Sheila M Averbuch

Judge approves $1.5 billion copyright settlement between AI company Anthropic and authors A federal judge on Thursday approved a $1.5 billion settlement between artificial intelligence company Anthropic and authors who allege nearly half a million books had been illegally pirated to train ...

"About 465,000 books are on the list of works pirated by Anthropic" apnews.com/article/anth...

#Writers, the Hilary Mantel Prize offers an exceptional new opportunity. The late author, who twice won the #WalterScottPrize, was committed to championing emerging talent, and the winner receives a cash award plus mentoring. Submissions are open through 31 December. See https://loom.ly/NFsTZjE

What Authors Need to Know About the $1.5 Billion Anthropic Settlement  - The Authors Guild Today, Anthropic agreed to pay $1.5 billion to settle claims that it downloaded pirated books to train its AI systems—the largest U.S. copyright settlement in history. The parties in Bartz v Anthropic...

Thanks @authorsguild.org for this vital update on the #Anthropic settlement. As Authors Guild CEO Mary Rasenberger says, these are billion-dollar companies stealing from people with a median income of barely $20,000 a year. Learn more authorsguild.org/news/what-au....

A glorious day with friends helping me welcome PITCH YOUR BOOK into the world! We had gorgeous weather here in Pencaitland and took shelter in the on-brand orange umbrella. Thanks to Louise Kelly especially for the phenomenal chocolate orange cake!

#PitchYourBook #amwriting

Rosa James Galway with an unnamed delphinium, possibly the Pacific Giant series. This rose doesn't have much fragrance, but each mesmerising head has over a hundred petals.

#floweraday

Luscious Oriental poppy I've waited years to see flower: tissue paper petals and gloriously fuzzy wuzzy buds.

#floweraday

Writers looking for a literary agent, if you'd like to be hand-held through the process of writing a query letter, you can now take an on-demand masterclass with me -- including a review of your query. www.sheilamaverbuch.com/downloads/pi...

#GetAnAgent #GetPublished #queryletter #amwriting

Great to see you there!

Joanne does SO MUCH to support books and authors-- thank you for this feature about PITCH YOUR BOOK!

A crowd of 150 people and great ideas and camaraderie today at #NoTyrants protest at #Edinburgh US Consulate: including calling out racism, voting with your purchases, writing to reps, using Resist Bot and Five Calls, & above all remembering that PROTESTS WORK.

#notyrants #nokings #Scotland #resist

I love this

Rose de Rescht having its moment of flawlessness, with linaria pupurea Canon de Went, which isn't purple but rather pink.

#floweraday

Reader reviews of PITCH YOUR BOOK are starting to come in. Thomas, a querying author, says this on Goodreads. Read the full review: www.goodreads.com/book/show/22...

#PitchYourBook #amwriting #amquerying

Double white peony, here with geranium Patricia planted for my mum, and wild Maine lupins.

#floweraday

It's the red cabbage that I find most bewitching right now, even though the rest of the garden is taking off.

#growyourown

I'm going to be closing to queries for the summer starting this Friday, so if you want to query me, now's the time! #amquerying @andreabrownlit.bsky.social

Join the celebrations for Libraries Week Libraries Week: Libraries Change Lives 2025, running this week until Sunday 8 June, celebrating the vital role libraries play in transforming lives and strengthening communities. This year's theme,…

Please share your case studies of impact, including about how libraries of all types sustain economic growth #LibrariesChangeLives dcmslibraries.blog.gov.uk/2025/06/04/j...

I know that pain

My top tip is don't give anyone a proper name apart from your two POV characters. Call other people by their roles, for example the brother, the bully etc.

This!

Wendy, thanks for spreading the word! It's not your imagination, writing that query letter is really one of the hardest things we'll ever do as writers.

It's #PITCHYOURBOOK publication day! I owe so much to the literary agents who gave me their time and expertise during our interviews, as well as everyone else who supported me and this project. Learn more: bit.ly/SMApitchorder

I love June!

Rosa damascena, the Damask rose, glorious this morning. I've been travelling off and on for over six months, all the time working on PITCH YOUR BOOK, which launches this very day. I missed most of May in the garden, but I'm home again.

#floweraday #pitchyourbook

#PitchYourBook has hit the top 100, coming at 58 of the best-selling books about Books and Publishing. Thanks to you who've pre-ordered! The fact that it's coming in ahead of a writer's craft book I love, Writing The Breakout Novel by #DonaldMaass, is incredible. Learn more:

bit.ly/SMApitchorder

Calling unpublished children's writers in UK & Europe -- do you know about the #UndiscoveredVoices opportunity? Learn more here, including the #UV26 masterclasses; sign up for this year's classes and you could win THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO EDITING YOUR NOVEL by the fab Sara Grant, or PITCH YOUR BOOK >>

Writing a query letter is so difficult, so why not practise on books you didn't write? In PITCH YOUR BOOK, out 3 June, I take you through the process of writing a #queryletter by using brilliant novels like Gail Honeyman's ELEANOR OLIPHANT IS COMPLETELY FINE as examples. bit.ly/SMApitchorder

Boy 2.0 by Tracey Baptiste

Thrilled to discover @traceybaptiste.bsky.social's BOY 2.0 in the #Nantucket Public #Library. Middle grade #scifi forever! It's about a boy who develops the power of invisibility. Just began it and am immediately hooked.

@hachettechildrens.bsky.social #middlegradebooks #libraries

Getting an agent can feel impossible, but don’t lose hope Author and previous New Writer Awardee Sheila M. Averbuch shares her top tips for getting an agent.

Fiction writers looking for an agent, check @scottishbooktrust.bsky.social for this feature on reasons to be cheerful -- even when the statistics around querying make it seem impossible to find representation.

Read the article at bit.ly/SMAsbt25

#PitchYourBook #GetPublished #GetAnAgent

Honesty, magnolia, rhubarb, and a red cabbage flaunting gigantic leaves.

#floweraday