Small Bites: Weekly Reading List (Issue No. 6)

In this issue: Patrick Bateman. Medusa. Writing advice.

1. The Patrick Bateman Lifestyle Brand Lives On
You know who was talking about their skincare routine before almost anyone else? America's favorite (fictional) serial killer, Patrick Bateman. The American psycho was obsessive in his documentation of his products but also the brands he wore. Whereas some fictional characters can become less relevant or even harder to fathom as decades pass, Bateman seems right at home in 2017. Maybe even a little more than any of us. 

2. Why What You Write Matters
Oh, Alana Massey. Not only is she the author of All the Lives I Want and also on my list of "Writers You Should Be Reading," but she also dishes out top-notch writing advice. Someone I was having dinner with the other day just asked me for writing advice and I told her a willingness to start small. While I'm sure there are writers are there who have gone from zero to New York Magazine, for the most part it's about starting small without selling yourself short. Those little publications will bring you to the mid-tier which will propel you even further. Invest the time. 

3. What If We Cultivated Our Ugliness? or: The Monstrous Beauty of Medusa
This essay is a deeply personal one that combines commentary on traditional beauty values interspersed with Greek mythology. "Medusa lose her beauty–or rather, it was taken from her. Beauty is always something you can lose. Women's beauty is seen as something separate from us, something we owe but never own: We are its stewards, not its beneficiaries. We tend it like a garden where we do not live."