Allow me to reintroduce myself

Hi, I’m Ashleé Clark. I’m a writer and storyteller who works in the journalism industry.

I’m middle-aged in internet years: Old enough to remember chain-letter emails and snake on the Nokia, young enough to still want to dibble-dabble with new platforms. I was there for the brief period of time when the internet wasn’t a hellscape, and I’ve grown nostalgic for those days.

(looks into the distance)

(takes long drag from imaginary cigarette)

I was a blogger back then.

(long exhale to the side so imaginary smoke stays out of my eyes)

It all started about 13 years ago. I had moved back to my hometown of Louisville, Ky., after a stormy couple of years in journalism. Unfortunately for me, I got my dream job as a newspaper reporter at about the same time that the industry nosedived into hell. I was just a baby journo watching layoffs, furloughs and pay cuts decimate my newsroom and others across the country. I knew I needed to step back and figure out if being a reporter was a sustainable life choice. I had no idea what I would do next, so I returned to Louisville, joined AmeriCorps and started a blog called Ashlee Eats to keep my writing skills fresh. I loved food as much as writing, so I focused the blog on casual and inexpensive dining in Louisville.

Ashlee Eats was a blessing. Internet buddies became real-life friends, many of whom are my ride-or-dies to this day. And the blog provided something consistent to look forward to; after my unceremonious exit from newspapers, I was consumed by depression and anxiety that I had previously managed to keep at bay. Ashlee Eats helped me stumble through the mess of my mid-twenties and come out the other side a lot steadier and a little bit wiser (and with meds and regular talk therapy!).

The blog came to a quiet end around the time that I began reviewing ovens and other cooking appliances for CNET. Personally, I didn’t need the blog as much. Professionally, I had a lot on my plate: I wrote a book and eventually finished my Master of Fine Arts degree in creative nonfiction.

So why am I bringing all this up now? Why am I writing online again? Why should you even read and subscribe to this newsletter?

Honestly, my intentions are selfish.

Since the end of Ashlee Eats, I have become the most nonwritingest writer that has ever never written. Granted, the past three years have been busy. I’ve experienced:

• A pandemic and lockdown (duh)

• A divorce

• An additional dog

• A new house

• A new mental health diagnosis

• The removal of Battlestar Galactica from streaming services

I’ve had to put on my big-girl pants and adapt my life in some big ways (I mean, I had to buy Battlestar Galactic on Blu-ray). I’ve also written this whole time. But at some point, I became terrified of putting my work out there. I was fully prepared to live a life with half-written essays and book outlines in my Google Drive, never to see the light of day.

But during a session this week, I talked to my therapist about this fear. Her take: “You’re not afraid of failure; you’re afraid of success.”

The gall, gumption, audacity and NERVE of this woman… to be right.

I’m the only thing that’s holding me back from writing and publishing. So I’ve decided to just write what I want, put it out there and let anybody consume it. And I hope I will build enough courage and momentum to actually finish all the essay and book proposals collecting dust in the cloud. Ashlee Eats helped me find my voice, but what good is a voice if I don’t speak up?

So welcome to Ashleé Eats the newsletter (here’s an accent in my name this time around; it’s a whole story). I’ll be coming to your inbox every couple of weeks (maybe weekly, eventually?) with some reflections on my world.

Knowing me, I’ll probably go on tangents about my favorite things, like movies, books or trash Netflix reality dating shows. I’ll play around with some ideas for personal essays. And as a nod to my food blogger past, I’ll talk about good food I eat along the way.

Still not sure about me? Here are some essays that will give you an idea of my writing style and the topics that interest me.

I hope I can make you chuckle a little, or get you to think about something differently than you did before, or heck, maybe just give you a nice distraction from being a grownup. 

Oh, and there will be dog photos. Lots of dog photos.