Joni Pope

I’m good, thanks! I kinda stepped back from social media this year but I’m trying to be more active here 😊

After putting up with pain in my foot so a few weeks, I finally went to the doctor and learned I have a stress fracture. He wants me to lay off exercise for at least 4-6 weeks, which is super irritating…but…it might translate into more writing if I make good use of my time 🤔

Yay, I’m so happy for you. This sounds so cool, congratulations! 🎉😄🤩

All writing makes me happy, but the nitty gritty work of getting stories fit for querying or submission can be draining. It’s nice to have a side project that’s just for fun, I don’t have to worry about making it perfect or publishable

I have a writing project that I’ve been working on for over two years that I tinker with when I lack inspiration for anything else. I don’t ever plan to publish or let anyone else see, but it’s my go-to when I need reminding that writing makes me happy. It’s a useful project to have 😊

#readers

Current writing projects:
•an essay and creative work for an application (more on this later if anything comes of it)
•revising a YA sci-fi to maybe query
•rewriting a MG historical fiction I wrote a few years ago into a novel in verse

So yeah. I’m quiet on social media, but keeping busy-ish 😊✍🏻📝

My dog bit my face last night. I’ve got a few tiny scratches, nothing serious. And while I take full responsibility for putting my face too close to him and unintentionally setting him off, I’m still mad at him no matter how cute he is 😢

I attended a Two-Day MFA workshop given by four faculty members for Hamline’s MFAC and it was worth every penny I paid for it! 😊

I’m still alive!

I’m still writing (but took a pause in querying for my mental health…in fact I’m considering other options…will discuss later if it becomes a thing)

I’m going to try posting here more instead of the-place-formally-known-as-Twitter, because it’s a literal hellscape 😳

Finally heard back from my full request. It was a rejection. A form rejection on a full. I'm not going to comment because I get agents have lives but... *sigh*...it's just the sad last nail in that coffin. I'm already in the process of trying to decide what to query next

a picture of a woman with the words " you 're off to the pit of despair " ALT: a picture of a woman with the words " you 're off to the pit of despair "

But querying straight up sucks. Like is really the worst (and I’ve been on sub twice, I’ll take that any day over querying). It’s like having your soul sucked away by that torture machine in The Princess Bride.

The good news is I’ve worked on my writing every week day for the past two and a half weeks, so things are being done (mostly revising an old MS so my daughter can read it…which still counts, by the way!) and I’m happy with that.

I nudged that agent two weeks ago (because they said to do so after three months, it had had been more than four at that point) and haven’t heard back. I mean, there’s still a tiny shred of hope, but let’s be real, it’s time to move on.

I sent my last query in January (even then, I was pretty much already done with it for this manuscript, the last real batch went out in November). All queries are now closed, either with no response or rejection. I only have one open full request left I still haven’t heard back from…

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Thank you! 🥰

My querying and writing is going absolutely nowhere. I have no intention of quitting, that would only make me more unhappy. What I really need is a writing critique group to join. My last group kinda died. Is there anyone out there in a group with room for another writer? I write MG and YA ☺️

Is it really a thing to use whole body deodorant instead of just…taking a shower? 🤔🤷🏼‍♀️

Update: Our truck was found. After some repairs and having to get new license plates, we got it back! A massively annoying experience, but it could have been worse 😬

Perfect honor for such a great book, congrats! 😊❤️🎉

I’m sorry for what you’re going through, take care of yourself! ❤️‍🩹 *hugs*

I gave my MS to 3 beta readers in October. One of them finished the read and sent notes 😊👍🏻 The other 2 are silent, even after checking in and saying if they can’t do it’s, that’s fine, I’d just like to know, I won’t be mad. Nothing. Should I check in again and risk being annoying or just move on?

Rare snow in southeast Texas ❄️

This book’s jacket unfolds into a poster that says, “Have a panic attack. You’ve earned it.” 😂😂😂😂

Finished reading the first book for the year and did NOT enjoy it. Hopefully this isn’t a sign for the rest of my reading this year. I mean, it can only go uphill from here, right? 🤔📚

After taking a writing break, I'm back at it today, revising my latest MG. I checked the state of my queries yesterday, looking for more agents, but my options are running thin so I may just wait to see how the outstanding queries turn out and then move on if I need to 😊🤞

Definitely The Unreal Children 😊👍🏻

I needed to hear this. My brain isn’t necessarily in trauma mode, but 2024 was rough mentally. I barely managed to read 40 books this year, which is significantly less than normal for me, and it’s okay! ❤️‍🩹

Being an author means having the audacity to believe you have something worth saying, the humility to take feedback & rewrite til you say it right, the vulnerability to put a piece of yourself into the world, & the toughness to weather the rejection that comes.

- Why every author needs a therapist