100+
paid subscribers
15K+
free subscribers

The Elif Life

About the Substack

Dispatches from the author of The Idiot

Free Subscription Benefits

  • Free previews

Paid Subcription Benefits

  • Access to full posts and archives
  • Ability to comment/ ask questions
  • Bonus updates on what I'm working on

Paid Subscription Plans

  • $60 a year
  • $6 a month

About Elif Batuman

I write books slowly.

Is this your Substack? Request changes.

The Elif Life's recommended Substacks

Lit in One Sentence logo
Preety Sidhu

Lit in One Sentence

How to find and use any story's emotional superstructure

Ukrainian Killjoy Dispatch logo
Dr Sasha Dovzhyk

Ukrainian Killjoy Dispatch

I was born in Zaporizhzhia three years before the collapse of the Soviet Union. What followed was a learning curve. A Ukrainian killjoy with a PhD in Comparative Literature, I teach, curate cultural projects and write about Ukraine's resistance to Russia.

The Art of Losing logo
Amelia Morris

The Art of Losing

...is hard to master.

Continuous Small Treats by Buzzy Jackson logo
Buzzy Jackson

Continuous Small Treats by Buzzy Jackson

The great Iris Murdoch once wrote, "One of the secrets of a happy life is continuous small treats." This occasional newsletter aims to celebrate Small Treats and perhaps even be one of them. Thank you for subscribing! xo Buzzy

Musรฉe des Beaux Arts logo
Kaya Genรง

Musรฉe des Beaux Arts

Kaya Genรงโ€™s Substack: essays on culture, literature, politics and contemporary art from Turkey