Welcome to the Game

Hey now! I’m David Coggins, author of The Optimist (Scribner), Men and Manners and the NYT bestseller Men and Style. For years I’ve written about travel and style, from where to buy a suit in Naples to the best whisky bars in Tokyo.

I started The Contender to connect with people who share these passions. Here you’ll find stories about everything from how to wear a tuxedo to Bahamas fly fishing to good literary biographies to the nostalgic case for bad beer. I also answer reader questions every month where we reach a new level of obsessive detail. We’ve created an active, generous and thoughtful community.

Subscribers also receive Central Division, a weekly podcast I record with my good friend Michael Williams, of ACL fame. We talk about media, design, travel and how to take the long view. When you sign up you’ll have access to the complete archive of over 200 articles and 100 podcasts.

Welcome to the game.