I write about what we know but do not believe.

—David J. Frost

We know we will die, but mostly live as if we will not. We may know free will is an illusion, but still blame, praise, regret, apologize, and resent. We know happiness cannot be pursued directly, but pursue it anyway. I write about that gap: the distance between what we know intellectually and what we can actually believe, feel, and live by.

About Armchair Vertigo

Armchair Vertigo is a newsletter of literary nonfiction, philosophy, psychology, memoir, and cultural criticism. Its central subject is the examined life under pressure: death, grief, self-deception, procrastination, moral responsibility, free will, happiness, and meaning.

About me

I’m David J. Frost. My essay on the psychological effects of denying free will is forthcoming in the Summer 2026 issue of The Missouri Review. I’ve also published essays in The Smart Set, SLAB Literary Magazine, Philosophy Now, and elsewhere. I have a B.A. in English from Columbia, an M.A. in Philosophy from UC Irvine, and a Ph.D. in Philosophy from UNC-Chapel Hill. I teach philosophy online for Alamance Community College and live on the Oregon coast.

For more of my work, visit: davidjfrost.com or linktr.ee/davidfrost

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I write about what we know but do not believe.

—David J. Frost

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