Welcome to season six of HeyReprotech!

Welcome back! And welcome to season six!

For those of you who are new to HeyReprotech, this is a weekly, independent, ad-free, subscriber-funded newsletter about assisted reproduction. From how many frozen eggs you need for a good shot at parenthood to how embryos travel around the globe, from fertility prediction to what it's like to have triplets, from egg donors who struggle to have their own kids to what a sperm donor thinks about his own son donating — you'll find it all here.

To learn more about me, and some of the stories I've written over the years, check out my about page.

The newsletter will be sent to your inbox on Tuesdays at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time. This is a paid newsletter, so most weeks, the full newsletter goes to paying subscribers only. Non-paying subscribers will get a brief summary, though, and occasional open-access items.

If you aren't one already, please consider becoming a paying subscriber. The price is CAD 99/year or 10/month, and if that's beyond your means, please get in touch about a discount.

On the final Tuesday of every month, I do a roundup of things to read, watch, listen to, attend, participate in or know about. Feel free to send me suggestions. The roundup is open to everyone.

Just a reminder, too, that my first issue of the new year is always a book list. I'm doing my best to keep track, but if you know of any recent or forthcoming titles that should be included, please drop me a line.

For Year Six, I've decided to try out a new thing or two, just for fun.

The first I'd like to tell you about is a collaboration with Mark Isero and his newsletter, Article Club. I've been following Mark's work since before I launched HeyReprotech and I admire it. (Here is a bit more about his newsletter.) Mark and I have decided to collaborate on an article club meeting that is relevant to both our readerships.

There will be more details to come, but for now, mark your calendars for Sunday, December 3: noon-1:30 p.m. Pacific time, 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time, 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. in the UK, 9 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. in continental Europe and (apologies) unspeakably early on Monday morning in Australia. Any HeyReprotech subscriber, paying or not paying, will be welcome to join in.

Many thanks to all of you who took time to speak with me during June's "office hours." I learned so much — not just about the newsletter, but also about you and what is important to you about this field.

I'd like to end this first newsletter of the season with a link — to a story I've been working on for almost ten years. I opened the file on this in December 2013. It was finally published last week.

It's about intended parents who were pursuing surrogacy in Canada. Some were Canadians, some were from outside the country. Over the years, people kept getting in touch with stories about how they'd paid their fee, only to have their surrogate fall through. After that, many struggled to get matches that would stick.

"This is a story about a darker side of Canada’s booming surrogacy industry. It’s about how people desperate to be parents can find themselves pressured, deceived, trapped and threatened. It’s about how Canadian lawmakers, regulators and law enforcement decline to act. It’s about one of the many reasons we need to revisit our law on assisted human reproduction."

Alison Motluk. "Waiting Room." Hazlitt. 30 Aug 2023.

Please read it. Apologies in advance: it's long.

See you all next week.