Let's Get Cozy

Zach starts a Substack and everyone reads and subscribes eagerly!

Earlier this year, I started to question whether or not I actually was a writer. Sure, I sit in my basement, I type a few pages or an entire book, and I send it off to strangers on the internet in hopes of being published. But outside of the kindly editors to whom I submit, and the other students in my most recent writing workshop, no one actually reads my work. 

When someone asks me what I do, sure, I may mention, in passing,  the fact that I was the first plus sized male model, or that I run a coffee trailer on a beach in Connecticut. But for the last few years I usually respond with “I’m a writer.”  After their natural next question I then say “Where can you read my work? Oh, Nowhere.” 

It’s the same response I used after telling people I was an actor and they asked where they could see me perform. “Nowhere.”

Hello, welcome to the remedy of my predicament. Welcome to my Substack. Is it a newsletter? A blog? Random observations and half formed ideas? A list of dad jokes?  Is it me slowly leaking out the essay collections that have been rejected by every publisher in New York City one piece at a time? Or is it just me holding myself accountable? Who knows!? The possibilities are endless!

If you found your way here without knowing who I am, Hello, My name is Zach Miko. As mentioned earlier, you may know me as the first plus sized male model signed to a major agency. For the last decade I have worked for 50+ international brands, and you may recognize me from the cover of most of the big and tall catalogs on your dad’s coffee table. I’ve spent most of my life as a storyteller in one form or another (acting, screenwriting, songwriting, content creation), and the last few years have really honed in on creative nonfiction. So much so that I got a literary agent, wrote a book, and shopped it around, and have collected a portfolio of the most encouraging rejection emails you’ve ever seen. 

Writing is different. Every other art and medium I have been a part of, was me stepping into being someone else, or an idea I had of what I wanted to be. Writing is scary, because it’s who I actually am. There is no mask or performance to hide behind. Just my thoughts, riddled with typos, grammatical errors, and words I use incorrectly, but it's all me. 

So what can you expect for your subscription? I write about fatherhood, masculinity, fashion, failure, art, creativity, adulthood, the woods,  life, dreams, advice, aspirations, and whatever else strikes me. I do my best to be funny and charming, so even if you aren't interested in the subject matter, hopefully you dig the vibe and stick around anyway. My promise to you is to keep writing, keep putting stuff out there. If there's a question or subject you want me to cover, please let me know, I love a good prompt. I’d love for this Substack to be an escape for you, as much as it is for me. 

Thank you for subscribing. 

I’ll see you at the next one.

-Zach