Published

Although I’m now primarily focused on fiction, as a journalist, I’ve written for USA Today, WWD, SELF, and many others. These are a few recently published pieces.

I Drank Every Day. What Kind of Effect Was It Having On My Kids? (Washington Post)
I realize that this action is itself a privilege. I recognize that for many, it’s not as simple as making the decision to shift a habit from alcohol to tea…Yes, I know that I might fail, at times, but I’m no longer fooling myself about what’s at stake.

Morning After Pill “Freebies” Highlight Abortion Divide (Northwest Review)
A few weeks after the Supreme Court decision on Roe v. Wade, I accidentally opened a bright-pink mailer addressed to my daughter…I texted her: Call me as soon as you can. Seconds later, my phone rang…“Sweetheart.” My throat was tight with anxiety. “Are you pregnant?”

What I Wrote Was Congratulations What I Meant To Say Was (Hippocampus)
This is what I would say to you, if the opportunity was more than a comment on your feed…Lift your children up until they stand on their own and continue to keep them close even when they push you away. Give them your brilliance so that they shine, like you did, like we all did, as they spread their wings across the world.

Sustainability and the Big Five Publishers: Who Does it Best? (The Shit No One Tells You About Writing)
Publishing sustainability doesn’t exist in isolation: Environmental impacts ripple across supply chains, affect workers, and intersect with broader corporate responsibility initiatives such as DEI programs and fair labor standards to impact both writers and readers. When it comes to the “big five” publishers, environmental commitments are increasingly on the table, but action and transparency vary widely. Looking beyond marketing claims to data – from paper sourcing and carbon emissions to operational energy – can reveal which companies are walking the talk.

Disrupting Body Dysmorphia (Midstory)
The mirror might be more powerful than the scale. I thought about that recently while shopping with my daughter for a dress to wear to her cousin’s wedding. In the dressing room, she scrutinized herself from every angle and frowned — a posture I recognized all too well. Body dysmorphia affects between five and 10 million people in the United States. I am one of them.

The Best Demin Thrifting Beachside in Los Angeles (ThriftEd Mag)
I first started thrifting in high school because it was the most affordable way to trend hop on a minimum-wage budget. I fixated on 1950s floral frocks, cashmere crewnecks with tiny moth holes that could be repaired with a needle and thread, and broken-in Levi’s 501s with the wallet (or better yet, tobacco disk) outline on the back pocket.

Che Cazzo Fai (Sneaker Wave)
By the time I turn fourteen in Florence, I can hold a conversation in Italian, and my father shouts “Buongiorno!” at every opportunity, regardless of where the sun is in the sky. We live in a spacious, modern apartment with tile floors and iron-barred balconies. He grins in the amber Tuscan light—the first real smile I’ve seen for months.

Impulse-Buy Spouse (The Good Trade)
I once brought home a chronically anxious dog after seeing her photograph on a rescue website; I bought a car from a friend of a friend only to realize after he’d left town that the transmission was shot. But I never thought I’d commit to marriage on a whim. 

Watching ‘Stranger Things’ With My Teen Was Just The Therapy We Needed (Scary Mommy)
She wore the same hoodie every day, and ringed her eyes with black eyeliner. Clothes piled up on the floor and dishes on the bedside table. This was more than just teenaged rebellion: In an out-of-control world, my daughter was exercising what little autonomy she had.

I also wrote, designed, and self-published two books:

THE BIG LIST OF THINGS THAT SUCK helped promote my EcoStiletto website and had some solid endorsements, like this one from “Living with Ed’s” Rachelle Begley: “We all need eco guidance and this is a comprehensive and easy-to-use source of reference. Being green just got a little easier.”

My baby was the cover model for THE MOMMY GREENEST GUIDE TO PREGNANCY, BIRTH & BEYOND, which I designed like a magazine; I also sold advertising to support its publication. “In 2008, I sat down with my infant daughter in one hand and a pen in the other, and wrote a note designed to be read by my three children when they were old enough to become parents,” I wrote after its publication in 2012. “Then, I put the manuscript in a drawer and forgot about it. Until 2011, when a friend called in a panic to ask about VOCs and I realized: This would be so much easier if I could just send them my book. And the drawer was opened once more.” I gave this book away and have a few more copies, if you want one!

Please follow me on Instagram, Facebook,Bluesky, and LinkedIn and if there’s a story I missed or you just want to say hi, email rachel(at)lincolnsarnoff(dot)com. Thanks for being here!