GIRLS® On Tour!
Some updates after a mad few months
Hi everyone,
I thought I owed you some updates after an intense few months! Since GIRLS® came out in February I’ve flown to London, then back to DC, then to Austin, then back and forth to New York, then back to London again, and next California and Nashville. Which is to say: life has been a whirlwind lately, and I’m so sorry for the lack of writing. And don’t worry, I am also sick of hearing myself talk about this book but thought I’d share some final highlights from the trip before getting back to normal…
While I was in NYC last month I went back on CBS, talking about Gen Z’s nostalgia for a time we never knew:
One of my favourite nights in NYC was my book launch event, kindly hosted by the Manhattan Institute. I’m so grateful to everyone who came! You can watch my conversation with Rob Henderson here.
The highlight, though, was meeting so many of you! And the most heartening thing was, it wasn’t just young women there but young men, wanting to understand their girlfriends and fiancées and how they can help, teenage boys who wanted to know how girls feel, worried about their sisters, as well as grandparents wanting to help their grandchildren, even couples who have been together for years and just wanted to tell me how incredible marriage is. It was a beautiful night.
And finally a few weeks ago I got back from a very hot England for the ARC Conference. Like pretty much everybody there, I would guess, I feel I owe a lot to Jordan Peterson—especially when I was a teenager trying to figure myself out. So it was surreal to be a part of it. Especially surreal since when I went to the first ARC in 2023 I was working in a cinema, and this time I was speaking. (Even weirder, the hall I spoke in during dinner was the same one I used to waitress in at university, so I just had a very funny feeling the whole time…) You can watch my panel here, and here’s an interesting conversation I had there with the Epoch Times:
But again, the best part was meeting readers and writers in person:
Coming home, one thing I keep thinking about is how distorted the online world is. I mean we all know this, it’s obvious, but so easy to forget too. Sometimes I can get in my head with all the commentary about the book and who I am and what I think, but then I speak to people in real life. The overwhelming response I’ve had from this whole tour is that young people feel a lot of pain, and many haven’t felt permission to say so. Talking to readers in person, every single time, I have this distinct feeling that I am in the right room, with the right people, people who take themselves and the world seriously. I think that’s all that matters.
Something else I’ve realised is how much I miss writing. Part of publishing a book is having to talk about it, a lot, and this of course eats into writing and reading time. At one point I hadn’t written anything in about two weeks which is probably the longest I’ve gone since I was about ten, and I started to get this strange feeling that I was losing myself a little. I’m not someone who really enjoys travelling or even speaking on camera, so as much as these things are amazing they are taking it out of me! So when I sat down in front of my laptop this morning in silence, after months of flights and hotel rooms and conferences, I could’ve cried with happiness. (But of course in an act of self-harm I immediately had an idea for another book…)
That’s it for updates I think. My next post will be a bit of a behind-the-scenes for paid subscribers: a reflection on writing, publishing and promoting GIRLS®, my thoughts on the backlash to the book, and any advice I have about the whole process. If you have questions, please leave them below or send me a message!
I’ll just end by saying that I feel very blessed. Blessed to have had an unforgettable book tour, but also to get back to doing what I love, staying still for a bit and writing for this Substack, which has taken me from waiting tables to this mad adventure. I am so grateful for every one of you reading.
More soon,
- Freya x
Very happy for you Freya, I've enjoyed watching your interviews but I'm glad you'll be getting back to writing.
Watching you travel this journey is absolutely amazing. Fun is probably not the right word. Exciting and Genuine.
What is truly heartwarming is how you've found your identity in writing. That's priceless and rare, especially for a GenZ person.
I'm sad I missed the announcements. I could have made time to be at the book signing in NYC. I agree, you truly don't capture the full embodiment of people until you stand with them in the same room.
Congrats on a successful trip and finding your way back to your core value of writing. Sometimes we don't know how much we appreciate and cherish something until we don't have it.