Hello! And welcome. I am so glad you are here. Below you will find a little bit more about me and So Many Thoughts (SMT for short), as well as why I hope you will subscribe to this newsletter.
What is So Many Thoughts?
So Many Thoughts began as royal fashion commentary on Instagram and has since expanded to include all sorts of topics I want to think through with you, from personal style to motherhood to career advice and beyond.
The So Many Thoughts newsletter will publish at least once a week, sometimes two— or more if there’s a lot of royal news happening! I aim to make about half the content focused on royal issues (like this deep dive on the Commonwealth, this primer on the Danish royal title drama, and this reflection Princess Diana’s tiara) and the other half on the rest of life (like this essay on my stalled-out bathroom renovation and the two words I’m counting on to get me through the holiday season).
A little bit about me…
My name is Elizabeth Holmes (not that Elizabeth Holmes!) and I am a longtime journalist turned royal commentator and bestselling author. I spent more than a decade on staff at the Wall Street Journal, covering everything from a presidential campaign to fashion week in New York and London. Since leaving the paper in 2017, my work has appeared in a host of outlets, including the New York Times, the Financial Times, Elle, InStyle, Business of Fashion and more; I am also a contributing editor at Town & Country.
My Webby-honored Instagram Stories series called So Many Thoughts began nearly five years ago, the perfect opportunity to combine both my professional skills as a journalist and my longstanding personal interest in the House of Windsor. (It all started while I was breastfeeding my second son! You can read more about that journey in this essay I wrote for Katie Couric and scroll down for a sample SMT.) Since then, the most delightful online community of smart, savvy people have come together to discuss royal fashion and so much more.
In 2020, I published my first book, the New York Times best-seller HRH: So Many Thoughts on Royal Style. HRH expands upon my Instagram commentary with a nuanced look at the style, branding, and positioning of the four most fashionable members of the contemporary British Royal Family: Queen Elizabeth II, Diana, Princess of Wales, Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge (now the Princess of Wales) and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex. The Financial Times called it “a smooth, entertaining read fizzing with insight.”
After a decade in New York and a stint in the Bay Area, I now live with my husband and our three young children in Los Angeles.
Wait, tell us more about what So Many Thoughts on Instagram?
Over at @EHolmes, I decode royal fashion with a series of three slides: the first is a picture of the person (most often it is Catherine, the new Princess of Wales, and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex); next comes the same image with a series of text bubbles explaining the context around the look, what message it is sending, and my thoughts on the style; the last slide is a “but mostly” takeaway, which aims to step back and leave you with one final thought.
To read an SMT, as they are affectionately known, start at the top left text bubble where you see the >. And always — always! — TAP TO HOLD the screen to read it all! And if the text bubbles are too small, just take a screenshot so you can pinch and zoom to see it larger. You can check my Instagram highlights for the archives. I’ve recently started saving them as Reels, too.
Why should I subscribe to your newsletter?
As much as I try to cram into tiny text bubbles on Instagram, I love the space a newsletter affords me to think through all kinds of things. And I am hoping with the move to Substack to be able to do even more to interact with—and tap into the brilliance of—the SMT community! Y’all are the best. Here are three ways you can be a part of the fun:
Subscribe today for free and you will receive a newsletter from me a few times a month (maybe more!). You can also continue to follow my royal commentary on Instagram at @EHolmes.
For $5 a month (less than the cost of a latte!) or $50 a year (approximately a third of the price of a Nap Dress), you will support all of So Many Thoughts. Paid subscribers will receive all of my free newsletters plus one a week that is just for subscribers, home to my royal commentary and deep dives. What’s more, your paid subscription enables all of the other work I do, including on Instagram. (What started as a side hustle has become a full-time job!)
There will also be fun additional perks for paid subscribers, including a regular Ask Me Anything Q&A and a royal book club (we must kick it off with Harry’s memoir, Spare, don’t you think?). Substack has a host of other features that I am so excited to explore, including podcasts, live chats, and comment threads.
As you plan your gifts this holiday season, check out Substack’s Gift a Subscription option! And if for any reason you cannot afford a subscription, please send me an email at Hello@SoManyThoughts.com.
I am so grateful for the loyal followers who have come with me on this journey, growing a seed of an idea into something much bigger. Becoming a founding member means that you continue to believe in, and support, the next chapter of So Many Thoughts. For an amount of your choosing over $50, you’ll get a special “founding member” icon next to your name when you comment. I hope to find unique ways to show my appreciation as I sort out all of what Substack has to offer.
So Many Thoughts from the SMT community
I asked newsletter subscribers for their thoughts, here is a sampling of what they shared:
“I *LOVE* the SMT newsletter so, so much! I eagerly look forward to it and read it as soon as I can after it arrives! Thank you for all of the time and effort you put into it - it's evident you care a lot about it!”
“You are lovely and I deeply enjoy your perspective!! Thank you for the newsletter! I devour it once I get the kids off to school.”
“I’ve really enjoyed your perspective. It's an indulgence in my day when I get your newsletter. That's what makes it special.”
“Just enormous gratitude for your company and insights in this wild world!”
Thank you so much for your support! Lots more to come. 💗
