The world feels quieter than usual this #5amwritersclub. Nothing but the clack of my keyboard.

I just finished The Devils by @joeabercrombie.com and wow. I've never read a book that jumped between hilarious, harrowing, and heart-melting so seamlessly.

Working on a scene with too many characters. #5amwritersclub

What's the difference between fantasy and sci-fi? Fantasy sells MUCH better.

This sums up short story life.

This is the best skit on our AI future I've seen: www.youtube.com/shorts/ez7YV...

The advice "write the story you'd like to read" works a lot better for people who like to read popular things that sell.

I finally finished revamping my website and monthly newsletter! I'd love it if you'd sign up since I'm not on social media much anymore. I'll be talking about writing, sharing thoughts from reading slush and running a magazine, and more: victoriabrun.com/subscribe/ #5amwritersclub

I'm so excited to be part of this incredible lineup!

PRESS RELEASE Announcing the Afterlives 2024 Table of Contents!! curated by @shereereneethomas.bsky.social "This Afterlives collection has some very powerful, gifted voices that explore liminal spaces, the veil between this world and the possible next." thread/ psychopomp.com/announcing-t...

Last day!

I got my first ever ARC! "The Last Soul Among Wolves" is a solid follow-up to the amazing "The Last Hour Between Worlds."

Kudos to the Submission Grinder for doing this.

Welcome to episode 701. A boy learns the importance of respecting old traditions, we sample an exclusive menu brimming with exotic flavours, and a woman chosen for ritual sacrifice holds her people’s future in her hands. talestoterrify.com/episodes/701-derek-alan-jones-nick-badot-victoria-brun

Monthly reminder: Many people have a book in them, but it takes a special kind of freak to leave the Land of Laziness, cross the Plains of Procrastination and Insecurity Mountain, find the Blade of No One Made You Do This, and use it to cut your chest open and yank that book out.

My story "God of Fire, Demon of Shadow" is now available at @talestoterrify.bsky.social! Ahhhhh! Get it in your ears here: talestoterrify.com/episodes/701...

No work today, so #5amwritersclub is commencing at 6am for me.

How to be a writer, n. 284758: In sunlight, write In winter, write In summer, write In springtime, write In good times, write In tough times, write When all you want to do is curl up in a blanket and cry, write Repeat until the world ends Tea

Just learned it's "on tenterhooks" NOT "on tender hooks." I guess I'd never seen it written before!

I'm scrolling on social media but I should be writing. #5amwritersclub

What is common knowledge in your field but shocks outsiders? More than half of all published scientific studies cannot be replicated.

is it time to bust out my "bigfoot is bears" photo collection again? if your mental image of a bear is a thick-furred, fat glossy male bear in autumn, you're probably not prepared for how weird their proportions can look in spring, or when walking upright, like they frequently do.

And there it is! Disney has bolstered copyright protection before. Can the mouse do it again?

Anyone have tips for writing novellas? I can write novels and short stories, and I read a lot of novellas, yet I can't hit that word count. #WritingCommunity

The novel is now with my first readers. Now I just need to... finish the other novel that I abandoned at 46,000 words. #5amwritersclub

Termination for convenience

Two personal rejections today. What an oddly personal day.

I love the way the reptiles move, but especially large lizards. Look at 'em go!

Belated plug for my most recent story: "Red Tide," the longest story I've sold AND my first non-drabble horror story, is now available in Tiny Terrors Vol. 1! geni.us/tinyterrors1

Lots of writing advice will tell you to avoid adverbs at all cost. Freaking weaksauce. TRUE writers will also avoid *verbs*. Wait... ummmmm.... Verbs BAD. Nouns only. (Maybe adjectives?) Verb-free writing strong. Muscular prose without unnecessary verbs. No verbs, just vibes. OK?

My article "This Is Your Body in Space: Lessons from the International Space Station" is live in the summer issue! 🥳🛸

I haven't been posting here a lot, but I've been writing a ton. #5amwritersclub

My stance towards AI slop like this has been "If you couldn't be bothered to write it, why should I bother to read it?" for quite some time now & I'm still waiting for someone to show me the error of my ways.

Pspspspsps (wait, is that the sound you make when you're whispering secrets or when you are talking to a cat) Diabolical Plots is tentatively planning to open for submissions from July 7-21, 2025. PS cats are welcome to submit, we hold them to the same standards as humam writers, so no AI

Them: “what do you do when you get a rejection on your work?” Me, an author: Make cryptic redacted weirdness out of them 🤣🤣

Reading makes me braver as a writer—seeing to what extremes other writers have pushed envelopes, bucked systems, taken up space as they should have, and wrote knowing there would be consequences from so many that will always pick what is self-preserving over what’s true. #writingcommunity #amwriting

How could you not be impressed by a bird in your yard? This dude can fly anywhere and it came here to hang out with you

I'm not starting my next book instead of editing the last two chapters of my current WIP. Certainly not. ##writingcommunity #amwriting

From my admittedly limited experience with these animals, the difference between them is that goats headbutt you because they want to play. Sheep headbutt you because they want you gone.

This week's word is one I've seen misused a lot recently: Travesty (noun), a debased, distorted, or grossly inferior imitation. #5amwritersclub

I can't stand this: don't use ChatGPT! Ever! Not even as a joke. Every prompt, line or engagement fuels it, taking away from you or someone else. It uses enormous resources to do nothing beneficial, except, on the surface, help lazy people do work they're paid for or steal from us writers.

REMINDER: We're opening to submissions on May 15! Tell your friends, tell your ex, tell your coworkers, tell Bob, tell random people on the street! All the details: 100footcrow.com/submission-g...

This week, my word is Susurrus (noun), a whispering or rustling sound. #5amwritersclub

This headline is 100% misrepresenting the research, but as a distance runner who hates the marathon, I am getting a kick out of these headlines.

You can’t say criminals don’t deserve due process when due process is the thing that decides if they're criminals. Otherwise you're just kidnapping people you don't like.

This story, which was supposed to be a flash piece, is now 2,336 words. Whoops. #amwriting

i am not part of the write every day school of thinking, but i am part of the read every day school. if you can fit 1-2 short stories a day (even just fifteen minutes some days), that's hundreds in a year. i will eat my hat if that doesn't change your writing instincts. will eat my goddamn hat.

I'm not plotting. I'm scheming. #5amwritersclub

Goodreads should add "DNF" as an option, because I can't say I read it if I didnt finish it, but I still want to track it. #amreading