Year Six Project

HeyReprotech is coming up on five years old. Let's switch things up a bit.

September will mark the end of the fifth full year of the HeyReprotech newsletter. Over that time, I've published hundreds of weekly stories.

Is it okay to create a grandchild using your dead son's sperm?

How often do children of the same donor cross paths?

Is it okay to treat patients whose prospects are close to nil?

Do intended parents really want a relationship with their surrogate?

It's been wonderful to have readers who care as much as I do about issues like these. I'm grateful for the impetus to write them.

Just for a year, though, I'd like to switch things up a bit. I'm calling it my Year Six Project.

Newsletters as you know them will remain part of the mix. But I'm thinking about experimenting with a few other ways to engage over assisted reproduction.

I've been considering some of the following:

• a moderated panel discussion on Zoom (for instance, I could invite sperm donors to talk about their experiences);

• an interactive article club, where we read, annotate and then get together (virtually) to discuss an article of interest;

• audio content of some kind;

• longer stories on bigger topics, maybe with updates along the way;

• a Zoom get-together;

• something I have not thought of yet.

To be completely honest, I am not looking to take on extra work — five years of weekly deadlines has been gruelling — so my ambitions have to be limited. But I'm open to trying out one or two new ideas. We'll see what works and what doesn't, and whether any of the changes are worth keeping.

The first step will be to decide what those new ideas should be. In the interest of broadening my options, I'll be holding "office hours" during two weeks this month, to chat with some of you, get to know you better, and get a sense of what might be good to try.

Our chat can be about ideas for Year Six or not. It can be about thoughts on assisted reproduction in general. It can be about areas of the field you think I've neglected, or ones you think I got wrong — or right. It can be a story tip. I'd also love to hear from those of you who just want to say hello.

The office hours will take place between Monday June 12 and Friday June 23. They can be by phone or by Zoom, as you like. In general, I'm looking to book 20-minute chats, and in general I'd like them to be during regular work hours. But many of you don't live in my timezone (Eastern, North America), or are only available in the evening or on weekends, so I'm happy to be flexible.

If you're interested, email me to book a time. Give me a window of availability if you can. I will get back to you with something specific.

Both paying and free subscribers are welcome to sign up for a chat. (If you'd prefer to just email your thoughts, that's great too.)

Contact me directly at alison.motluk [at] gmail.com or just reply to this email.

I look forward to meeting you, hearing what you have to say, and exchanging thoughts!

Alison