@tortoisebooks.bsky.social
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📥 100
📝 110
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add a skeleton here at some point
6 days ago
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Shoot for the moon. If you miss, you'll end up in a steaming pile of garbage.
add a skeleton here at some point
6 days ago
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reposted by
Ted Morrissey
14 days ago
I have the honor of writing a blurb for this forthcoming
#book
, much of which was written in a Thesis course I taught for
@lindenwoodmfa.bsky.social
- Congratulations
@nkweidman.bsky.social
& kudos to indie publisher
@tortoisebooks.bsky.social
for bringing it out
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Steinbeck's six rules for aspiring writers. (Courtesy
@mikhail-iossel.bsky.social
)
26 days ago
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COVER REVEAL...we would like to introduce you to the outstanding new literary thriller/noir by Josh Corey, THE LAST WORDS OF JACK RUBY! Available everywhere cool books are available, 11/24/26.
27 days ago
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reposted by
Chuck Wendig
about 1 month ago
The president and all his rancid enablers really demand the creation of a new word that means “shocked but not shocked, but still shocked, but also totally NOT shocked, yet somehow still shocked, also always appalled, forever and eternally appalled by the endless abhorrence, and now I scream.”
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Editing pro tip: When you use, too many commas, you sound like, William, Shatner.
about 1 month ago
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reposted by
Taco Bell Quarterly
about 1 month ago
What if we just put up a giant sign that says Books
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Official sales numbers as of the end of January...we are closing in on 40K!
about 1 month ago
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reposted by
Meg Reid 🦦
about 1 month ago
Absolutely not trying to make the terrible news of the closure of Washington Post's Books coverage about me or anything, but I cannot stress how bad this is for books. The biggest divide between Big 5 and independent/nonprofit press books is not quality--it's the marketing spend.
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reposted by
The Shitpostman
about 1 month ago
Live footage of me every time I go to
fonts.adobe.com
to grab "just a couple" fonts for a new
@tortoisebooks.bsky.social
cover...
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reposted by
Bristol Vaudrin (she/her)
about 1 month ago
If you liked the novel
#HamOnRye
by
#CharlesBukowski
, you've gotta read this! You're gonna love it!
#AnthonyKoranda
#BrokenBottles
@tortoisebooks.bsky.social
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reposted by
The Shitpostman
about 2 months ago
Very excited to announce I will be discussing my experiences running
@tortoisebooks.bsky.social
at the
@storystudiochicago.bsky.social
Pub Crawl! I will now self-censor until then so you can ONLY get my takes at this event...and they will be the hottest and spiciest takes you can imagine.
add a skeleton here at some point
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reposted by
Split Lip Magazine
about 2 months ago
Publishing news alert! 🚨Contributor Sara Lippmann's book JERKS was republished from Tortoise Press!
buff.ly/Vfv18vR
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BIG thanks to the fine people at
@greenlightbklyn.bsky.social
for not only allowing these Jerks into their store, but featuring them prominently! (
@saralippmann.bsky.social
and
@jerrybrennan.bsky.social
are most pleased.) Go see them--the jerks and the non-jerks--and maybe take home one of each.
about 2 months ago
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reposted by
Big ups to
@saralippmann.bsky.social
for ending up on this
@chicagorevbooks.bsky.social
list of the most-anticipated books of 2026! (And big thanks to
@mbwelch.bsky.social
and team for the coverage!)
chireviewofbooks.com/2026/01/06/o...
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Our Most Anticipated Books of 2026 - Chicago Review of Books
It’s a big year for Chicago Review of Books. We turn 10 in February and will spend the year celebrating a decade of dedication to literary excellence. In March, our Editor-in-Chief, Michael Welch, wil...
https://chireviewofbooks.com/2026/01/06/our-most-anticipated-books-of-2026/
2 months ago
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Big ups to
@saralippmann.bsky.social
for ending up on this
@chicagorevbooks.bsky.social
list of the most-anticipated books of 2026! (And big thanks to
@mbwelch.bsky.social
and team for the coverage!)
chireviewofbooks.com/2026/01/06/o...
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Our Most Anticipated Books of 2026 - Chicago Review of Books
It’s a big year for Chicago Review of Books. We turn 10 in February and will spend the year celebrating a decade of dedication to literary excellence. In March, our Editor-in-Chief, Michael Welch, wil...
https://chireviewofbooks.com/2026/01/06/our-most-anticipated-books-of-2026/
2 months ago
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reposted by
The Shitpostman
2 months ago
Among my other fun publisher quirks: when I get a batch of
@tortoisebooks.bsky.social
that's misprinted juuuuuust enough to not be saleable, but not enough to not be an amazing read, I get a credit from the printer and then disburse them at Little Free Library boxes in West Ridge and Rogers Park.
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December sales are in, and our lifetime total is now 38,766 books sold. Goal for 2026: see how quickly we can get to 40,000. (And 50,000.)
2 months ago
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reposted by
The Shitpostman
2 months ago
OK, folks...calling it. All of these, plus a solid number of
@tortoisebooks.bsky.social
submissions, some of which will be on YOUR lists in 2026, God willing. Some faves: Working, Studs Terkel Jernigan, David Gates The Country Girls, Edna O'Brien The Kid Stays In The Picture, Robert Evans
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We were getting all set to hustle up votes for the
@chicagoreader.com
and their Best Of 2025 feature and...they don't have a Best Small Press category this year? They probably didn't want to make all the other presses feel bad by making them compete with us...
3 months ago
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reposted by
sara lippmann
3 months ago
psssssssst this jawn (out in May)
@tortoisebooks.bsky.social
is now up on edelweiss if anyone wants a free early look
www.edelweiss.plus?sku=19651992...
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reposted by
jamelle
3 months ago
really cannot be emphasized enough that bari weiss has literally never done journalism. i don’t mean that in the pejorative sense. i mean that in the “has never performed the job she was hired to do” sense
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reposted by
Mr. Spock 🖖
3 months ago
Stop expecting answers from books. Instead just say to yourself “This will keep me company while I live the question.”
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Spotted at the Center For Fiction. JERKS is in these places...you're in these places...PEOPLE, DO WE HAVE TO SPELL IT OUT FOR YOU?
3 months ago
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Super big thanks to all who came out to Hopleaf for Nestor Fest...it was the best event we've had there yet! (And thanks again to Hopleaf for being such awesome hosts!)
3 months ago
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reposted by
Ovi
3 months ago
Hanging with
@the-boss-gomez.bsky.social
at his book release party along with
@tortoisebooks.bsky.social
Buy his book here
tortoisebooks.com/store/rescue...
#booksky
#ImmigrationStories
#books
#80MinutesAroundTheWorld
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Look. You could get all your Christmas shopping done in one fell swoop tomorrow. But only if you like cool books. Just go to Nestor Fest at Hopleaf from 3-5 and catch an awesome reading from Nestor Gomez. (And Brooke Randel as well!) I'm just saying, it's an option. Just spitballing here.
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NestorFest
tomorrow at 3:00 PM
https://fb.me/1QklGnE7XK3hszT
3 months ago
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Folks, Nestor Fest is THIS SATURDAY from 3-5 at Hopleaf! (5148 N Clark.) It's the launch event for the incomparable Nestor "The Boss" Gomez and RESCUED ME/ME RESCATÓ; we'll also have readings from Stephanie Martinez and Jitesh Jaggi and our very own Brooke Randel. Be there!
3 months ago
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add a skeleton here at some point
3 months ago
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The JERKS store called and they're running out of YOU!
tortoisebooks.com/store/jerks
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The Publishers Weekly-Starred Collection From Sara Lippmann — Tortoise Books
A fantastic collection about ambivalent mothers, aging suburbanites, restless teens, survivalist parents, and disaffected wives
https://tortoisebooks.com/store/jerks
3 months ago
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We saw you from across the tennis court and we really like your vibe (complimentary). Seriously, folks...check it out!
add a skeleton here at some point
3 months ago
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add a skeleton here at some point
3 months ago
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It is Small Business Saturday and we are a small business so once you read these words you are legally obligated to go to
www.tortoisebooks.com
and buy some books. Sorry! We don't make the rules!
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Tortoise Books | Chicago Independent Publisher
Welcome to Tortoise Books, a small independent publisher based in Chicago, IL and specializing in literary fiction and memoirs. Shop the latest titles, submit a manuscript, or learn more about us.
https://www.tortoisebooks.com
3 months ago
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THE JERKS HAVE ESCAPED CONTAINMENT. I REPEAT: THE JERKS HAVE ESCAPED CONTAINMENT. (Big thanks to Three Lives Bookstore for giving customers a chance to apprehend them in the wild! And to the esteemed
@saralippmann.bsky.social
herself for forwarding this photo.)
4 months ago
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reposted by
The Shitpostman
4 months ago
**Puts on headphones.** **Starts blasting Iggy and the Stooges' "Search and Destroy"** **ELIMINATES ALL DOUBLE SPACES IN THE MANUSCRIPT WITH A RECKLESS FURY** That's how it's done, folks. That's all there is to it.
add a skeleton here at some point
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One of the underappreciated joys of editing a new manuscript is pressing Ctrl+h and replacing double spaces with single spaces throughout the document in one fell swoop.
4 months ago
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reposted by
Karen Attiah
4 months ago
A reminder that seven years ago almost to the day, the CIA determined that Mohammed Bin Salman ordered the killing of
@washingtonpost.com
journalist Jamal Khashoggi. I hired and worked with Jamal for a year.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/nation...
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CIA concludes Saudi crown prince ordered Jamal Khashoggi’s assassination
Audio recordings, intercepted phone calls and other intelligence link Mohammed bin Salman to killing that Saudis say was conducted by rogue elements.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/cia-concludes-saudi-crown-prince-ordered-jamal-khashoggis-assassination/2018/11/16/98c89fe6-e9b2-11e8-a939-9469f1166f9d_story.html
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Save the date: Saturday, December 6th is NESTOR FEST! The official launch party for Rescued Me/Me Rescató by the inimitable Nestor Gomez, plus a shopping event for all your holiday needs. (As long as your holiday needs involve buying great books.) 3:00 to 5:00 at Hopleaf...5148 N. Clark...be there!
4 months ago
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Stop writing a movie when you're writing a book! Solid entry in the
@rebeccamakkai.bsky.social
Substack canon...
rebeccamakkai.substack.com/p/youre-writ...
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You're Writing a Book. So Stop Writing a Movie.
What film teaches us wrong about writing fiction
https://rebeccamakkai.substack.com/p/youre-writing-a-book-so-stop-writing?utm_source=substack&publication_id=1194177&post_id=178052510&utm_medium=email&utm_content=share&utm_campaign=email-share&triggerShare=true&isFreemail=true&r=3a2f0&triedRedirect=true
4 months ago
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👇👇👇
add a skeleton here at some point
4 months ago
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...and we got trade ARCs for the new Joe Peterson book today! Never a dull moment in the indie biz.
4 months ago
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reposted by
Rebecca Makkai
4 months ago
FIVE
@storystudiochicago.bsky.social
Novel in a Year classes are open for applications right now, but move quickly—those apps are due 11/14! Here are your options🧵
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So thrilled we have a cover for
@saralippmann.bsky.social
and HIDDEN RIVER! It's an incredible Philadelphia novel about Cass, whose best friend invites her to her wedding--even though her father had groomed Cass from a young age. Writers including DAVID GATES are singing its praises...check it out!
4 months ago
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Now we would never ever ever wish anyone a Happy Marine Corps Birthday...buuuut we will happily announce that we signed an agreement today to publish
@nkweidman.bsky.social
and his awesome Marine Corps recruiting memoir, THIRTY-SIX FIGHTING HOLES, and it's scheduled to come out one year from today!
4 months ago
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reposted by
Bristol Vaudrin (she/her)
4 months ago
Book delivery!! ❤️❤️❤️
@tortoisebooks.bsky.social
@boondock60mm.bsky.social
#litfic
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37,000 books total...woohoo! (Actually 37,043, but who's counting? Oh yeah, we're counting.)
#indie
#publishing
4 months ago
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RESCUED ME/ME RESCATƠ by Nestor "The Boss" Gomez is nearing launch! We got our signed preorder copies Tuesday, got them signed Wednesday, and are packing them up to ship tomorrow...never a slow day in indie publishing. (Super grateful to Andrés Colmenares for the lovely cover work!)
5 months ago
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"...a story of substance and style, power and passion" by "one of the city’s most interesting and increasingly powerful writers." Super grateful to Rick Kogan for this writeup of Bill Hillmann and his new book WHITE FLIGHT!
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/10/21/b...
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‘White Flight’ is a new novel from the boxer, storyteller and professor Bill Hillmann
In Bill Hillmann’s new novel “White Flight” (Tortoise Books), you will encounter a story of substance and style, power and passion.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/10/21/bill-hillmann-white-flight-novel/
5 months ago
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Super useful, tbh. (And no, that wasn't sarcasm, Average Reader!)
add a skeleton here at some point
5 months ago
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