Welcome!
+ 2025 ins and outs
Hello, hi, welcome! I’ve always wanted to create a newsletter, but it’s something that I put off because well…I was quite literally everywhere else. However, having stepped away from Twitter (after Musk bought it, it was like watching the slow demise of someone who had peaked in high school), having barely posted on Instagram (I like yapping more the posting photos. Plus, since Zuckerburg has rolled back Meta’s fact checkers and hate speech rules, I’m even less inclined to use the platform), and now, seeing TikTok slowly slip through my fingers (*cue Taylor Swift’s “loml), I am now here and on BlueSky (@lailasabreen.bsky.social).
I got my start building community as a writer on Twitter and have made some of my closest author friends through the platform. On TikTok, as a GenZer, I was (and I guess still am, for now) having a ball. On both platforms, I had created a community and a small space for myself where I could share my thoughts as a Black Muslim YA author, a PhD student, and a reality tv and pop culture fan. However, before I was an author, way way way back, I ran a book review blog, so in many ways this feels a bit like returning to my roots.
I’m hoping that this quarterly-ish newsletter, “Sent by Sabreen” can serve as a similar space. Here, you’ll find my musings on everything from the publishing industry, to academia, to pop culture. I’ll also share insights and updates regarding my writing. Speaking of musings, and since it’s still early in the year, I thought I’d share my 2025 ins and outs!
Ins:
Journaling
Daily stretching
Necklace stacks
Sunrise alarm clocks
Returning purchases that I don’t like
Outs:
Hustle culture
Mindless scrolling
Being afraid to be seen trying
Letting publishing impact my mood
Charging my phone near my bed + using it first thing in the morning