I don’t know who needs to hear this but writing when you don’t feel like it is a skill. Having confidence in your work is a skill. Accepting rejection is a skill. Protecting your joy is a skill. Guarding writing time is a skill. Practice these as much as the mechanics of writing.
#amwriting
Dear Google Calendar, if I'm scheduling something from 5-8, I will always mean 5pm-8pm on the same day. Not 5pm to 8am the following morning. Please stop trying to be helpful.
I absolutely loved the movie "I Saw the TV Glow." It reminded me of one of my childhood favorite books, "The Changeling" by Zilpha Keatley Snyder, but to say why would spoil the plot. I love that the title of the fictional show "The Pink Opaque" was a Cocteau Twins reference.
Revising a story and realized I gave a lawyer character the last name ... Mawyer. Yeah. That's going to change.
The tech industry wants you lonely, disconnected, friendless, and utterly dependent on them for information, transportation, employment, entertainment, and emotional engagement. Ask yourself why.
"There was definitely a point where I was like, 'Maybe I am not a good writer.' And it’s funny because I was just talking about how I reject good things all the time." @katemckean.bsky.social thecreativeindependent.com/people/autho... via @thecreativeindependent.com
Excited for the Fourth Lake Writing Weekend in Madison, WI. Anybody else going? After many years of writing for kids and teens, I have been spending the past couple of years working on adult fiction instead. I'm looking forward to finding some local critique partners.
I am so thrilled that my MG novel SHELTER won an honorable mention! Thanks so much.
I have been a librarian for a long time and let me tell you it never gets old (1) checking in carts of new books and (2) issuing library cards to people. It is just as exciting every single time! I know lots of things suck in publishing right now so I wanted to share some book joy 💛
Last saved celeb is your therapist.
Repost with your vibes today
Went to a wonderful writing retreat this weekend and saw a pitcher plant in a marsh!
It's #BannedBooksWeek! Book banning obstructs the right to read and publish freely and makes it harder for professional writers to earn a living.
bit.ly/3RDWbSH
✨MARI AND THE CURSE OF EL COCODRILO IS OUT TODAY!✨
I can’t wait for everyone to read Mari’s spooky adventure. Thank you to all the teachers, librarians, readers, and friends who boost my work and let me do what I love. Happy reading!
www.harpercollins.com/products/mar...
It's spooky season!! Here's my horror movie spreadsheet, complete with content warning. This list is mostly low on gore, torture, and s*xual assault, but check content warnings to be sure. docs.google.com/spreadsheets...
I was pleased that when I created my Banned Book display at the library today, I did not find any of the 2022 top banned titles on the shelves because they’re all checked out.
Liz Hand's Wylding Hall - one of the absolute best gothic horror books ever - is on sale today for $1.99 at Amazon (which means probably other places as well, if they're not your thing). It is unbelievably good: amzn.to/3rHepYG (affiliate link)
The attack on libraries will not end with any consensus standard for what counts as prurient or pornographic, because the attack isn’t about that. It’s about eliminating the library as a public space where a child can find the smallest measure of freedom from parental domination. 📚
Time I spend personally recommending explicit material to teens: 0%. Time I spend teaching people how to use our fax machine or fill out an online form: 1 million %
As a librarian, I wish I could visit every would-be library defunder and ask them: if they got rid of us, who would teach their elderly relatives how to recover their email passwords?
It’s an object they find in the victim’s apartment.
Recently finished Only Murders in the Building S1. I love that it’s like if you speak Norwegian and watch The Thing, the whole plot will be spoiled right at the beginning.
no
My husband uses Bing because there’s some program where they will actually pay you to use it
I love the Brene Brown advice about having a one-inch piece of paper with the names of people whose opinions are allowed to matter. I did the same with a list of "Why I write." Only the things on that list are allowed to truly matter to me. Keeps my ship on course. 💛
Querying a MG. I think my next project will be a controversial YA idea I've been working on for a couple of years. I think I have a better angle on it.
My family ran a wildlife rehabilitation center when I was a kid and I wrote a middle grade novel inspired by my experiences! amandacoppedge.wordpress.com/wildlife-cen...
