Robert Ford
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robertmford.bsky.social
Robert Ford
@robertmford.bsky.social
3.4K followers 10K following 1.6K posts
Writer, community builder, & devoted tea drinker 🍵✨—on a mission to find the stories that connect us, spark empathy, and make the world a bit kinder (one cuppa at a time).

https://robertmichaelford.substack.com/
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robertmford.bsky.social
What if nothing was illegal—and no one remembered why it ever was?

Objection Overruled
New from Brittle Views. Drops May 22nd.
For the ones still asking uncomfortable questions.
📍 www.brittleviews.com
#Defiance #FictionThatBites
May 21, 2025 at 10:52 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
Tomorrow I start sharing Holding On—my first novel.

A quiet story about grief, family, and the weight of memory.

One chapter a week. The first lands tomorrow morning.
May 20, 2025 at 10:03 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
He wanted to change. Or maybe just to matter.
A short story about strength, memory, and becoming.
A damp, narrow brick alleyway in a British backstreet, its red wall tagged with faded white graffiti reading “Eli Woz ’Ere.” The paint is uneven and slightly dripped, as if sprayed by a child. Moss creeps along the pavement edges. The scene is empty, overcast, and quiet—evoking loneliness, memory, and the ache of wanting to be seen.
May 14, 2025 at 2:46 AM
robertmford.bsky.social
I just recorded the narration for this one, and it will be live at 7:30 EDT tomorrow.

Please read, listen, and share widely.

www.brittleviews.com
A picture of Stephen Miller, with the title If You Were Mine.
May 12, 2025 at 3:12 AM
robertmford.bsky.social
I'll be dropping an essay tomorrow morning all about this.
April 30, 2025 at 11:04 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
New piece coming tomorrow.

It’s about a man deported over a fake image, and a system that rewards forgetting.

Person. Woman. Man. Camera. Tattoo.
Five words. One test. Too familiar.
Person. Woman. Man. Camera. Tattoo.
April 30, 2025 at 9:59 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
Sometimes one sentence says it all.

www.brittleviews.com/p/the-truth-...
You didn’t need to twist yourself into something easier to love.
April 23, 2025 at 2:28 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
I don’t write to go wide.
I write to go deep.

To catch what might’ve been missed.
To sit with what doesn’t always have words.
To mark the moment—quietly, truthfully.

That’s the work for me.
If it’s yours too, you’re welcome to walk with me:

www.brittleviews.com

#whyIwrite #emotionaltruth
I don’t write to be viral. I write to be vital. To remember. To notice. To leave a mark that whispers, “I was here. And I felt this.”
April 22, 2025 at 6:12 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
I used to cringe at old pieces.
Now I thank them.
They held what I couldn’t yet name.
They did the best they could
with what I knew.
And that was enough.
When I reread old pieces, I don’t judge them. I thank them. They were doing the best they could with what I knew.
April 21, 2025 at 11:19 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
He’s not drawing his mum as she is. He’s drawing the version he misses—the one who used to laugh with her whole face.

It's a quiet story about a boy holding onto fragments of the mother he remembers… and the small, wordless ways he tries to bring her back.

Read it here: shorturl.at/6tBZF
The smile comes out crooked, but he doesn’t start over. He draws the eyes wide— how hers used to look when she laughed. He’s not sure she laughs like that anymore. But this is the version he wants to remember. The one he still hopes might come back.
April 21, 2025 at 7:23 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
Some words don’t ask to be understood.

They ask to be felt—to settle in the chest, not the head.

If that speaks to you, you might like what I’m writing over at www.brittleviews.com

Not everything’s tidy. But it’s honest. And it lingers.
“Not all writing needs to be explained. Some of it just needs to be felt.”
April 21, 2025 at 6:37 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
I didn’t set out to write about myself. But somewhere in the quiet between scenes, I realized: I was.

Not in detail, but in feeling.
In the longing.
In the way silence can stretch around a child like fog.

If this resonates, the full piece—“Notes I Never Gave Him”—is up at: shorturl.at/I5evc
I wasn’t setting out to fictionalize my childhood. These aren’t autobiographical accounts. But they are emotionally true. They live in the same spaces I once did—the quiet confusion of knowing something is off, but not having the words to name it. The ache of shrinking to fit. The solace of finding stability in repetition. The courage to hope someone might notice.
April 20, 2025 at 2:21 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
Even the strongest relationships falter. The goal isn’t perfection—it’s repair.

Truth #5: Let It Break, Then Mend is the next in my Six Truths About Love series, shared as part of When It Matters Most.
SIX TRUTHS ABOUT LOVE #5 Let It Break, Then Mend Even the strongest relationships falter. We get tired. We shut down. We mess it up. The goal isn’t flawlessness. It’s repair. Repair means taking responsibility for the impact—not just the intention. It means saying: “I see how I hurt you.” “Let’s find our way back.” It may not be quick or graceful—but in healthy relationships, it happens. And the relationship is all the stronger for it.
April 17, 2025 at 5:59 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
Truth #4: Truth With an Open Hand
(from my Six Truths About Love series, excerpted from When It Matters Most)

Not all truth heals. But truth offered with care—without blame or withdrawal—can hold a relationship steady.
SIX TRUTHS ABOUT LOVE #4 Truth With an Open Hand Hard conversations are part of any real relationship. What matters is how we bring truth into the room. Truth that builds connection sounds like: “This matters to me—and so do you.” “That hurt, but I still want to stay close.” “Something needs to change, and I want to find a way through it—together.” Truth that lands well doesn’t wound. It invites. When it’s spoken with care, it almost always holds.
April 17, 2025 at 3:24 AM
robertmford.bsky.social
I sharpiegated this one.
April 16, 2025 at 2:16 AM
robertmford.bsky.social
Love doesn’t mean carrying someone’s pain for them.
It means walking with them, steady and present.
No fixing. No disappearing. Just trust and respect.

Truth #3: With, Not For

www.brittleviews.com/p/when-it-ma...

#love #boundaries #emotionalclarity #sixtruths
SIX TRUTHS ABOUT LOVE #3 With, Not For Loving someone doesn’t mean carrying their pain for them. It means saying: “I’m here.” “I see you.” “I trust you to navigate this—and I’m not going anywhere.” Support doesn’t mean fixing. It means staying present while someone finds their own strength. That’s not distance. That’s respect.
April 16, 2025 at 12:36 AM
robertmford.bsky.social
In strong relationships, boundaries don’t create distance.
They create sustainability.

Love with edges is love that lasts.

www.brittleviews.com/p/when-it-ma...

#boundaries #emotionalresilience #stillbecoming #brittleviews
SIX TRUTHS ABOUT LOVE #2 Love With Edges In strong relationships, boundaries don’t create distance. They create sustainability. They say: “I want to stay close to you, but I can’t disappear to do it.” “I’ll support you, but not at the cost of my own well-being.” “This is what I can give. This is what I can’t.” Boundaries don’t push people out. They make it possible to stay in—without losing yourself. And when things feel fragile, those boundaries may be what make love possible—when it matters most.
April 15, 2025 at 5:17 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
Says it all, really.
Image of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis seated at a ceremonial signing table, surrounded by a group of smiling men in suits. DeSantis holds up a signed document. Two men on either side of the group each hold a large green road sign. The sign on the left reads “Gulf of Compassion,” and the one on the right reads “Gulf of Conscience.” At the bottom of the image, text reads: “IT IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO ENSURE OUR CHILDREN UNDERSTAND AMERICAN GREATNESS GREED, GRIFTING, AND GASLIGHTING,” with “greatness” crossed out in red. The image is a satirical response to Florida’s controversial renaming of the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America.”
April 15, 2025 at 4:17 AM
robertmford.bsky.social
Emotional safety is the ground love grows from.

Six Truths About Love – #1: Held, Not Fixed
This isn’t about rescuing. It’s about staying close when things feel messy.

www.brittleviews.com/p/when-it-ma...

#SixTruths #LoveAndLoss #EmotionalSafety #BrittleViews
SIX TRUTHS ABOUT LOVE #1 Held, Not Fixed We talk about trust, but emotional safety is what makes trust possible. It’s knowing you can bring all of yourself—even the uncertain, unpolished, and overwhelmed parts—and be met with presence, not judgment. It’s knowing that saying “I’m not okay” won’t be treated like a problem to fix or a burden to carry. It will be heard. This kind of love doesn’t rescue or retreat. It stays near. It listens. It steadies. It’s not loud. It doesn’t need to be. But it’s one of the deepest forms of love there is.
April 14, 2025 at 9:51 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
They admit he was removed illegally.
They admit a judge had protected him.
Then they labeled him and walked away.

This isn’t justice. It’s cruelty with a paper trail.

Share this. Say his name: Kilmar Abrego Garcia.

#ImmigrationJustice #DueProcessMatters #HumanRights #SayHisName #StopDeportations
They admit he was removed illegally. They acknowledge a judge had granted him protection. And now they're saying, "Well, he's MS-13, so never mind." No trial. No due process. Just a label. Just gone. This is not justice. This is cruelty dressed in bureaucracy.
April 13, 2025 at 11:21 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
What if love isn’t about grand gestures—but quiet staying power?

New piece: The Quiet Work of Love

→ www.brittleviews.com/p/the-quiet-work-of-love

It's about unlearning old love stories and learning to show up, day by day.

#writing #substack #love #quietwork #brittleviews
Minimalist quote poster with a textured, moody blue background. Centered in white capital letters, the quote reads: “Not perfection. Not performance. Just the quiet, unglamorous work of learning how to love—and be loved—in real time.” The title “The Quiet Work of Love” appears at the top, and the URL www.brittleviews.com is shown at the bottom.
April 8, 2025 at 8:48 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
Just read The Atlantic’s piece on how gaslighting has become a form of governance—and I couldn’t shake it.

It’s not just about lies. It’s about disorientation. About breaking our grip on what’s real.
So I made this quote card. A reflection. A reminder.
Digital quote card with a moody blue-toned background. A lone figure stands in the fog holding a lantern that casts warm light into the surrounding haze. Text reads: “Be a truth teller. When lies are loud and facts are under attack, telling the truth becomes an act of resistance. Don’t let gaslighting become governance. Refuse to accept ‘alternative facts.’ Speak up—not just for yourself, but for those starting to doubt their grip on reality. Your voice can be the light that pierces the fog. Truth needs witnesses. Be one.” Website URL at bottom: brittleviews.com.
April 6, 2025 at 2:07 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
I taught myself Descript so I could bring this poem to life.

It’s called The Quiet Crossing—a reflection on release, becoming, and showing up whole.

Watch the video, or read it here: www.brittleviews.com/p/the-quiet-...

#Poetry #CreativeProcess #Masculinity #Healing #TheQuietCrossing #bsky
April 3, 2025 at 8:01 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
She thought she was helping them heal.
But the weight didn’t leave. It became hers.

One story from The Shape of Silence—out now on Kindle (free on Kindle Unlimited).

For anyone who’s ever carried more than they meant to.

a.co/d/4VKZpxG

#newbook #literaryfiction #empathfatigue
March 31, 2025 at 8:00 PM
robertmford.bsky.social
Hey friends—if you’ve read my short story collection The Shape of Silence, I’d be incredibly grateful if you’d leave a quick review on Amazon.

shorturl.at/vs1bu

Thank you for helping these stories find their way. 💙

#TheShapeOfSilence #ShortStories #IndieAuthor #BookReview #LiteraryFiction
Cover of my collection of short stories, 'The Shape of Silence'
March 27, 2025 at 1:02 PM