Writers: You'll have no trouble relating to this! That's me on the left and writer Veronica Vo on the right. She recently completed her MFA...and now she's out there in the querying and writing trenches. Join us for the related live chat!

AWP@awpwriter.org · 3d ago

Rejection is part of the writing process and can make a writer doubt. Season 21 mentor Amy Bernstein and her mentee Veronica Vo know all about it. Watch our latest teaser before the premiere of “Writer to Writer Across the Pages: Wrangling the Doubt Monster” on Thursday, August 6.

Artists are advised to wield data to define and measure their worth and their output. This does not always go well. And I'm not doing it. #cnf #essay #artist #writer #bksy amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com/p/permission...

When Measuring Messes with your Mindset

Look beyond the data for your identity as an artist

amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com

@readercon.bsky.social So excited to attend Readercon this weekend and share TENT CITY with everyone. A sly, dark exploration of the American Dream in decline. Check it out! Also excited about serving on the David Gerrold panel!!

Slow your roll, writers. It's good for you! amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com/p/the-other-... #writers #booksky #authors #fiction #nonfiction

The Other Hustle Culture

The different pace of making art

amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com

Think you're clear on your "target" reader? Maybe not... amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com/p/your-so-ca... #booksky #indieauthor #writer #author #fiction #bookmarketing

Your So-Called Target Reader May Not Exist

We can’t always put readers in boxes and slap labels on them

amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com

Yes, why not...? amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com/p/why-not-be... #booksky #authors #writers #indie

Why Not Believe That it Could Be You…?

No excuses allowed

amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com

amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com/p/six-years-... #booksky #writer

Six Years Ago, I Made a Life-Altering Decision

The future is unknowable but dreaming about it is very real

amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com

Aren't chapbooks wonderful? Hand-crafted, elegant, no two alike. I'm thrilled that Bottlecap Press has produced one for my hybrid story, DAYS OF LEAVING. #booksky #indie #author #writer #chapbook #fiction bottlecap.press/products/day...

Days of Leaving, by Amy L. Bernstein

Prose, chapbook, 44 pages, from Bottlecap Features. DAYS OF LEAVING is a gentle meditation on loneliness and the difficulty of living up to E.M. Forster’s dictum to “only connect” one’s inner and oute...

bottlecap.press

If only the rest of the world got on so well... amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com/p/who-are-wr... #writers #authors #booksky #indie #fiction #CNF

Who are Writers Like? Other Writers.

We have a ridiculous amount in common

amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com

One of the most fun parts of completing a book? Choosing the epigraph...just the precise words to set the mood. #booksky amywrites.live/blog/f/the-j...

The Joy of Choosing an Epigraph

One of the joys of finalizing a book is the chance to insert an epigraph (or epigram) at the front of the book, usually after the dedication (to loved ones for putting up with you).

amywrites.live

Hey, I'm inviting complete strangers to my party! Fortunately, it's virtual so you can't steal my silverware. But seriously: Let's have some fun! Register here: us02web.zoom.us/meeting/regi... #fiction #writers #authors #booksky #newfiction #speculative #dystopian #booklaunch

The truth about writing #memoir is packed into this single question. #cnf #booksky

Gotta love the magic of marketing. There I am, right between Cormac McCarthy and Octavia Butler. bookglow.net/5-dystopian-... #fiction #author #booksky #speculative #dystopian

5 Dystopian Novels That Feel Uncomfortably Real - BOOKGLOW

What makes a dystopian novel truly unsettling isn’t how far it stretches the imagination—it’s how close it hits to home. These stories don’t rely on distant futures or impossible technology; instead, ...

bookglow.net

This #cnf essay explores how fiction, including my new novel TENT CITY, contributes a rough first draft of history. I'm not in "sales" mode; I prefer "engagement" mode. #booksky #newbook #speculativefiction #fiction #novel medium.com/books-are-ou...

Fiction Offers a First Draft of History

Invented stories have much to tell us about the real world

medium.com

Self-Doubt Was My Overlord medium.com/the-narrativ... #cnf #self-doubt #impostersyndrome #essay

Self-Doubt Was My Overlord

The long road to becoming a joyful risk-taker

medium.com

Gonna help you tame that beast...

Jeanne Veillette Bowerman@jeannevb.bsky.social · 5mo ago

This is TONIGHT, so don't procrastinate, peeps ... @amylbernstein.bsky.social helps writers perceive their book project in ways they haven't realized they needed. If you're writing a #memoir, this one's for you. Yes, registrants will get a recording. Link in comments.

When revising feels like a slog...when you can no longer see your own words...look up: Your reader awaits. amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com/p/vision-and... #cnf #fiction #nonfiction #writers

Vision and Revision

Seeing your work clearly when everything looks blurry

amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com

TODAY, FRIDAY! Still got some gas in the tank? What a whirlwind, right? This is the book every self-doubting creative needs right now. Stop by for an honest conversation. You'll leave inspired and refreshed! Learn more about this little book punching above its weight at amywrites.live. #AWP

Amy Slays Doubt Monsters@amylbernstein.bsky.social · 5mo ago

Signing copies of my award-winning WRANGLING THE DOUBT MONSTER on Friday at the Women's National Book Assn. Booth 236. 1 pm. Stop by to chat about creative self-doubt! We're in this together! #AWP #AWP26 #writerscommunity #Baltimore

Signing copies of my award-winning WRANGLING THE DOUBT MONSTER on Friday at the Women's National Book Assn. Booth 236. 1 pm. Stop by to chat about creative self-doubt! We're in this together! #AWP #AWP26 #writerscommunity #Baltimore

#AWP26 - Excited to have such dynamic writers join my virtual offsite, Is My Nonfiction Book/Memoir on Track? Wed 3/4 at 4:00PM. It's FREE! Sunday, Mar. 1 -- last day to submit pages for feedback. See AWP offsite pg for sign-up details! #CNF #Memoir

If you're heading to #AWP26 or coming to #Baltimore just for the conference offsites...we've got the lowdown on submitting to the best zines! #authorsandwriters #booksky #fiction #cnf

Writing #CNF? Going to #AWP? Check out my virtual offsite: IS MY NF BOOK OR MEMOIR ON TRACK? Free group coaching by an expert. Insights into your structure, premise, and more! Deets: conference.awpwriter.org/offsite_even..., Mar 04, 2026

2026 AWP

conference.awpwriter.org

Want to get happily published? Begin by being honest with yourself about what you want from the experience. #CNF #writers #authors amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com/p/is-there-a...

Is There a Wrong Way to Publish?

The answer depends on whether your intentions align with reality

amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com

I understand why we classify books by genre. But I prefer my #fiction to be hard to classify. Which is why I rail against the genre coding systems in place. #booksky substack.com/home/post/p-...

The Rampant Coding of Literature

Tucking messy ideas into neat boxes

substack.com

Your published book isn't past its sell-by date. Remember there are readers out there ready to encounter your work for the first time. #booksky #fiction #writers #authors #indie amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com/p/why-every-...

Why Every Day is Launch Day

How to keep that new-car smell going

amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com

Struggling to write better FIRST-PERSON FICTION? Don't miss my master class at the San Fran Writers Conf in Feb.! It's not just a POV--it's a mindset! We'll cover pitfalls, tricks, and share loads of examples. Real-time writing. www.sfwriters.org/events-and-p... @sfwc.bsky.social #fictionwriters

Took 7 years to find a publisher for this dark tale about an economic apocalypse. TENT CITY A striving family. A collapsing economy. A tragic death. In Tent City, everyone must confront their demons in the struggle to survive. PRE-ORDER: www.open-bks.com/library/mode... #booksky #speculative

We cannot undo anything that’s occurred in the past. Period. But we can change how we respond to events yet to occur. #cnf amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com/p/the-past-d...

The Past Does Not Predict Your Future

Look ahead to the good stuff

amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com

writingcooperative.com/when-family-... #cnf #creatives #writerscommunity

When Family Struggles to Understand the Writer in Their Midst

Love and validation don’t necessarily go hand-in-hand. But you can hold onto your identity and still enjoy family time over the holidays.

writingcooperative.com

amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com/p/in-praise-... #cnf #fiction

In Praise of Slow Starts

My love of boring first pages in the great-books canon

amylbernsteinauthor.substack.com