✨A Query Letter That Got 47 Full Requests; Three Good Reasons Not to Take Writing Advice; & Is Plot Really the Problem?✨

Happy Tuesday, writing friends!

Yesterday was Shooting the Shit day on the podcast! Make sure you don’t miss out on Carly and CeCe unpacking yet another messy week in publishing, from a headline-making cancelled book auction and growing concerns over AI accusations, to the urgent need for clearer industry guidelines around AI use. 👀🍿

We’re kicking off today’s Substack with an essay by Isabelle Spotts, author of Saint Delilah, that’s titled Three Good Reasons Not to Take Writing Advice: How Letting Go of the Rules Shaped My Writing Journey:

“I think most writing advice is well-intentioned, and there’s a lot out there that’s really solid, tried and true, and derived from writers who know exactly what they’re talking about—who’ve built enviable careers, no less. It can be tempting, if not downright maddening, to try and take all that glorious advice in, to absorb enough of it so that writing becomes effortless (a dream!), and the pursuit of publishing less chaotic (a hallucination!). But when it comes to something as subjective as writing and as diverse as publishing, we all must recognize, there is no morsel of wisdom that will save us from our own process.

You’ll want to read her three reasons to see how they might apply to you!

In today’s video, Abbie Emmons, author of Make Your Story Matter, tackles the question: Is Plot Really the Problem? See what Abbie says about the storytelling question that can instantly diagnose a flat manuscript!

In our Meet Your Dream Agent profile, we interview Lauren Khan from FinePrint Literary Management. Check out the query letter that got a whopping 47 full requests! 🤯

Then, Leslie Bazzett, author of Mia, tackles today’s Q&A. We love her take regarding social media:

“I actually do not have a social media platform at all, and have literally never been on any social media. As Bartleby said, I would prefer not to. In similar passive-defiant form, this is not necessarily something I broadcast to my agent or publisher! But the thing is, there’s just so much distraction coming at us right now; our minds are literally becoming fragmented and incapable of sustained engagement. And so, as writers and artists, I think we have a call to resist; to nurture mindfulness and presence in the way we receive and reconfigure and translate the world, in all its fierceness and strangeness and wonder.”

Don’t forget that the next Beta Reader Match Up is open to registrations. You can sign up for it here. And CeCe’s Writing Tension course (with the exciting acquisitions pipeline!) is also open to bookings. So much to look forward to!

Finally, we’ve got the perfect workbook for you! It’s got everything you need to be your most productive self while keeping track of every aspect of your novel along the way! Scroll down to watch the video of everything it includes.

That’s all for now. Thanks for reading! ❤️

❤️ The Shit No One Tells You About Writing Team

Carly and CeCe are back to unpack another messy week in publishing, from a headline-making cancelled book auction and growing concerns over AI accusations to the urgent need for clearer industry guidelines around AI use. They dig into who should be responsible for setting those rules, why authors deserve more transparency, and the risks of relying on AI detection tools. Plus, they discuss alternative publishing models, the rise of no-advance deals, and the increasingly sophisticated scams targeting authors.

Listen to it here or watch it on YouTube!