Today, I will present my email, which I wrote to one of the Polish publishing houses. Here we go:
Good morning,
I am writing to you because I believe we have a lot to offer each other. My name is Adam Mazek. I am forty years old (I wrote this email on March 28, 2026; the day before my forty-first birthday). I was born in Olesno (Opole Province). However, I have spent my entire adult life in Mazovia (Małkinia Górna [1985–2000], Brok [2000–2004], and Warsaw [2004–present]). So much for the official introduction about myself.
Why am I writing to you?
Before I answer that question, I’ll write a bit more about my artistic work. Since October 2015, I’ve been regularly practicing street photography (mainly in the streets of Poland’s capital). Since September 1, 2017, I have been running a blog (www.adammazek.com), where I write posts in English (I decided to take this step from the very beginning so that my potential audience would include not only Polish speakers but also English speakers). In 2018 and 2019, I had two photography exhibitions in Warsaw. To date, I have published 2,180 posts on my blog (each containing at least 300 words). Another 167 posts are ready and awaiting publication on the blog (since September 13, 2022, I have been publishing one post a day).
The subject matter of my blog is broad.
I write literally whatever is on my mind. One could say that the central theme is art in the broadest sense and the creative process, with a particular emphasis on street photography and writing. For many years, I tried to avoid political topics on my website, but the war in Ukraine has led to exceptions to this rule since 2022.
Another topic I cover is the lifestyle I lead. I earn a living as an accountant. I run this blog for the sake of the idea, not for money (I’ve sold some of my photos to Poland [10 pieces], the U.S. [9 pieces], and England [4 pieces], but I’d call those sales incidental) . I want to inspire other people to also want to create something out of nothing. I want to make others aware that creativity in the broadest sense and the creative process are the noblest and most luxurious states of spirit, body, and mind, which make us better versions of ourselves. In short, creation makes us human. I am deeply convinced that every person has enormous creative potential, but often various circumstances prevent us from either nurturing these creative powers or, unfortunately, even discovering them.
That is why, despite the chronic lack of time due to my professional work, I try to write something every day and, as often as possible, I try to go out onto the streets of Warsaw to capture the beautiful, seemingly mundane reality.
Returning to my lifestyle, which I discuss on my blog, I don’t just address topics related to balancing professional responsibilities and art, but I also write about such less obvious things as intermittent fasting (since December 2020, as a rule, I don’t eat before 7:00 PM and limit my intake of processed foods; focusing on eating meat, eggs, vegetables, and nuts).
Another less obvious aspect of my lifestyle that I’ve described on my site is exposing my body to the cold (since April 2021, I’ve been taking cold [freezing!] showers, and since fall 2021, I’ve been walking in sub-zero temperatures wearing summer clothes [the only winter items I have are a hat and gloves]). I do the latter, of course, while taking photos on the streets of Warsaw. An interesting fact is that since mid-2021, I have become a walking advertisement for myself, walking around in my own T-shirts with the inscription “adammazek.com” and one of my own photos.
Another element that makes my work unusual is the fact that, since mid-August 2024, while walking and taking photos on the streets of Warsaw, I’ve been practicing what’s known as rucking.
Rucking is a military-derived exercise that involves walking with a heavy backpack (for example, I can walk 15,000 steps with just one break on a bench while carrying a 37.5 kg backpack).
In every published text, I have included and will continue to include at least three photographs (they usually serve an illustrative purpose and are not directly related to the text). Therefore, it is easy to calculate that I have published a total of 6,540 photos. An interesting fact is that thousands more photos are waiting not so much to be published as to be reviewed on my computer (I use a Nikon D-90 camera for photography and Lightroom for digital editing). I do not use Photoshop because I want my work to be about actual photographs (Lightroom allows for limited photo modifications, similar to what was possible in a darkroom with analog photography), whereas with Photoshop, it’s very easy to alter a photo to the point where it could be described as a graphic rather than a photograph.
Returning to the question of why I decided to write to you…
As far as I can tell, your portfolio does not include books on street photography. Moreover, you do not have any books about a Pole who practices this unconventional art form. Below, I am sending you a series of links to my website. I hope you will find my work interesting enough to consider publishing a book or album about my work. I realize that not all of my texts or photos are suitable for publication. There are certainly better and worse moments on my blog. Nevertheless, it seems to me that from the material I present below, it will be possible to select enough diverse content to create a book or album. In my mind’s eye, I envision such a publication as an album in which text and photos would be interwoven evenly. Of course, there’s also the option to focus more on just the text or just the photos. I’m leaving the question of whether to match photos to texts or texts to photos as an open-ended topic. There’s enough material here that you can really “sculpt” something out of it that potential readers will buy (I believe that).
I realize that these days, there are many people who self-publish books. However, given the sheer volume of text and photos, as well as a lack of objectivity regarding what and how to publish in book form, self-publishing and designing my own album seem like too daunting a task for me at this time.
Here is the website address:
As part of developing my passion for photography, I completed the ROE post-secondary school program from 2017 to 2019, for which I prepared the following project at the end:
On my website, from September 2017 to February 2024, I published “Diaries” (in both Polish and English). They may give you an idea of how my work could be turned into an album or book:
I would like to note that the “Diaries” I have published do not cover the last 6 years (more precisely, the period from March 2020 to March 2026), and during that entire time, I regularly posted new texts and photos on the blog. I mention this because I want to emphasize that the content of a potential book/album is “almost” ready (I’d say it’s in a raw state), but what’s missing is “only” a publisher and professionals who would know how to extract the most valuable elements from my work and how to “package” them appropriately.
On my website, I’ve presented a series of works in the form of mini-e-books. Here they are (most of the items below are bilingual):
I would like to note that all of the above links are just the tip of the iceberg in terms of what has been published on the blog but not condensed into PDF files (as is the case with the “Diaries”), and that I have a great many finished but unpublished texts and photos, and in the context of the fact that I feel I have plenty of ideas for future projects, both those related to the written word and street photography.
Thank you in advance for your interest in my message and for your response, even if you are not interested in collaborating with me.
Best regards,
Adam Mazek
P.S.
In my message yesterday, I forgot to include the portfolio I have published on my website (just photos, no text). Again, please consider the galleries below as just the tip of the iceberg. I have far more than this, but a lack of time and energy simply prevents me from fully utilizing my creative potential. That is why I decided to write to you, hoping that a potential collaboration would allow me to focus on my creative work in life. I am convinced that this is the best thing I can do not only for myself, but also for our society and future generations. I believe that your editorial team will contribute to this noble cause while ensuring appropriate compensation for your collaboration. The galleries below were mostly arranged chronologically, loosely grouping photos together as I added them to the site.
Here are the links:
Thank you once again for your response, whatever it may be.
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