Hi friends,
I wanted to share a few quick updates…
First, thank you for the wonderful outpouring of support and encouragement as I made my first steps out into the world as a musician and solo artist.
My first single “Good Dreams” crossed 1,000 streams on Spotify — and, more importantly, I received so many comments and messages from people who shared their own creative dreams with me. Dreams about picking up instruments again, and writing stories and books. I hope you give yourself permission to follow them.
For a long time, I was waiting around for other people to tell me I could do something like this. But something I’ve learned during this process is that no one will push you unless you commit to it first. The world only takes your work as seriously as you take it. And it is scary and exciting to discover you have more control over the outcome than you realize.
I’m working on some new recordings, so follow me on Spotify if you’d like to keep listening.
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The Launch of Reckon True Stories
It’s been a full month of big projects finally going public — a natural outgrowth of thinking in seasons. Now, here’s one more: I’ve been working with my friends and Ursa Story Company co-founders Dawnie Walton and Deesha Philyaw on a brand-new podcast that launched last week in partnership with the news organization Reckon.
Reckon True Stories is hosted by the brilliant Deesha Philyaw and Kiese Laymon, all about the stories we tell and how they impact our culture. It’s a deep dive into nonfiction with some of the greatest writers of our time.
The first two episodes are out now — this week Deesha and Kiese go in-depth with Roxane Gay on criticism, social media, and being heard.
Reckon is hosting a virtual launch party tonight, July 18, at 6 pm ET. RSVP to join us!
Vanity Fair also featured a magnificent interview with Deesha and Kiese to mark the occasion:
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Let’s Work Together
In addition to producing and distributing our own shows at Ursa, we’ve been working with other publishers, brands, artists, and influencers to produce podcasts. These include traditional shows like Reckon True Stories and Ursa Short Fiction, but also limited-run podcasts focused on building community, educating customers, or even companies creating internal podcasts for their employees.
If you’ve ever been thinking about making a podcast, drop me a note and let’s discuss: mark [at] ursastory [dot] com.
Thanks for Listening!
I hope you’re having a peaceful and restful summer. We’ve been enjoying our summer at home in Seattle, which always feels like a celebration after the grey winters — full of parades, outdoor concerts, 9:30 pm sunsets, and paddleboarding.
I’ll be back with another update next month…in the meantime, reply to this email and tell me what you’re reading, watching, and listening to.
-Mark