Author RL Martin 📚

Fake agency alert: Dan Baror International Literary Agency, obviously trying to trick writers into believing they're being contacted by Baror International Inc. (a real agency). The About Us page has been "borrowed", in re-worded form, from the real Baror website danbaror-intliteraryagency.com

Substack is not immune to fake accounts The Literary Curator, a member of the Substack community, is not who they say they are. Authors beware.

It is a day for scams, apparently! An outfit called Literary Curator purports to provide various writer-related services, including editing, but the testimonials on its website, apparently from real writers, are 100% fake--with fake Xitter accounts to match substack.com/home/post/p-...

two cartoon characters standing next to each other with netflix written in the corner ALT: two cartoon characters standing next to each other with netflix written in the corner

I’m pretty new to watching anime, but I started Sakamoto Days a couple weeks ago and the newest season/episode released today on Netflix and it’s just so good! Not for everyone, but I’m enjoying it.

365 days straight of Japanese! But please do not attempt to converse with me in Japanese! I will fail you! 😂

Okay we’ve moved past the squirrels in chapter 2 of draft 1. It remains untitled, so I’m curious to see what that will end up being. This book is already kind of fun and I hope to keep some of the lighthearted aspects throughout the story.

This “working” brunch was sooooo good! I can’t wait to do it again!

a squirrel climbs up a tree in front of a house on fire ALT: a squirrel climbs up a tree in front of a house on fire

Oh, so you want to be a writer?
I started working on my new middle grade horror & my entire first chapter is about squirrels. 🤷🏻‍♀️ No, my MC doesn’t understand animal language/thoughts. This is just my brain at work. But also, where is this story going? It’s a journey for sure! 🤣

A three-way hug. The person in the middle is me the person on the left is stressed because I'm not writing and the person on the right is not writing because I'm stressed

Get back to work!! 🙈

a cartoon of a girl with a shocked look on her face ALT: a cartoon of a girl with a shocked look on her face

I started working on my next WIP and got a little over 200 words down. I wanted to see what my daughter thought of it because she’s my target audience’s age. I read it out loud and noticed her making a few faces as I read. When I finished she said, “It’s kind of confusing. I don’t really get it.”

Image with a Southern house in the background. On the left are Hagrid from Harry Potter, Loki from the Marvel movies, and Donald Duck with a speech bubble reading, "You have to live here with us because our boss shoved some of his magic in you and we can't get it out." On the right is Sophie from Howl's Moving Castle in a ballet tutu with a speech bubble reading, "I hate you." In the upper right corner is a split headshot of Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde with an arrow pointing to it labeled "Boss." In the center is an award badge reading, "Killer Nashville Claymore Finalist."

WAKE, starring:

FMC: "Never Not Gonna Dance Again" by Pink

Love Interest: "Dancing with Your Shadows" by Phillip Phillips

Foil: "Smooth Criminal" by Michael Jackson

Mentor: "Demons" by Imagine Dragons

Antagonist: "Raining Blood" by Slayer

#unhingedpit #Q #YA #F #M #R #MH

Music player with collage of images and text that says: Begin Again (Charlie's Version) Taylor Swift

After being left at the altar, Charlie gave up on love. As he investigates an airline acting as hitmen, he learns that love doesn't have to end in heartbreak. Sometimes it's found in a fun-loving journalist with a fear of flying, but he must be willing to let love begin again.
#SwiftiePitch #C #R #A

Me to group text: Hear me out.
BFFs: Oh no.
Me: I found this jar.
BFFs: You didn’t touch it, did you?
Me: There’s a human thumb in my room, in a fairy garden.
BFFs: So you touched it.
Me: There wasn’t a warning label or directions. I thought it’d be okay!

#UnhingedPit #MG #H #Q

MISSED CONNECTION

Me: Quiet kid who wishes for more. You: The girl who destroyed my dreams & made me strive for better. Want to meet? I’ll be the one at the dance with the wish-granting thumb. You can be the one I exact my revenge on.

#UnhingedPit #MG #H #Q

Me to group text: Hear me out.
BFFs: Oh no.
Me: I found this jar.
BFFs: You didn’t touch it, did you?
Me: There’s a human thumb in my room, in a fairy garden.
BFFs: So you touched it.
Me: There wasn’t a warning label or directions. I thought it’d be okay!

#UnhingedPit #MG #H #Q

AITA: Found a human body part in the woods, now I have visions of grandeur & revenge against the popular kids that embarrassed me at last year’s dance.I fell for the girl that lead the charge against me, but the thumb I found insisted on vengeance.
#UnhingedPit #MG #H #Q

After a much-needed break, I’m back to work on my WIP. I have no idea where I’m going with it, so I’m pantsing it for now. I’m usually more of a plotser. Wish me luck!

I could watch rug cleaning ASMR videos for way longer than I’d like to admit.

a group of cheerleaders and a man are dancing together in a gym . ALT: a group of cheerleaders and a man are dancing together in a gym .

Confession: I’ve never seen HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL. 😬 But I was in college when it came out and working and had no idea about it until years later.

not closing to queries, but my replies will be delayed for a little while as I focus on client work and finishing the fulls I’ve already requested. I’m caught up to about halfway through June on query replies - if you queried back in May and haven’t heard, it’s in my maybe pile!

YouTube video by Michelle Meng I Turned Pokémon into FOODS?!

@justinepwinans.bsky.social
This made me squeal and I thought you’d think it was cute, too!

youtu.be/EKUC2HrUpNg?...

two cartoon characters standing next to each other wearing costumes ALT: two cartoon characters standing next to each other wearing costumes

Anyone else watching Summerween videos on YouTube? 🙋🏻‍♀️

a man in a blue shirt and tie sitting in front of a computer monitor ALT: a man in a blue shirt and tie sitting in front of a computer monitor

Shoutout to agented authors who post/share who their agents are! I feel like us unagented authors miss a lot if we only use QueryTracker since not every agent is on there.

I can’t be the only person who watches short videos of people getting their hair dyed. I just think it’s so cool and the colors turn out so pretty! It’s been at least 10 years since I dyed my hair, so this scratches that itch for me.

So exciting! Congratulations!

I hate clowns. My daughter saw an opportunity to surprise me at work and took it.

Congratulations to you both!!! That sounds amazing!

The soundtrack is equally amazing! I want all the merch. 😂

Got to see my friend’s book in the wild at Barnes and Noble!
#METALSLINGER by Rachel Schneider