Absolutely agree. The concept of play is integral to writing, and itโs something we should come back to often.
07.10.2025 15:43 โ ๐ 2 ๐ 1 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0@carsonwinter.bsky.social
Author, punker, raw nerve. PORTRAITS OF DECAY out now. Co-host of the Dead Languages Podcast. Social media at CHM.
Absolutely agree. The concept of play is integral to writing, and itโs something we should come back to often.
07.10.2025 15:43 โ ๐ 2 ๐ 1 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0Great newsletter! Subscribed.
07.10.2025 15:42 โ ๐ 1 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0"One of the absolute best collections of short stories I've ever read." -David Swisher, Goodreads Review
Grab the ebook of Portraits of Decay for $5 during the month of Octoberโwebsite only.
carsonwinter.com/product/port...
Absolutely love this for you. This is the dream that lives within so many of us.
I love to see literary, weird horror authors find their way into the greater culture. It does us all a solid and it makes me way more optimistic about the genre. Way to fucking go and Iโm loving what Iโve read so far.
This will forever be my shit.
02.10.2025 01:01 โ ๐ 3 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 0 ๐ 0Damn, Iโve often thought this too! I like the reframing of it as a good thing.
01.10.2025 13:32 โ ๐ 3 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0Nothing better.
30.09.2025 19:49 โ ๐ 1 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 0 ๐ 0Just got my copy of what is probably my most anticipated book of the year.
30.09.2025 19:48 โ ๐ 10 ๐ 1 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0Just got the notice that it's getting delivered tomorrow. Stoked to dig in.
29.09.2025 17:51 โ ๐ 2 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0It often feels like a joyless enterprise. One step forward, two steps back. High hopes on the horizon, despite telling ourselves to keep it in check. The fall is always so brutal. Wishing you the best during a more difficult period in the journey.
29.09.2025 17:34 โ ๐ 0 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 0 ๐ 0Had a cool moment at a book club last night. TWO people told me they loved SOFT TARGETS and PORTRAITS OF DECAY, respectively.
Writing is so, so hardโbut having those real life interactions makes it all worth it.
In honor of spooky season, I'm discounting the ebook of PORTRAITS OF DECAY down to 5 bucks if you buy it from my website!
Get it here: carsonwinter.com/product/port...
Carson is a paragon of excellence and a wealth of thoroughly-vetted writing knowledge. Do consider him for all of your writing needs!
(Portraits of Decay out now)
#writing friends, Carson is great at what he does! My testimonial is forthcoming
26.09.2025 20:00 โ ๐ 3 ๐ 2 ๐ฌ 0 ๐ 0When you now have the power to force your friend to edit your upcoming space horror collection full of strong femme leads & muscle mommies ๐ค๐ค๐ค๐ค
Seriously tho, Carson has critiqued many of my stories & always made them better. He's also helped me on the marketing side of things too, check out his ๐งต
Want podcast daddy's attention? uwu
Now's your chance uwu
Writing services here: wintergreen.my.canva.site
26.09.2025 17:56 โ ๐ 7 ๐ 3 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0I love helping authors. I love being able to put all the silly, nearly-useless things Iโve learned into action. And I also love being able to make the journey a little easier for someone elseโbecause I remember exactly how frustrating it was to have the vision but not the craft to make it work.
26.09.2025 17:56 โ ๐ 5 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0Why am I doing this now? Because of job instability, of course. But also, because if I had to imagine any way Iโd like to make money (besides getting to sit through the 18th remake of THE PSYCHOGRAPHIST in a suit made of cash), this would be it.
26.09.2025 17:56 โ ๐ 3 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0Cue pitch: Need a website? I gotchu. Need to kickstart your social media strategy? Iโm here. Need a book formatted for print and digital? Say no more.
26.09.2025 17:56 โ ๐ 3 ๐ 1 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0Our time writing is sacred. Itโs why we do all this shit. But we also know that without social media, a professional website, or some sort of marketing pushโour books wonโt have the life we dreamed for them.
26.09.2025 17:56 โ ๐ 3 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0If youโre an author these days, you surely know the truth: writing is just one small part of the game. And if youโre a self-publisher, you have a lot on your plate.
26.09.2025 17:56 โ ๐ 3 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0Besides being a writer though, Iโm also a professional marketer. I didnโt choose marketing because I love it, but because I thought it was a skillset that could go hand in hand with my passion for writing.
26.09.2025 17:56 โ ๐ 4 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0Writing is hard. The industry is brutal. And MFAs are fucking expensive. Without these pivotal edits, I might still be bashing my head into that same brick wall.
26.09.2025 17:56 โ ๐ 7 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0These edits changed the way I wrote for the better. And while I wasnโt knocking every story out of the park, slowly but surely, that advice helped me get to a more consistent, confident place within my own storytelling.
26.09.2025 17:56 โ ๐ 3 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0What really changed things for me was when I took advantage of more established authorโs critique services. I remember having BRAIN EXPANDING feedback from both Cody Goodfellow and Nicole Cushing, that made so many nebulous writing concepts (like knowing where to start a story) finally make sense.
26.09.2025 17:56 โ ๐ 4 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0I couldnโt figure out how to write well on purpose, consistently. At the time, I worked at a grocery store. I had zero college education, let alone any formal writing training. All I had was a love for books and the horror genre, and the general urge to tell stories.
26.09.2025 17:56 โ ๐ 3 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0Eventually, I was able to write one good story. Phew! Iโd made it!
But not really. Because then the next five would suck too.
I started writing seriously at around 25. It took me five years to get my first pro short story publication. I was continually hitting the brick wall of my own lack of experience. Iโd complete stories and wonder: why does this suck even though I worked so hard?
26.09.2025 17:56 โ ๐ 3 ๐ 0 ๐ฌ 1 ๐ 0