susie’s rural Southwest France tales may additionally adore the British journalist writing about Marseille tradition, or the American pastry chef sharing Parisian insights, or the photographer capturing Provence way of life.
Amazing!
The community impact began instantly, albeit slowly and on a small scale.
Writers started cross-promoting one another’s work. Readers went from following one French author/ e-newsletter to discovering 5, then ten. Connections shaped between expat communities, native French writers, and worldwide voices, all sharing the identical love for genuine France.
That little collaboration queue graphic we use… You know the one displaying individuals lined as much as work collectively, nicely, it turned actual. Writers began reaching out, asking to be included. Readers advised voices they’d found. The group started constructing itself, naturally.
But not sufficient but, we’ve solely simply begun!
*This little graphic represents us all queueing to #collaborate 🙂
Before #FranceStack, most Francophiles had been studying the identical handful of well-known voices. Don’t get me fallacious, these writers are fashionable for wonderful causes. But what concerning the wealth of lesser-known storytellers, most hiding in plain sight?
The 60-year-old shares sustainable dwelling and cheese-making knowledge from rural France. The French poetry trainer who helps language learners fall in love with literature. The American who fled Paris for village life and writes concerning the transformation. The Australian photographer who paperwork hidden streets in Southern France and shares the tales of locals alongside the best way.
These voices had been scattered throughout Substack, invisible to readers who would completely adore them. They had no central assembly place, no method to discover one another or assist readers uncover genuine views past the Tourist photographs.
What a pity — what a disgrace, I assumed.
What we’ve constructed feels much less like a listing and extra like a ‘salon’.
That quintessentially French custom of gathering to alternate concepts, uncover new views, and kind real connections over shared passions. Just think about… it could possibly be like this: You’re settling into your favorite chair with a cup of espresso, and I’m telling you about essentially the most fascinating writers I’ve found. “Oh, you must read this one,” I’d say, “she writes about village life in Normandy with such warmth.” Or, “This writer captures the essence of Marseille culture like no one else.”
That’s the sensation I wished to create: the intimacy of sharing.
Our writers don’t simply coexist; they actively help one another. They visitor put up, share suggestions, interview one another, and collaborate on initiatives. They’ve created one thing stunning: a beneficiant group the place success isn’t zero-sum.
And readers? They’re not simply consuming content material; they’re discovering new methods to realize a deeper understanding of France. They’re connecting with writers whose experiences mirror their very own or introducing them to views they’d by no means thought of.
This issues past simply newsletters and Substacks, my buddy.
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We’re creating an genuine cultural alternate versus surface-level content material.
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We’re supporting impartial writers over massive media conglomerates.
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We’re constructing bridges between completely different French communities, expats and natives, urbanites and rural dwellers, newcomers and long-term residents.
Every time somebody discovers a brand new voice from France by #FranceStack,
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each time a author features a devoted reader who really connects with their perspective,
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each time genuine tales about French life attain somebody who wanted to listen to them, that’s the #FranceStack collaboration working.
It’s stunningactually.
The #FranceStack library now contains voices from each nook of France, each facet of French life, each kind of French expertise. From Southwest hills to Parisian flats, from medieval historical past to trendy politics, from fundamental French classes to stylish cultural evaluation. Yet, each day I search for extra.
But right here’s the factor about collaboration: it really works greatest when everybody participates.
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Browse the classes,
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observe somebody new,
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share a author you’re keen on.
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Connect with others and grow to be a part of the group that believes genuine French tales should be shared, celebrated, and found.
Because when writers help one another, everybody wins, writers discover their audiences, readers uncover their new favorite voices, and France reveals itself in all its genuine, stunning complexity.
Think of #FranceStack as our library, and even higher, as our world salon, the place connections are made and friendships flourish over our shared love of all issues French.
Explore #FranceStack and be part of the collaboration: myfrenchlife.org/p/francestack
Which author from France will shock you immediately?
See you quickly,
Judy
