Welcome to Gently Does It

Where you can expect meandering conversations, photos of big skies over Ilkley Moor while reflecting on this messy, often confusing thing called life.

Hello!

How are you today? I’m so pleased you’ve found your way here. I guess when I think about Gently Does It I picture that favourite table in your local cafe where you might meet a friend, or happily sit on your own. A place not unlike our local cafe La Stazione, where the barista knows your name, your order and welcomes you with a wide smile. A place where all you need to do is take your coat off, sink into the chair, breathe a few deep grounding breaths and wait for your flat white to arrive.

Meet me in the comments

While I can’t sit down with all of you for a coffee and a natter, I’d love you to use this fortnightly-ish letter landing as a sign that it’s time to pause and sit down for a few minutes with a brew of your choosing.

You’re very welcome here as a quiet reader but if you do want to get involved and have a chat, then please do like, share, comment or hit reply. You can also become a regular reader by subscribing, that way these letters will simply drop into your inbox or pop up in the Substack App, depending on how you’ve set things up. Substack is my writing home and where you’ll find all my posts, but you don’t need to be on Substack to receive my letters.

Gently Does It is free to read and but if you want to support my writing you can become a paid subscriber or hit the link below for a one-off supportive flat white.

One of my favourite Yorkshire photos. Beamsley Beacon taken one Sunday morning back in 2019 on a rare family walk with all five of us, plus the dog

Why Gently Does It?

Writing has been a big part of my day job for decades in a variety of communication roles, but it wasn’t until a few years ago in my late forties, that I started writing for me. It was a visceral response to too many years of too many big life challenges. The pile of notebooks in my office and documents on my Mac one sign of the volume of words that needed to come out.

Some of those words turned into memoir (you can find some of that writing here) and eventually, Gently Does It, a name inspired by something my mum used to say when we were children and then to her grandchildren.

“Uplifting, heartwarming and beautifully illustrated - Harriet’s newsletter is a joy”
A Gently Does It subscriber

Where to start?

It can feel overwhelming landing on a new homepage or trying to remember why you subscribed to a newsletter in the first place so I hope this post helps. I’ve also listed a few of my favourite posts below, ones that have resonated with others. If you dive into these you’ll get a clearer picture of what makes me tick and the kinds of conversations we have around here.

If you want to find out more though, simply DM me, reply to one of these posts or leave a comment or hit like. I appreciate every single read, comment and like because besides loving writing, I also love the connections and conversations that emerge after I’ve sent a post out.

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Where do you feel at home?

My next home will have dark green shutters

Feeling at home in my body

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I guess in simple terms Gently Does It has turned into one of those meandering conversations where you weave in books you’re reading, programmes you’re watching, music you’re listening to, and places you’ve been to alongside some of the bigger stuff. Things like living with grief, navigating health issues like chronic fatigue and breast cancer, menopause, redundancy, relocation and shapeshifting families.

That’s my life list, yours might be different, but I figure we’re all trying to find navigate our way through this phase of our life, and I hope that in this space we can offer each other a gentle arm of support.

I’m so pleased that you’ve found me, happy reading!

Harriet