I’m Publishing on Substack (again) and on Medium

I’m Publishing on Substack (again) and on Medium: the Why and What

The Why

I started publishing on Medium and Substack about the same time years ago but was getting more traction on Medium; I love the writers. A couple of my mentors encouraged me to resume publishing on Substack again; I hadn’t been getting enough “hits” there, but I decided to try it again. I’m glad I did.

With the encouragement of friends, writers, and editors, upon my return to Substack, I found some of its new features quite intriguing. “Notes” are an excellent way to post short takes on what I’m writing.

What am I writing about?

I’m “your friendly neighborhood historian.”

What does that even mean?

What is a Friendly Neighborhood Historian?

It’s the person you count on to inform you of the history behind the many holidays throughout the year, both secular and sacred. It’s the person you trust to provide the backstory on current events that can be explained by similar events in the past: one part humor, one part scholarly research, one part entertaining insights.

What are the qualifications of Your Friendly Neighborhood Historian?

I did my undergraduate and graduate work in history at Berkeley and elsewhere, and I have researched history topics during my 30 years of travels around the world.

How long has Your Friendly Neighborhood Historian been doing this?

Over 40 years ago, people asked me to explain the history behind Halloween, Christmas, Easter, Valentine’s Day, and other holidays. I began posting articles online, which continues today on my blog at billpetro.com and syndicated on social media.

Do you write about only History?

It’s much more than that. I write on:

• Tech trends: based on a +40-year career at leading Silicon Valley high-tech companies.

• Pop Culture: including reviews of movies, TV, concerts, theater, and books.

• Travel guides: based on 2 million miles of travel to 53 countries.

• Humor: featuring satirical articles that entertain on science and history.

• Politics & Civics: explaining the complexity of the American government system and its impact on current events.

I’ll continue publishing on Medium and Substack.

Meanwhile, I syndicate my articles on these social networks: Facebook, X/Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Mastodon, Threads, Tumblr, Bluesky, Reddit, and Quora.