I have a writing crush on a younger man

He’s funny, in his 30s, dad of two, shamelessly seeks approval, full of neuroses–just my type

I’m an

Alex Dobrenko`

fangirl.

I’m more than twice his age, so I could be his mother, or, if we timed it right, his grandmother. I’m waaay outside his target audience of cool Millennials and Gen Zers. And unlike Alex, who fearlessly spills his most self-deprecating thoughts, I second-guess myself, and then double-check with my editor¹, before revealing stuff that doesn’t make me look good (like ambivalent feelings about my dying parents). Despite all this, his writing connects with me strongly. He always makes me laugh! What’s the old saying? The best way to a woman’s heart is by making her laugh?

Alex’s absurd humor drives his riffs and rants in his bestselling newsletter, Both Are True, where he mines his life² as a young father, comedian, and TV actor. He often ends a post by unapologetically begging his reader to become a paying subscriber. (Alex, I paid!) He makes up his own spelling and writes in lowercase, which I used to find annoying but now I happily accept. And no matter how unexpectedly looney his topic, it’s not all quirks and humor—he always leans into vulnerability, revealing his underlying anxieties, fears, and neuroses.

Insecure and in good company

Even though it’s improbable that a 30-something guy and a 70-something grandmother could have something in common, I feel a strong kinship with Alex. His life is so very different from mine, yet it’s extremely relatable.

Foremost are his insecurities, of which there are many, and his ever-present need for approval and love. That resonates. That’s what’s inside my head too, now at age 73, back when I was in my 30s, and far earlier.