Welcome to My World! Start Here!
Join me as I explore topics such as family secrets, LGBTQ identity, and other things that matter to me while trying to live the best life I can in community with others (and that includes you!).
Welcome to Annette’s Wanderings! I’m Annette and I’m so glad you’re here.
As a way of introduction, it’s important for you to know that I’m not one of those people who has a singular passion and puts all their energy into sharing about that one thing. I admire people like that, but I’ll tell you right up front that it’s impossible for me to settle into one focus for my newsletter.
In other words, if you subscribe to Annette’s Wanderings, at some point or another, you will read about (not necessarily in this order) travel, faith, books, gardening, writing, strong women, family secrets, aging, untold history, LGBTQ life, anti-racism, resistance, and a million other areas of interest.
Also, on occasion, I’ll post photos I’ve taken of birds, sunsets, and other beautiful things, like this bluebird that went viral (well, for me, anyway!) on Substack earlier this year. I hope they bring you as much joy as they do me.
How to Get Started with Annette’s Wanderings
Start by subscribing, so you’ll always receive my latest posts in your Inbox. You can get everything I publish for free, or, if you like what you see and want to support my writing, something I deeply appreciate, you can purchase a paid subscription and get a few additional perks.
In addition to my writing about the topics I mentioned earlier, I’ve published two serialized book on Substack. If you’re interested in these and are a paid subscriber, you can read all the previously published installments here:
Living Into the Truth: A Daughter’s Journey of Discovery (previously If Only Knew: A Memoir of Family Secrets and their Undoing)
In this memoir, I take readers on a journey of self-discovery as I unravel the complex web of family secrets that have shaped my identity. From my early childhood questions about my red hair to my struggles with sexuality and self-acceptance, I, as candidly as possible, share my experiences of growing up in the shadow of her parents' hidden past. Through a series of revelations and personal challenges, I learn to embrace my authentic self, find forgiveness, and stand up for my beliefs. It's my hope that "Living Into the Truth" serves as a powerful testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the transformative power of living one's truth.
I released this memoir in weekly chapters from January to July 2024.
As of November 1, 2024, Living Into the Truth is available in print and eBook formats wherever books are sold. Learn more at wordswomenpress.com.
It’s my hope that you find this to be a book of healing and light after a journey of revelations—my parents and mine.
I invite you to follow my journey of discovery.
Accidental Mentors
I created Accidental Mentors: Inspirational Stories of Women Who Shaped My Life by Just Being Themselves because I believe that when women find courage from each other—courage to write and speak our truth, to go where we want to go and see what we want to see, to live how we want to live, and to leave the world better than when we found it, a kind of magic ensues.
By supporting each other in our dreams, we can make the world a magical place for all women, and ultimately, for all people.
Published in serialized form in 2023, Accidental Mentors: Inspirational Stories of Women Who Shaped My Life Without Even Trying is a collection of micro-memoir stories about women who have influenced me in untold ways. Watch for the print, e-book, and audio versions in 2026. You can read all of the stories here:
Restoring Community
I’m someone who loves to build community. I think that connecting with each other is a lost art, especially for us introverts. Whether we blame social media or the rapid pace of the world today, most of us don’t have communities that give us a sense of connection and belonging. We’re more isolated and lonelier than is healthy for us to be.
Therefore, my goal is to build Annette’s Wanderings into more than just a newsletter, but a community of people who want to talk and share with each other about the things that interest, inspire, and challenge them in this new millennium.
I do that by publishing what I hope is engaging writing and hosting online events for us to come together to talk about them.
I believe it’s my responsibility to use my voice and be involved with the world around me in as many ways as I can. Writing is one way I can do that.
I work hard to write and publish stories, ideas, and content that matter. My dream is to have the resources—personal, financial, spiritual, and physical—to support my writing. If you share my dream, or any part of it, I invite you to come along.
As a subscriber, you’ll join me on the journey and hopefully find inspiration along the way. As a paid subscriber, you’ll make it possible for me to write and publish my writing, and I hope, you’ll be inspired and supported to do the same.
Thank you for exploring Annette’s Wanderings. I look forward to getting to know you better.
Annette
Hi Annette,
Wow, I look forward each week to a new installment.
Not being a polished or published wordsmith let me say, thank you.
Joe