Welcome to this Substack Space - Letters from the Middle

Hey friend—I’m excited to join you in this special corner of the internet. Welcome to this new Substack Space.

I'm Jen Hatmaker: Neighborhood golf cart driver, Broadway fanatic, lover of Coconut Cream Coffeemate (I know it’s full of chemicals and idc), and proud owner of my original AOL email address. My favorite food is sandwiches. I painted my master bathroom fuschia after my divorce. I am a New York Times bestselling author, speaker, podcaster, Book Club curator, and e-course creator, because I guess I like to have a lot of jobs. My five kids have (mostly) launched, which is pretty awesome. Grown kids are what’s up.

I’m 50 years old and smack dab in the middle of what I am calling a Midlife Renaissance—and let me tell you: the water’s warm over here. Come on in.

I’ve spent 15+ years building a beloved community, and it is the joy of my world. Women are my life force. I have experienced some of the deepest comfort and most sincere connection in this online crew of gathered women. We have dragged our sorrows and triumphs to each other and held it all with gentle hands. Not to mention the laughter (my publisher told me once: “You have the funniest community on the internet”). In today’s world, it feels like something of a miracle.

I have felt the impulse to protect this little miracle for some time. We used to gather easily on socials, but honestly, the algorithms stole access and took over. Less than 10% of you see anything I post on socials. We are less and less connected over there, because our feeds are now full of suggested accounts, viral posts we don’t follow, and ads. To say nothing of the unhindered access to trolls and bots who target my feed and create mayhem for our community.

So I see this as a place for all of us—hilarious, smart, interesting women (and the people who love us) to tell the full truth about our lives: parenting (or post-parenting!), our careers, friendships, partners, our bodies, beliefs, our transformations. The hard and lovely stuff, and all the absurd parts in between. More protected and less edited than socials; a safe place for this gorgeous crew to be curious, honest, outrageous, maybe even a little hopeful if we dare to have the gumption.

I am a writer, first and foremost. While my community grew into other spaces in the interwebs, writing is my first love and favorite way to connect with you, and I look forward to being in this harbor together. Let’s make it beautiful.

I deeply, deeply believe in community, and I want to create something that feels like a giant group text with your favorite people. I’m glad you are here. You are cherished and welcomed in this place.

What to expect:

• Honest essays about life, love, parenting, faith, identity, and all the wild terrain of midlife. I will tell you the full truth. Most of these will be exclusive to Substack.

• Encouragement, laughter, and real talk—every week.

• We’ll keep things a little simple around here as we get to know each other and how best to connect. Occasionally, I’ll drop in a few extra things I’m writing and creating, like from my podcast: For The Love.

• And yes, probably a lot of 90s country references, because it is the greatest genre of music of all time. Thanks for understanding.

How often?

You’ll hear from me at least once a week. As this beautiful little corner of the Substack world gets moving, I will continue to introduce new offerings and features.

Whether you’re here for encouragement, laughter, truth-telling, or just a little more connection—you’re in the right place. This community is the embodiment of all of that love.

I’m so glad you’re here.

Love, Jen