RIP, The Defiant Middle

On planned obsolescence

The Defiant Middle died on March 5, 2026, when its author received notice that the book was now out of print. TDM was conceived in the mid to late 1970s, around the first time the author was told by an adult male that she was wrong about something when she was, in fact, right about something. Like many women, TDM really came into itself in midlife, when the author wrote her first and so far only demi-viral essay, which was swiftly followed by a book deal (while we’re on the subject, RIP viral essays and book deals). Said book deal was swiftly followed by a global pandemic. TDM was written during said pandemic while squinting at friends through Zoom screens, and its birth was celebrated in an empty bookstore. During its brief lifetime, TDM was praised by few, ignored by many, and often tripped over by its author, who has rather large feet and a bad habit of leaving books on the floor. TDM was predeceased by its siblings in publishing’s strategy of planned obsolescence. It rests in peace beside Telegraph (date of expiration unknown because publisher went under); Slanted and Enchanted (publisher still exists but stopped communicating with the author soon after publication); Radical Reinvention (publisher was absorbed by a different publisher which was then absorbed by a different publisher which was then merged into a gigapublisher); and The Nones Are Alright (not even listed on publisher’s catalogue any more, ouch). In lieu of flowers, the author suggests that you make a donation to any writer who still has a pulse, because this gig is brutal.