Permanent hiatus

via @byjillianmaria

Dear [Agent], 

[An optional brief introduction, no longer than 2 - 3 sentences, perhaps where you elaborate on the #ownvoices of your manuscript, or pointing out certain things in your manuscript that the agent asks for. I reiterate that this paragraph is optional. Unless you have a very specific reason to be querying this agent—for instance, if they tweeted an MSWL for a heist novel and you’re querying a heist novel—there is no relevance, so don’t include this paragraph.]

[The first paragraph of your summary introduces the world, the main character, and their Normal. For instance, Cynthia lives in the times of a pandemic and works to continue living in their new normal. Every day, Cynthia chooses to get up and keep living and making the most of their situation while trying to find something to do to be useful.] 

[The second paragraph of your summary introduces the plot. To continue with the above idea, Cynthia has been tasked with trying to find a cure to coronavirus, but all they have to work with in their home is duct tape, tangerines, Tylenol, and a never-give-up attitude.] 

[The third paragraph introduces stakes, aka what will happen if Cynthia doesn’t discover a cure with the resources they have at home. Luckily for them, however, a woman named Jane they had a one night stand with needs a place to crash after she was evicted. Cynthia agrees to let her stay as their roommate, especially because Jane brings with her the missing ingredient to the cure for coronavirus, a magic bean she stole from a giant–but there’s only one magic bean. If Cynthia and Jane can’t find a way to make more beans, they might be sent to the realm of giants forever.] 

[The closing paragraph goes like this: Complete at 89,000 words, THE MAGIC BEAN is an Adult contemporary fantasy with potential for a companion novel. I believe it will appeal to fans of Erin Morgenstern and Naomi Novik. Briefly explain who you are and share what you’re comfortable with about yourself—I say I’m 26, headed to grad school for archiving, and that the book is #ownvoices for genderqueer representation. Also mention if you have any connection to the publishing industry. I mention who I was previously represented by, why we amicably parted ways, and that I’ve mentored in many writing contests.] 

[Final closure: Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to hearing from you!] 

[Best,]

[My name]

[My phone number and, though optional, my twitter handle] 

Hey everyone! I want to dedicate two months in 2023 to reviewing the published works of indie and self-published authors of tumblr. The current state of the publishing industry frustrates me as both a consumer and future author, but I see the imaginative works of so many fellow writers through this app and hope that we can collectively shine a spotlight on the talent showcased here. My reviews will be posted across social media platforms and shared on all major book review sites (like Goodreads, Amazon, B&N, Indigo).

I do not want free ARCs or copies of your work. I personally believe it’s important for us to increase the book sales of smaller, debut authors so they can find a larger audience. I will pay for all of my copies, as I have the means to do so.

I do want you to please reblog this post and share the title, link, genre, and description of the book you have published or will be publishing in 2023.

Feel free to use or adjust the below sample template, or respond with your own.

Please reblog and boost!

Author name:

Relevant social media: (any social media you would want potential readers to seek out)

Book title:

Genre:

Word count:

Summary:

Trigger warnings:

I say this because my creative writing club in college pressured everyone to do NaNo. We would reserve a room the first weekend in November for a whole night, and my club president would get very upset if anyone got tired and left early. She genuinely ran that group like a sweatshop. Everyone would have to share their daily word count and there was this awful shroud of extreme competition and shame that lasted the whole month.

To put it simply, what we especially wanted to do is take the responses to @jezifster's post (see here) and make it easy to find new writers and content to support. Are you a [genre] writer who wants to interact more with other [genre] writers? Do you want to find Ko-Fis to donate to or Patreons to subscribe to? You should be able to do that and more once this project is running.

Right now, we're working on a Google Form attached to a Google Sheet. (There's an entry on the form to give you an idea of this might look like at the end.) Please note that if the form is what people want to stick with, it'll be another option to getting your info in the archive, rather than a complete replacement to the post itself. One of the many purposes of this sideblog is to keep up with the post and reblog new entries when we find them. Please feel free to continue reblogging the post.

Another purpose of this sideblog: To give you an opportunity to let us know what you need. And first and foremost, the form and the sheet aren't final just yet. Please feel free to test both out and let us know what you think! Is it easy to navigate? Is there information we can add? Something else we need to change? Please don't hesitate to let us know! Our anon asks are on, and we'll also be keeping an eye on replies and reblogs.

Labeling these things as “drama” or “discourse” is minimizing actual harm being done to people of color. Not listening to people of color when they say something is harmful and choosing instead to sit in your echo chambers with your white friends is also harmful.

i just saw someone bitch that parasite, a perfectly named film, has a one word title.

why do people even have an issue with this? why are people now judging creatives for the number of words in the title of the piece?