Bi-Monthly By Ryan #18

Dear Friends,

I signed many of you up to receive this email newsletter, for the sake of staying up to date on my accomplishments and achievements as a writer. I signed you up because I care about you. I also started this newsletter because I wanted to write openly about, and get support for, the complex conditions of my life.

As you may or may not remember, I had such a hard time starting this newsletter. I was putting distance and spaciousness between my old life and new life, as you likely have heard me say before, both here and elsewhere. I wanted to explore the potential for letting go, while simultaneously keeping open the possibility of holding on, which is a very hard thing to do.

Please take a moment to consider whether or not you want to continue receiving my newsletter. After this issue, I will start speaking more openly both about my story, and against fazism, in ways with which some of you might not agree. I encourage you to make the right decision for you about whether or not to stay subscribed, whether I signed you up or you did so on your own.

I have made some changes to my upcoming classes. In BMBR #16, I announced my upcoming offerings, which have since changed. Here is my new schedule:

• Letters to Our Homes: Sunday, September 28-November 23 @ 3-4:30pm EST (8 Classes, No Class on November 2)

• Holiday Letter Writing as a Spiritual Practice: Sunday, November 30-January 4 @ 2-3:30pm EST (6 Classes)

• Letter Writing as a Spiritual Practice: Sunday, February 1-Sunday, March 22 @ 1-2:30pm EST (8 Classes)

All of my classes are for Black and Brown adoptees only. This is different from in the past. I have also decided to focus on letter writing workshops, and will be offering Let’s Thrive Together as a free and experimental workshop series this summer, so stay tuned for that announcement.

Please reach out to me directly to sign up. My classes are intimate, generative spaces. I emphasize safety and consent of storytelling in all of my spaces, first and foremost with ourselves, individually and together.

Love, Ryan <3

linktr.ee/ryanartes 

• Support my ongoing mutual aid campaign. I have so much appreciation for everyone who has donated so far. Here is a special shout out and huge thank you to Katelyn Durst Rivas for running this campaign!

• Sign up for Split This Rock’s Poem of the Week Series. And then, keep your eye out for my poem! I have so much gratitude for Gowri Koneswaran and the whole curation team at Split This Rock for believing in my work.

• Join me at May’s gathering of The Adoptee Open Mic on Monday, May 5 at 8pm EST. This will be the last open mic session of the sixth season, for Black and Brown adoptees only. Please note that open mic sessions are now on Mondays, which is different from in the past.