I don't like picking out books to read. If I do, I get nitpicky and I won't read anything.

I legit have to find books by random and force myself to read them.

I know a lot of people like that setting, but I just wish there was a way to turn it off.

I saw you posting something about Reedsy and I want to ask you if you recommend it to me. I'm writing a book of my own and I liked the chapter division with word count but I never heard of this website before.

hii!! first of all thank you so much 🥹💗 i’m so happy you enjoyed the dating hypothesis, that fic has a special place in my heart <3

and honestly, YESS, i absolutely recommend reedsy. i genuinely love it and it’s become my main writing platform. that being said, i’d probably recommend it more for people writing longer projects or series rather than one-shots. if you’re writing a novel, a multi-part fic, or anything with a lot of chapters, it’s amazing.

one of my favourite features is the chapter organisation. you can separate everything into chapters and parts, see individual chapter word counts, total manuscript word counts, and move chapters around really easily if you’re restructuring.

another feature i love is the writing goals. you can set a target word count and a deadline, and it tracks your progress automatically. for example, my current goal is to hit 100k words on my series before june 30, so every time i write it updates my progress and tells me how close i am to reaching it.

it also tracks your writing statistics, which i am mildly obsessed with!! it shows your average words written per day, how much you’ve added, how much you’ve deleted, your writing streaks, and other productivity stats that are surprisingly motivating.

a few other perks:

- automatic saving (a lifesaver)

- clean, distraction-free writing interface

- easy chapter navigation

- manuscript formatting tools

- version history so you can recover older drafts

- cloud-based, so you can access your work from different devices

- goal tracking and progress visualisation

i also just find it a lot less overwhelming than something like google docs once a project starts getting really long. everything feels much more organised.

something else that’s really cool, although i’ve never personally used it, is that i’m pretty sure reedsy also has a marketplace where you can find professionals for different parts of publishing. you can look for beta readers, proofreaders, editors, book cover designers, marketers, and more.

for example, if you’re writing fantasy, you can filter specifically for fantasy beta readers and see their ratings, experience, and sometimes even what books they’ve previously worked on. it’s actually a really neat system!!

now, have i ever hired one? absolutely not LMAO. i am unfortunately on the budget of a fanfic writer and med student. but if it’s within your budget, especially if you’re seriously pursuing traditional or self-publishing, i’d definitely recommend looking into it. the range of professionals available is honestly impressive, and being able to find people who specifically work within your genre is a huge advantage!

Double check before you pay, regardless of who you are paying.

Many are getting scammed, but in a way allowing it, by not checking to see if the person they are paying or the system they are paying belongs to the right person, place, or business.

Some scammers are masking as the same companies and people you may already be talking to. They swoop in, pretend to be them, and try to fool you into paying them.

Double check payment addresses. Double check payment people. Double check payment emails. Double check that you are not allowing a scammer to fool you.

A note for authors: Both IngramSpark and Reedsy have had this issue with people imitating them.

From the WINsomer LOSEsomer publishing industry observations series by Neal Winsomer.

I think I’ve mentioned this before, but many of the short stories I write have been in the works for a long time. Sometimes they’re just titles or stray words from something I’d like to write about, an idea inspired by a certain song or place. But mostly, they’re inspired by my dreams. So when I come across prompts like the one below from Reedsy, it motivates me to write that archived draft…