Welcome, I’m Silvana.

I grew up in a family who sat at the table and told stories. As a child, after immigrating to the United States— my family in Portugal wrote letters to me. It was the late 1990s— long distance calls were expensive, texts nonexistent, and the early days of email still in formation. I would open the envelope to find my grandmother’s neat cursive, my godmother’s loop-formed letters and my cousin’s carefully dated accounts. This may have began my love affair with writing.

I believe each story deserves to be told and heard. Through writing, I alchemize: heartbreak into joy, bitterness into nectar, and poison into remedy.

When I’m not writing, you can find me exploring scenic routes, wandering through the woods, drinking out of fancy tea cups, and losing track of time.

Without Wax

My friend Ali introduced me to this story regarding the origins of the word sincerely. In latin, the word sine means without and sera means wax. It is said that sculptors in Rome would cover their flaws using wax. As a result, sculptors began to label their work as being “sine sera” or “without wax” to indicate honesty in their work.

Handwritten letters are often signed sincerely meaning truthfully and with honesty. This newsletter is an attempt at recapturing the sincerity of letter writing on a digital platform.

What happens if I subscribe?

You receive one heartfelt letter a month delivered to your inbox with modern technology and old-school flair.

How can I support your work?

You can pledge a yearly subscription to my substack. My goal is eventually have a paid option of substack with additional features. Your pledge would instantly move to a paid subscription when I upgrade to paid.