Rook Laz (they/them)

Anyways, this is one hell of a digression from usual business on account of being all anxiety as I await the verdict on a grad school application.

- 🌟 (he/him)

(Of course, if anyone in the #AmWriting tags has some resource recommendations for understanding publication, I certainly wouldn't turn them down. I just wonder if I'll ever feel satisfactorily prepared to engage in the traditional route.)

Honestly it once again frustrates me how disjointed, obtuse, and contradictory the publishing sphere is. Though, no amount of research I think will ever make me feel prepared to worry about publication.

Exceptions aren't the rule, so unless there's proof the rule itself has changed, I have to go off of my last research.

It should go without saying that I'm primarily curious about the traditional route, seeing as my understanding of any publication is "if you ever want to be published traditionally, start from that angle first." There are breakout exceptions (ex: Travis Baldree's series), of course, but, well...

The confusion for me, then, is how the query process differs from that of a novel. If one acquires a following, is there any consistency to what is then asked of authors wishing to publish a collection of essays?

My gut instinct--- and knowing what I know about the publishing industry--- tells me that you have to get a foothold in the genre by getting the shorter works published before anyone would consider you for an essay collection.

I've read a lot of essay collections in the last few years. So, what's the process for publishing an essay collection?

Unfortunately, though, all of our research on selling writing has to do with novels. I do know about resources like chillsubs to find places to submit, but that usually is for shorter pieces. Which, yes, I could do, but my curiosity today is about longer pieces.

Like, our usual genre is fantasy, but part of the reason we kind of disappeared off the face of the planet for 2 years was a family death-triggered retreat into creative nonfiction. So we have a lot of CNF pieces and, well...

Out of curiosity, anyone in #AmWriting working on nonfiction? Or familiar with the way nonfiction pieces are sold?

I really only know about the process of getting novels published (and even then, very loosely), so uh...

Amy Rose holding up her hammer saying I prefer my ICE crushed over a cracked ice cube

#AmyRose prefers her ICE crushed. 🧊🔨

[ #lyssiesart ]

For those not as stubborn as me, what tools do you prefer for map making? (Obligatory no AI or you get blocked)
-🌟 (he/him)

May as well vent my curiosity at others in the #AmWriting tag though--- anyone else stubborn enough to spend hours on bullshit cartography? I know there has to be more of us out here.

This wouldn't be the first time I decided to hand draw a map for this fantasy series though. Literally spent a day or two redoing one last year, which would be the 5th or so iteration? I would share it but I revel in paranoia.

Being stubborn is a curse sometimes but at least it makes writer's block and procrastination more interesting lmao.

me: ugh, I need to draw a map of this location so I keep it straight whenever I refer to it (especially because the geography is Weird compared to irl cities)

also me: //gets annoyed at map creation tools like inkarnate and decides to just download a bunch of CSP materials to draw it by hand//

I love our silly bullshit fantasy stuff.

- 🌟 (he/him)

(Said time gods refuse to share and difficulty ensues for the poor fellow just trying to deal with his frame of reality being thrown in a wood chipper.)

We tried one more revision of that draft in 2022 before biting the bullet and starting over from scratch. The novel mixes epistolary elements with metanarrative bullshit since the above man in the art becomes pen pals with two disagreeable time gods that both want him to be Theirs.

This project started as a NaNo draft in 2018, which got revised for 2 years before we figured out more about what we wanted to do with our fantasy setting (which a majority of our novels take place in).

I don't know any of the bsky art tags so I'm just going to use the single writing tag I know about because this is what we do when we have writer's block--- we draw working covers to detangle our thoughts and ponder the next step.

This art is actually from last July, by the way.

Stylized artwork of a crimson-haired man in a gold, wing-like cape, staring at the viewer. His left eye is obscured by golden light, while red and gold swirl behind him. Blood drips from his nose, and stains both palms and cape alike.

Something we like to do is draw working covers for our novel WIPs. We've been through a few in the 8 years of on/off working on this project. I don't know whether I want to give away the title or not, so we'll post the textless version.

#AmWriting

(Have to get used to that again considering it's been almost 4 years since I did writing tag things.)

Oh, nuts, I forgot the #WIPSnips tag in the top of the thread.

Not sure how much is too much to share or how little is too little, so... //shrugs//

Slightly more context though: the novel is written with epistolary format, and this chapter is penned to the narrator's absentee father.
- 🌟 (he/him)

Trying to actually be active here on biskie and I see a daily thing daring me to get better at sharing our writing. So, what the hell--- a snippet from our current wip, where an anxiety ridden wizard becomes pen pals with two disagreeable time gods fighting over his attentions.

anyways this got kind of long and i want to finish watching that vid before i have card games, but like, tl;dr really is just the "cool motive, still murder" of the creative world.

-❔

if you REALLY can't fucking afford it, then learn some patience like the rest of us until you can make friends with someone generous enough to help you.

like i'm terrified to look for beta readers that aren't my friends because i literally can't trust that if i send someone a .pdf, they won't do something to betray that trust. i've had that even before gen ai was on the scene. but i'm also forcing myself to be better than my anxiety.