Counterflows #60: Digital Nomad Drama, Parasocial Relationships, Book Update
A nomadic writer's guide to borderless living.
Welcome to Counterflows by Lauren Razavi. These emails are where I share the best links about borderless living, plus updates on my writing, speaking, and policy work to enhance people’s understanding of digital nomads.
Want to support what I do? Forward the newsletter to a friend or buy me a virtual coffee. You can also pre-order my first book, Global Natives: The New Frontiers of Work, Travel, and Innovation, launching later this year.
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Hi friends 👋
I thought it was about time I gave you a book update.
I signed a deal with U.S. indie publisher Holloway at the end of last year. Since then, I’ve been working on the first draft of Global Natives. It’s all about digital nomads and borderless living, and we’ve just updated the book description page.
The process of making this thing has been challenging at times. Some days, I find it difficult to write at all. I've missed deadline after deadline and produced page after page of junk. I've tried and failed to learn in public repeatedly, mostly recently as part of Ship 30 For 30.
But I’ve also developed more as a writer and thinker in 2021 than I have in the past decade of doing this job. That’s thanks mostly to my editor, Rachel Jepsen. She’s a true collaborator and an amazing human, and someone I know I’ll work with for as long as I possibly can.
Writing requires you to navigate self-doubt, blind spots, and creative blocks, whether on the page or away from it. It's possible to write for years without ever really saying anything. This was my worst fear for Global Natives—that I'd write a book devoid of original ideas. If I'd worked with any other editor, that may well have happened. Not with Rachel though.
The relationship between writer and editor is an intimate dialogue and knowledge exchange more than it is an editorial function. Good editors don't just help with the words on the page. They challenge your ideas, lead you back to your voice, and give your words the same care as they do their own.
I’m incredibly proud of the work Rachel and I have done together on Global Natives, and we can’t wait to share it with you. If you pre-order before the end of July, you’ll get 50% off the cover price, access to the book before its official release, and an invite to the virtual launch party.
💪🏠 People Don’t Want to Work Unless It’s from Home (Vox): Demand for remote work is shaking up the U.S. labour market. The remote jobs are oversubscribed, while nobody’s applying for in-person positions.
🏝️😵 The Digital Nomad Dream Is Over (Wired): Knowledge workers don’t need the office anymore—they can do their jobs from anywhere. So, the question is: will their companies let them?
🎒💰 Post-Pandemic: Backpackers Bad, Rich Tourists Good? (SCMP): Spain and New Zealand want to target a “better class” of visitor, but research shows budget travellers are more likely to integrate and spend locally.
🗣️✍️ How to Find Your Writing “Voice” (The Long Conversation): My editor, Rachel, has launched a weekly newsletter about the craft of writing. No fluff, all substance, filled with nuggets of hard-earned wisdom.
📱❤️ The Blurred Lines of Parasocial Relationships (Cybernaut): A thoughtful, in-depth essay from Fadeke Adegbuyi that explores the disappearing divide between “followers” and “friends” on today’s internet.
🎙️🌍 Defending the Planet: The Climate Refugee Crisis (Columbia Law School): The global refugee crisis grows worse every year, and climate refugees still go unrecognised in international law. This conversation examines how we can fix this bug in the system.
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