Dear Reader,
I am thankful for you. Truly. This is my 44th Substack post, and you’ve stayed with me: reading, responding, cheering me on, and reminding me why I sit down each week to write. Your comments, your suggestions, your stories, and especially your letters back to me have meant more than you know. They are, without question, my favorite gifts.
Thank you to everyone who has subscribed and supported this Substack. Thank you to the friends and family (old and new!) who have sent me stamps, pens, and stationery. These little treasures arrive like tiny nudges from the universe: Keep going. Keep writing. Someone is waiting for your envelope.
As the year winds down, so does my 2025 New Year’s resolution: to handwrite one letter every single day. It has been the most unexpectedly meaningful challenge I’ve ever taken on. I didn’t know what I was hoping for when I began, and while the 88 (and counting!) letters I’ve received back are wonderful, the true joy—honestly—has been in the writing itself. In the ritual. In the quiet. In knowing that a simple envelope with a big initial on the front might brighten someone’s day.
People keep asking me whether I’ll keep writing a daily letter in 2026. Given my current inventory of stamps and stationery (and the fact that I’m a minimalist) there’s a good chance I might have to! But even if it’s not one letter every day, I will absolutely keep writing letters. I recently discovered The Sunday Letter Project, a site where people pledge to take time every Sunday to write a letter. Joining it feels like a natural next step.
And don’t worry, this Substack isn’t going anywhere. I’ll continue posting weekly, because there are so many more stories to tell. In the coming months, I’ll be sharing excerpts from the epistolary memoir I’m working on, expanding into more podcasts and videos, and finding new ways to celebrate the beautiful, old-fashioned, utterly human act of putting words on paper.
In this week of giving thanks, I wanted to say it clearly: I am grateful for you. For reading, for writing, for being here.
With love (and mashed potatoes)
Felice
P.S. What are you most thankful for this year? Please share with me!
SONG OF THE WEEK
Stationery by Ryan Tressel
ATTENTION BOOK LOVERS: Your Dream Cruise Is Here!
Felice Cohen is an award-winning author, best known for squeezing big ideas into small spaces—like her 90-square-foot NYC apartment (yes, really). Her books include Half In: A Coming-of-Age Memoir of Forbidden Love, 90 Lessons for Living Large in 90 Square Feet, and What Papa Told Me, with praise from legends like Elie Wiesel and Rita Mae Brown. Her viral YouTube tour has racked up over 25 million views—mostly from people wondering where she kept her shoes. More at felicecohen.com.
