"Successful authors are the ones who keep showing up through failure." Three cheers to @robwhart.bsky.social for his transparency in this great @opensecretsmag.bsky.social essay about the many failures that come before success. JUST KEEP GOING.

Some exciting deal news today!

I could not be more excited myself! Rare are the books that make me laugh AND break my heart, and I feel so lucky to have spent the time I have in this place with these people @daniellebarrwrites.bsky.social has created. I can't wait to get to invite the rest of the world in!

An interesting tactic in my inbox today: An author calling attention to the number of rejections he's received thus far from other agents ("at least 35").

"Any agent will tell you that finding a writer in slush is like finding a needle in a haystack." This is a VERY good piece by data scientist @lbmcgrath.bsky.social about the realities of the slush pile:

I just received a query referring to me as "Agent Blasi" and, honestly, I could really get into this honorific.

My favorite recent query is for the "literary fiction work of approximately [word count] words."

I love @olgakhazan.bsky.social's answer to the question "What about writing surprises you?" Via @memoirland.bsky.social: memoirland.substack.com/p/the-memoir...

you’re fired. wait you’re rehired. email us a list of things you’ve done today wait forget it you’re fired again. come back your job was important. you’re fired. or hired. come in to the office. wait the office has no computers go home. we are the department of government efficiency.

"I think my main takeaway is that writing a book is exhausting beyond belief, and yet here I am doing it all over again." @juliekliegman.com Happy first birthday, MIND GAME!!!

"Here’s the thing about first books: It might not be the book that gets you there. ... I know writers who didn’t hit until their third, fourth, or even seventh book. The unifying factor amongst successful writers tends to be stubbornness, not MFAs." via @opensecretsmag.bsky.social

For me, fighting fascism has nothing to do with thinking I’ll win. I don’t fight because there’s an inevitable outcome, I fight because I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t do something.

If you like incredibly intelligent fiction with horror elements, you are going to LOVE what @joshuadbellin.bsky.social and I working on right now. Stay tuned…

Hey, artists, in case you were wondering if your work matters: I'm a scientist working on climate change and biodiversity, and I would not be who I am today without The Lorax, The Secret of NIMH, Watership Down, The Last Unicorn, and The X-Files. I know I'm not alone. Thank you for all you do.

Just popping in to say that @lindaholmes.bsky.social's BACK AFTER THIS is officially out today, and, if you're looking for a smart, funny book to lift you up in these dark times, this is it. And, as a bonus: Linda reads the audiobook herself, which any fan of PCHH is going to LOVE. I certainly did!

Advice from @jamiattenberg.bsky.social for writers trying to finish a book: "I think less about the finish line & more about the starting line. I think about my reason for beginning the book in the first place. I have found when I tap into the spirit of that original purpose, it often renews me."

I cannot even begin to tell you how much I love the tv show "From." If you are an author whose manuscript is anything in the vein of that vibe (character-driven horror in an isolated small town with mysteries rooted decades back), please send it to me immediately, as I want to represent you.

Fresh stack.

Aspiring authors, please know: There are more novels in drawers than anyone really talks about.

It was my job to bring dessert to the Super Bowl party last night.

A host of literary organizations have released a joint statement decrying Trump’s anti-trans executive order in no uncertain words: “This return to McCarthyism by other means is a leap backwards to a grim chapter of American history.”

"First they came for the transgender athletes, and I did not speak out—because I was not a transgender athlete." This is how it begins.

I received a query for a manuscript with 492,000 words. I realize word counts can vary, but that is simply too many words.

“Focus is a fundamental substance of democracy.”

If you’re feeling overwhelmed right now, that’s the point. Take a minute and watch this from @ezrakleinbot.bsky.social.

“‘Constitutional crisis’ does not even begin to capture the radicalism of what is unfolding in the federal bureaucracy and of what Congress’s decision not to act may liquidate in terms of constitutional meaning.” A must-read from @jamellebouie.net:

“If you would have asked me a week ago, I'd have told you that this kind of thing would never in a million years happen. But now, who the fuck knows."

THIS ⬇️

“One source explicitly said that they were only reporting to me because there was no one left in the Federal Government to report security breaches to.” @nathantankus.bsky.social with a must-read on the treasury payments crisis:

There are literally not enough journalists employed in the US to cover the bad shit that is happening right now. We are now going to experience the social consequences of a weakened news industry--which are the same as the benefits of a weakened news industry, to those who weakened it.

Protip: @roxanegay.bsky.social's The Audacity is a hell of a news aggregator, especially if you're feeling overwhelmed amid this onslaught of terrible news. Highly recommend subscribing: audacity.substack.com/p/the-audaci...

“The ideal game show viewing experience should evoke memories of running a fever in your childhood bedroom at high noon, watching bleary-eyed as a trio of panelists guesstimate the retail cost of a vacuum cleaner.” Truer words were never spoken. Great piece by @lukewinkie.bsky.social :

Highly recommend this piece by @thefrankiedlc.news about American masculinity's toxic turn and why combat sports were the perfect breeding ground for Trump to build his base.

This answer from @lidiamiles.bsky.social is the very greatest answer you will ever hear to the question "What's the elevator pitch for your book?"

Some excellent tips from @rachelkramerbussel.bsky.social on the elements that make for a memorable personal essay:

One of the quickest ways to lose my attention in a query is to let me know that you just finished your manuscript yesterday and that no one but you has read it.

According to Bookscan, twenty percent of the top 200 print books of 2024 were written by four authors: Sarah J. Maas, Freida McFadden, Ana Huang, and Colleen Hoover.

Emily Van Duyne's LOVING SYLVIA PLATH is one of @readbookpage.bsky.social's 12 Best Biographies of the Year! www.bookpage.com/tag-page/bes...

"There’s already been a most anticipated book list for 2025 and I wasn’t on it. I don’t expect to be on those lists! This is not that kind of book! But still, I had feelings about it." Agent-turned-author @katemckean.bsky.social on writerly anxiety: katemckean.substack.com/p/it-happene...

He rated the Unabomber’s manifesto 4/5 stars.

I certainly didn’t think I’d be ending my Monday by examining a suspected murderer’s Goodreads account.

Every state should do this.

Stop what you’re doing and read @caseyparks.bsky.social’s story today.

Your monthly reminder: Keep writing. When no one cares, persist. When things appear to be crumbling, keep at it. When it's difficult, push through. When you feel alone, listen to the stories in your blood. Just write. The world needs you to tell your truth through your words.

When is too soon to start thinking about books to bring on Christmas vacation?

My Heart's Invisible Chainsaw the Size of Your Fist #literaryturducken

American Gods of the Birnam Woods #literaryturducken

On Beautyland That Time Forgot #literaryturducken

Tender is the Night of the Girl Waits with Gun #literaryturducken