Dear reader,

This may be the first time you’re hearing from me—or maybe you’ve been following my work for a while. Either way, I’m Yanyi. I’m a poet, critic, and a lifelong lover of literature (and alliteration, clearly). At some point in time, you subscribed to this newsletter, The Reading, where you can learn why I write or why you’re not missing talent.

For two years, I wrote an advice column for writers trying to get beyond craft into the heart of why we write—and why we can’t write. It’s been...