I Don’t Think Being a Woman Is Hard. I Think It’s Over-engineered Too many rules, too many contradictions, and no version of you ever seems “right.”

Maybe it’s not biology.
Maybe it’s the expectations.

Being a creative means you can spend six hours working and at the end of the day proudly announce:

“I’ve rewritten 2 sentences, added 1 and moved 4.”

How Writers Get Agents in 2026 (What Actually Works) With Publishing Experts Jane Friedman, Karin Gillespie & Erin C. Niumata

How Writers Get Agents in 2026 (What Actually Works)
substack.com/@janefriedma...

Poster for the short film The Orange Keepers. Eight women in flowing orange dresses stand in a forest clearing among tall trees and fallen leaves, arranged in a group portrait. The title “The Orange Keepers” appears in bold yellow and orange text above them. A line at the top reads “Inspired by the UN Women campaign Orange the World,” and text at the bottom announces “Premiering December 2025,” with cast and crew credits.

I want to release my debut short film soon.
After three screenings (one premiere and two festivals/events), it feels like the right time.
Should I just put it on YouTube, or are there other platforms that are actually worth it?

Why We’re Still Addicted to the Fall What rising empires, fairy tales, and fallen angels have in common.

I wrote a short essay about this pattern across myth, fairy tales, and history.

“Why We’re Still Addicted to the Fall”
🔗 open.substack.com/pub/sunnylee...

It feels like the whole world is standing under the sun right now, watching wax begin to melt.

We’ve heard these stories before. The warnings about climbing too high.

So why are humans so addicted to the moment just before the fall?

The Film I Almost Gave Up On A chaotic premiere, two unexpected screenings, and the moment I realised the story might be bigger than my doubts.

I almost gave up on my short film.

The premiere was chaotic. Locations fell through. Half my cast had already flown home for Christmas.

And yet… that messy premiere somehow led to two unexpected screenings. The story is bigger than my doubts.

Thank you!

Sunny-Lee van Dijk (@storiesbysunnylee) This morning, while looking at flowers, I suddenly remembered something from a couple of days ago. On the evening I travelled to the third screening of The Orange Keepers, I saw two women on the tube...

On the night of the third screening of The Orange Keepers, I saw two women on the tube, each carrying a single orange rose. Not a bouquet. One each. If you know the film, you’ll understand why that felt like fate.

I wrote about it, and about the stranger that convinced me to keep going with my art:

Sunny-Lee | Substack A weekly cozy mystery with layered characters and reflections on life and art — from a London-based actress and storyteller. Click to read Sunny-Lee, by Sunny-Lee van Dijk, a Substack publication. Lau...

Just arrived on Bluesky,

Actress, writer, director based in London.
Owner of www.instagram.com/piratequeen_...

I keep a field journal about filmmaking, theatre, storytelling and life overall: sunnyleevandijk.substack.com

Curious to see what other creatives are building here!