Marlon Weems wants you to use the skills you have to write what you know
You can write in your car, on your phone, in the middle of the night...it all works
Up this week on “Finding the Throughline” is Marlon Weems, who writes one of my favorite Substacks, "The Journeyman" (yes, I’m a paid subscriber!), where he talks about American culture, growing up Black in the South, and anti-Black racism.
Marlon, now 66, spent most of his career in the finance industry, opening the first Black-owned financial advisory firm in Arkansas and eventually finding his way to various trading desks on Wall Street, and he’s got some wild stories about it. Case in point: his essay “How Starting an Investment Business Almost Landed Me In A Federal Prison” was named one of 2023’s best articles on Medium.
He’s also working on a memoir about his experiences.
I was a little nervous to talk with Marlon. He was the first man I was interviewing, for one reason, and I had no direct connection to him other than being a fan, for two. (Up until now I’ve mostly been talking to folks I either am directly connected to or who has been referred by a friend). Plus, he’s a former Wall Street trader, and my very first job out of college was working at a small broker-dealer where I felt like a super square peg, being a woman and more on the reading and writing end of the spectrum than the numbers end.
But just after we both said hi and I told him a little bit about how the interview would go, he said, “Good deal!” (As in, “sounds great,” not as in, “a lot” or even “what a bargain”), and I knew I was about to spend an hour with a sweet guy. Funny how tiny little mannerisms convey so much.
Turns out, Marlon and I really connected and we chatted so much in between segments that we had to tell ourselves "Don't forget to finish the interview!" With apologies to my audio editor, we had a blast.
Listen to Marlon’s episodes:
Part 1, Practical Matters: Writing in odd places, at odd times, using only your phone
Part 2, Inner Stuff: Turns out growing up Black in the South in the 60s is excellent training for writing about topics that tend to invite trolls
Part 3, What’s Next: Manifesting an appearance on "Good Morning America" + the two wildly different songs that get Marlon moving
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“Being 66 gives me more confidence that I know what I’m talking about. It also gives me urgency. When I don’t work [on my memoir] for a while, I’m like, ‘Dude, you don’t have that much time.”
My lightbulb moment:
Marlon shared that writes mostly in the Notes app on his phone and has 50-60 drafts going at any one time. He writes in his car in the parking lot at his son’s school, where he arrives an hour before pick-up so he has built in writing time. He often writes at 3:30 in the morning because that’s when the ideas flow in on their accord. Or he’ll write sitting on a bench outside the bar on the tiny barrier island in North Carolina where he lives. I love how Marlon uses the tools—and the circumstances—he has. Plus, it sounds like more fun than sitting at your desk.
Things we covered:
How he made the transition from Wall Street trader to full-time writer by using the skills he had and writing about the things he knew
The freedom in being close enough to retirement that you’re not worried that something you write might prevent you from getting another job
Being friends with people whose political views differ from your own
The best place to look for your closing paragraph
How having to make cold calls for a living is excellent training for dealing with (read: ignoring) trolls
The story of how he almost went to federal prison after getting entangled with some primo money launderers by accident OOPS
Writing to leave a legacy, and hearing the click ticking as a motivator to keep going
The myth that if you just work hard enough anything is possible
The difference between racism in the South versus in the North
Marlon’s unexpected detour into acting and voice acting in his 60s
Being your own role model
Manifesting an appearance on “Good Morning America”
How sometimes his morning beverage of choice is a Bloody Mary
"I grew up in the 60s in the South, what's some anonymous guy on the internet going to say that will hurt me?"
Specific things we discussed:
Marlon’s essay “How Starting an Investment Business Almost Landed Me In A Federal Prison”
The Outer Banks TV Show
Feud: Capote vs. The Swans TV Show
Dark Winds TV Show
George Guidall Audiobooks
Marlon in costume as “Uncle Ben,” Willy Loman’s long-lost brother who makes a fortune in Africa in an all-Black production of Arther Miller’s Death of a Salesman
Connect with Marlon:
On Substack
On LinkedIn
On Twitter / X
Listen to past episodes:
Shannon Watts, practical matters: The Facebook post heard 'round the world, the upsides of ADHD, and a standing desk fail
Shannon Watts, inner stuff: When your inner critic is terrified you'll come off as corny or woo-woo + taking aim at mom guilt
Shannon Watts, what’s next: Being OK with not exactly knowing what’s next + recipe for the perfect cup of coffee
Eric Jay Dolin, practical matters: A path to writing that’s lined with seashells and diplomas
Eric Jay Dolin, inner stuff: Riding that balance of being grateful for the audience you have, while also hoping to grow it
Eric Jay Dolin, what’s next: Visualizing selling 500,000 copies + why chicken parm is the perfect food
Kate Schapira, practical matters: How one act of inspiration (mixed with desperation) turned in to a book + dealing with climate anxiety
Kate Schapira, inner stuff: Getting comfortable with the vulnerability of "telling the truth and showing your butt" in your writing
Kate Schapira, what’s next: Finding ways to share your work with more people that feel good, helpful, and nourishing (not like selling or marketing)