SYRAH LINSLEY

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(my writing moodboard/inspiration = collages by Alessandra Roccasalva)

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solitude advocate

Redhead woman with her back to the camera faces a teal body of water lined with coniferous trees

Solitude Advocacy: What It Is, Why Me, Why Now, & What’s Next

by Syrah Linsley September 26, 2024

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Seek & Find

About Me

I'm Syrah — also go by "Sy"—a solitude advocate, abuse leaver, and literary nonfiction writer waking at 4:00am to write in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I earned an MFA from the Bennington Writing Seminars where I drafted my first manuscript, a memoir: The Inner Elsewhere. For more, please see the About page and social media below. For my alter ego, please see FRUITLAUREATE.COM / @fruitlaureate

Name pronunciation audio:

https://namedrop.io/syrahlinsley (sEYE-ruh LINZ-lee)

Instagram

syrahlinsley

@syrahlinsley

The superpower we didn’t know we needed
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#solitude #introvert #foryou

syrahlinsley

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The superpower we didn’t know we needed . . . . . . . . #solitude #introvert #foryou

1 week ago

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1/9

Third site is the charm? (Coming 2025, if not sooner)
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#solitude #prosolitude #solitudeisbliss

syrahlinsley

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Third site is the charm? (Coming 2025, if not sooner) . . . . . . #solitude #prosolitude #solitudeisbliss

2 weeks ago

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2/9

Election reflection. To anyone whose abuser was a racist/misogynistic Christian nationalist who controlled your body as their property: I see you today, and I’ll see you the next four years, and we made it out once, and we’ll make it out again.

syrahlinsley

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Election reflection. To anyone whose abuser was a racist/misogynistic Christian nationalist who controlled your body as their property: I see you today, and I’ll see you the next four years, and we made it out once, and we’ll make it out again.

2 weeks ago

View on Instagram |

3/9

📢 Writing life update (agent querying edition):

❄️ At the start of this year, I’d heard conflicting information about whether an agent was important for debut nonfiction writers.

☀️ By summer, I decided it was worth a shot, so I spent months deep-diving into researching agents, reading how-to articles, revising my query letter, and filling out my massive spreadsheet.

🍂 By fall, I tested the waters by submitting my first small batch of queries for The Inner Elsewhere. Two days later, my first response was this encouragingly-worded pass (alas, I can’t tell if it’s a form rejection).

🗓️ Then I noticed another agent’s suggestion that September-October are actually not great times to query? And since the holiday season of Nov-Dec is also a no-no, I will likely revisit the query trenches in February-March if I don’t hear from the other agents.

👥 In the meantime, you can find me talking to myself (see last slide 🔗) & exploring solitude advocacy & treating myself to the early stages of my next three book projects 📚

#amquerying #literaryagents #querytrenches

📢 Writing life update (agent querying edition):

❄️ At the start of this year, I’d heard conflicting information about whether an agent was important for debut nonfiction writers.

☀️ By summer, I decided it was worth a shot, so I spent months deep-diving into researching agents, reading how-to articles, revising my query letter, and filling out my massive spreadsheet.

🍂 By fall, I tested the waters by submitting my first small batch of queries for The Inner Elsewhere. Two days later, my first response was this encouragingly-worded pass (alas, I can’t tell if it’s a form rejection).

🗓️ Then I noticed another agent’s suggestion that September-October are actually not great times to query? And since the holiday season of Nov-Dec is also a no-no, I will likely revisit the query trenches in February-March if I don’t hear from the other agents.

👥 In the meantime, you can find me talking to myself (see last slide 🔗) & exploring solitude advocacy & treating myself to the early stages of my next three book projects 📚

#amquerying #literaryagents #querytrenches

📢 Writing life update (agent querying edition):

❄️ At the start of this year, I’d heard conflicting information about whether an agent was important for debut nonfiction writers.

☀️ By summer, I decided it was worth a shot, so I spent months deep-diving into researching agents, reading how-to articles, revising my query letter, and filling out my massive spreadsheet.

🍂 By fall, I tested the waters by submitting my first small batch of queries for The Inner Elsewhere. Two days later, my first response was this encouragingly-worded pass (alas, I can’t tell if it’s a form rejection).

🗓️ Then I noticed another agent’s suggestion that September-October are actually not great times to query? And since the holiday season of Nov-Dec is also a no-no, I will likely revisit the query trenches in February-March if I don’t hear from the other agents.

👥 In the meantime, you can find me talking to myself (see last slide 🔗) & exploring solitude advocacy & treating myself to the early stages of my next three book projects 📚

#amquerying #literaryagents #querytrenches

📢 Writing life update (agent querying edition):

❄️ At the start of this year, I’d heard conflicting information about whether an agent was important for debut nonfiction writers.

☀️ By summer, I decided it was worth a shot, so I spent months deep-diving into researching agents, reading how-to articles, revising my query letter, and filling out my massive spreadsheet.

🍂 By fall, I tested the waters by submitting my first small batch of queries for The Inner Elsewhere. Two days later, my first response was this encouragingly-worded pass (alas, I can’t tell if it’s a form rejection).

🗓️ Then I noticed another agent’s suggestion that September-October are actually not great times to query? And since the holiday season of Nov-Dec is also a no-no, I will likely revisit the query trenches in February-March if I don’t hear from the other agents.

👥 In the meantime, you can find me talking to myself (see last slide 🔗) & exploring solitude advocacy & treating myself to the early stages of my next three book projects 📚

#amquerying #literaryagents #querytrenches

syrahlinsley

•

📢 Writing life update (agent querying edition): ❄️ At the start of this year, I’d heard conflicting information about whether an agent was important for debut nonfiction writers. ☀️ By summer, I decided it was worth a shot, so I spent months deep-diving into researching agents, reading how-to articles, revising my query letter, and filling out my massive spreadsheet. 🍂 By fall, I tested the waters by submitting my first small batch of queries for The Inner Elsewhere. Two days later, my first response was this encouragingly-worded pass (alas, I can’t tell if it’s a form rejection). 🗓️ Then I noticed another agent’s suggestion that September-October are actually not great times to query? And since the holiday season of Nov-Dec is also a no-no, I will likely revisit the query trenches in February-March if I don’t hear from the other agents. 👥 In the meantime, you can find me talking to myself (see last slide 🔗) & exploring solitude advocacy & treating myself to the early stages of my next three book projects 📚 #amquerying #literaryagents #querytrenches

4 weeks ago

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4/9

🍁 There’s nothing like it
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#solitude #alonetime #foryou

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🍁 There’s nothing like it . . . . . . #solitude #alonetime #foryou

4 weeks ago

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5/9

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

syrahlinsley

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That lightning-esque movement after 1am though

1 month ago

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6/9

Still makes me smile/cry ⤵️
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I eventually found out that, during my first year free from my ex, he’d been trying to turn everyone against me—family, coworkers, church, anyone, whether in person or through emails/voicemails—by painting me as a heartless person for leaving him. (I had moved out of town and wasn’t around to list all the reasons I’d left him.)

His efforts backfired. They told me they weren’t buying it. Some found his anger telling, and some told him he needed to work on himself.

One woman who didn’t know me, but heard him talk about me, was reportedly rooting for me and glad I left, especially since she’d witnessed the way he mistreated women in general. Bless those who listen to us before we even get the chance to speak.

Unfortunately, my story is common. Abusive partners are often loudest after the breakup—as a preemptive effort, maybe afraid of being found out—whereas the escapee is more likely to leave quietly and might take years to find the courage to tell anyone about the abuse, even trying to protect what reputation their abuser might have had.

I didn’t have time to cause a scene, nor the energy or bitterness. I was too busy trying to find my way back to peace.
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#womenhelpingwomen #smearcampaign #isolation #healingfromabuse #foryou

syrahlinsley

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Still makes me smile/cry ⤵️ . . . I eventually found out that, during my first year free from my ex, he’d been trying to turn everyone against me—family, coworkers, church, anyone, whether in person or through emails/voicemails—by painting me as a heartless person for leaving him. (I had moved out of town and wasn’t around to list all the reasons I’d left him.) His efforts backfired. They told me they weren’t buying it. Some found his anger telling, and some told him he needed to work on himself. One woman who didn’t know me, but heard him talk about me, was reportedly rooting for me and glad I left, especially since she’d witnessed the way he mistreated women in general. Bless those who listen to us before we even get the chance to speak. Unfortunately, my story is common. Abusive partners are often loudest after the breakup—as a preemptive effort, maybe afraid of being found out—whereas the escapee is more likely to leave quietly and might take years to find the courage to tell anyone about the abuse, even trying to protect what reputation their abuser might have had. I didn’t have time to cause a scene, nor the energy or bitterness. I was too busy trying to find my way back to peace. . . . . #womenhelpingwomen #smearcampaign #isolation #healingfromabuse #foryou

1 month ago

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7/9

Dumb reason 73 why men abuse women?

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#toxicmasculinity #toxicrelationships #domesticviolenceawareness #foryou

syrahlinsley

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Dumb reason 73 why men abuse women? . . . . . . . #toxicmasculinity #toxicrelationships #domesticviolenceawareness #foryou

1 month ago

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8/9

Dismantling all we’ve been told. Brb. 👷‍♀️
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#relationshipadvice #relationshiptips #happilyunmarried #foryoupage

syrahlinsley

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Dismantling all we’ve been told. Brb. 👷‍♀️ . . . . . #relationshipadvice #relationshiptips #happilyunmarried #foryoupage

2 months ago

View on Instagram |

9/9

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Copyright Syrah Linsley

2024