Annual review, books, newsletters, Substack improvement and subscriber survey
Bilan annuel, livres, fonctionnalités Substack et sondage auprès des abonnés
Version en français à la fin
Before you close this post, I invite you to answer the poll at the end. It will help me better understand the Nomad Historian community and evaluate my options moving forward in the years ahead. Thanks in advance.
As 2023 winds down, the time is perfect to reflect a little on the year that passed. Since I wish to be transparent and forthright with the Nomad community, I thought I would share some personal reflections about this publication as we approach the new year.
First and foremost , I continue to be grateful for this platform, for the decision I made to start this newsletter back in the summer of 2021 and for the loyal subscribers who have been part of this project with me. Thanks again to everyone who joined over the last 2 plus years and to the most engaged readers (who will recognize themselves I’m sure), a special thank you goes your way.
At the beginning of 2023, I had a set plan and some personal objectives for my Substack, including the intention to gradually increase the pace of publishing and a wish to introduce a new “interviews” section. Since then, life has thrown some unexpected curve balls in my direction (a wrist surgery and professional constraints amongst other things) which altered the path I was engaged in back in January. I was not able to achieve everything I was hoping for but still made some progress.
In the end, I still managed to publish a first written interview with an author and historian (see l’Historien Nomade French section for more). Similar ideas are in development on my side and in regards to written conversations, a second one is planned already and should be available in the months to come if all goes well.
Another positive note is that I received a couple of invitations from podcasters since the beginning of the year - both in French and English - to talk history, politics, social trends and generational theory. Getting a chance to exchange ideas and discuss history on a flexible format like a podcast is a testament of the appetite that exists out there for more serious intellectual discourse. These invitations are much appreciated and I am open to other opportunities in the future.
Granted, the current year has been particurlay rich in socio-political events, both in the US and Canada, which opened some terrain for essays. But the last thing Substack needs is another hot take on the Republican primary season, the Trudeau governement woes in Canada or even worse, the Israel-Palestine conflict. While there is admittedly some temptation on my part to weigh in on the contentious issues of the day, I have decided to stick with my initial goal to give historical depth and take the long term view to contemporary narratives, without giving in the sense of urgency to publish a piece just because the subject is trending. It would be out of character for me and go against the initial raison d’être of this publication.
P.S. If I ever become obsessed with the “current thing” in the news, do not hesitate to metaphorically smack me in the head in the comments section. I promise, I won’t take it personally ;)
What’s on my book shelf
Now that I have emptied my bag of personal reflections for now, here are a few books that I am currently reading or that are patiently waiting in my home library. Since I have a tendency to read several books simultaneously, depending on my daily mood or energy, the four examples below are just a sample of what I have been reading lately.
Not to mention the growing and interesting content I’ve been enjoying in the Substack ecosystem as well;
Thank you to the readers who have recommended some of these books to me. Receiving suggestions from members of this newsletter is a perfect way to keep the conversation going. I was hoping for such exchanges when I started this Substack so I encourage all of you to continue.
Intellectuals and Society by Thomas Sowell / A must read book for any politician, journalist, academic or member of the laptop class out there, this impressive work by Sowell on the relationship of the - broadly speaking - intellectual class and the main institutions of society will provoke numerous jaw-dropping moments to anyone open-minded enough to recognize the obvious pitfalls stemming from what the author aptly describes as “The vision of the anointed”. (Don’t worry, I am not naive enough to think the “Anointed” class will actually want to read Sowell but that simple fact, unfortunately, speaks loudly in itself).
The Revolt of the Elites by Christopher Lasch / From the first pages on, the reader is immediately struck by the accuracy and prophetic qualities of the essay. Written in the mid-90’s, it is no wonder this book is still being recommended and is circulating almost 30 years later.
Here’s a short excerpt as an appetizer:
“ When we speak of democracy today, we refer, more often than not, to the democratization of self-esteem. The current catchwords - diversity, compassion, empowerment, entitlement - express the wistful hope that deep divisions in American society can be bridged by goodwill and sanitized speech. We are called on to recognize that all minorities are entitled to respect not by virtue of their achievements but by virtue of their sufferings in the past.”
The War on The West by Douglas Murray / British journalist and author, Douglas has risen to the status of preeminent political and social observer in recent years thanks to his intelligence, wit and keen observations of the current mood in Western societies. Regularly present in the anglosphere podcast scene, he also published two other worthwhile books in recent years: Madness of Crowds and The Strange Death of Europe.
Washington’s Crossing by David Hackett Fischer / Award winning American historian and Pulitzer prize winner in 2005, he also wrote the seminal biography of Samuel de Champlain (Champlain’s Dream), founder of Québec city, that I highly recommend to every history buff of North America. As a researcher and author, one of Hackett Fischer’s main quality is his ability to avoid extremes when interpretating historical events: either a revisionist “politically correct” angle on one side or the over-glorification of historical figures on the other. Avoiding these tendencies makes it a much more enjoyable read.
Substack improvement
Audio version (for English posts only)
At the beginning of 2023, I intended to record some of my posts to accomodate those among you who would prefer listening to my essays rather than reading them but the Substack team finally beat me to it.
If you dowload the Substack app (see link below), a play button is now available on the top right corner of every post written in English (see example).
Quick poll for subscribers:
Avant de fermer ce message, je vous invite à répondre au sondage à la fin. Cela m'aidera à mieux comprendre la communauté de l’Historien Nomade et à mieux évaluer mes options pour les années à venir. Merci d'avance.
Alors que 2023 touche à sa fin, le moment est idéal pour réfléchir un peu à l’année qui s’est écoulée. Puisque je souhaite être transparent et franc avec la communauté de l’Historien Nomade, j'ai pensé partager quelques réflexions personnelles sur cette publication à l'approche de la nouvelle année.
Avant tout, je continue d'être reconnaissant pour cette plateforme, pour la décision que j'ai prise de lancer ce blogue à l'été 2021 et pour les fidèles abonnés qui ont fait partie de ce projet avec moi. Merci encore à tous ceux qui nous ont rejoint au cours des deux dernières années et aux lecteurs les plus engagés (qui se reconnaîtront j'en suis sûr), un merci tout spécial.
Début 2023, j'avais un plan précis et des objectifs personnels pour ce blogue, dont l'intention d'accélérer un peu le rythme des publications et le souhait d'introduire une nouvelle rubrique « entrevues ». En cours de route, la vie m’a lancé des bouleversements inattendus (une opération au poignet, entre autres), qui ont modifié le chemin dans lequel je m’étais engagé en janvier. Je n’ai pas réussi à réaliser tout ce que j’espérais mais j’ai quand même fait quelques progrès.
Au final, j’ai tout de même réussi à publier un premier entretien écrit avec un auteur et historien. D'autres idées de ce type sont en gestation de mon côté et en ce qui concerne les conversations écrites, une deuxième est déjà prévue et devrait être disponible dans les mois à venir si tout se passe bien.
Autre point positif, j'ai reçu quelques invitations de podcasteurs depuis le début de l'année - en français et en anglais - pour parler d'histoire, de politique, de tendances sociales et de théorie générationnelle. Avoir l’occasion d’échanger des idées et de discuter d’histoire sur un format flexible comme un podcast témoigne de l’appétit qui existe pour des discussions plus sérieuses voire même intellectuelles. Ces invitations sont très appréciées et sachez que je suis ouvert à d'autres opportunités dans le futur.
Certes, l’année en cours a été particulièrement riche en événements sociopolitiques, tant aux États-Unis qu’au Canada, ce qui a ouvert la voie à une panoplie de sujets potentiels pour des essais éventuels. Mais la dernière chose dont Substack a besoin, c’est d’une autre vision à chaud des primaires républicaines, des malheurs du gouvernement Trudeau au Canada ou, pire encore, du conflit israélo-palestinien. Bien que je sois tenté de mettre mon grain de sel sur ces questions controversées du moment, j'ai décidé de m'en tenir à mon objectif initial, soit de donner une profondeur historique et d'analyser sur le long terme les narratifs contemporains, sans céder au sentiment d'urgence de publier un article simplement parce que le sujet est sur toutes les lèvres. Cela irait à l’encontre de la raison d’être initiale de cette publication.
P.S. Si jamais je deviens obsédé par l’actualité du moment, n’hésitez pas à me le signaler, même fermement si nécessaire, directement dans la section commentaires. Je ne le prendrai pas personnellement ;)
Thanks for mentioning Rarely Certain.
My vote for 'other' concerned an idea that it might be interesting to see you interacting with others who share an interest in historical cycles. You'll have seen my note mentioning you and Mike Alexander, for example.