Impersonation scams targeting writers are an epidemic. To defend yourself: check any out-of-the-blue email that purports to be from a real person in publishing or Hollywood against Writer Beware's Impersonation List writerbeware.blog/2024/03/15/t...

The Impersonation List - Writer Beware

The most pernicious scams focused on English-speaking writers these days come from overseas: publishing/marketing/fake literary agency scams from the Philippines, and ghostwriting/publishing/marketing...

writerbeware.blog

No country that arrested librarians and booksellers was on the right side of history. But that's what's happening in Arkansas. And this is where your whole country is headed with H.R 7661 and S 4925. Via @everylibrary.bsky.social action.everylibrary.org/arkansasact372

Arresting Librarians AND Booksellers in the United States

History has shown that arresting librarians and booksellers has never led to greater freedom or liberty.

action.everylibrary.org

With feeling: a couple of wistful, yearning poems served warm by those literary types at @electricliterature.com: #poetry electricliterature.com/two-poems-by...

The Dead Return Every Minnesota Winter - Electric Literature

Two poems by Keng Xiong

electricliterature.com

Nice piece on the use of character flaws, often big ones, offset by other traits that pull in readers and keep them reading: #fiction #novels #CharacterFlaws https://www.writersdigest.com/how-to-create-morally-gray-characters-readers-will-root-for

How to Create Morally Gray Characters Readers Will Root For

Author Terry R. Bacon has assembled a list of eight ways for writers to create morally gray characters readers will root for.

writersdigest.com

Good piece on author handwringing (done it myself) on a book's beginning, even after the final galleys are gone. #novels #writing #fiction #authors www.nytimes.com/2026/07/30/b...

Is a Novel Ever Finished? Many Writers Say No. (Gift Article)

After finishing his latest book, Karan Mahajan couldn’t decide which opening passage was best. Vote below for the one you prefer.

nytimes.com

Tonight’s frolic: A French 75, w/Venus Spirits gin, Paula Kornell champagne (a rosé, something I hadn’t tried before), fresh lemon juice, Liber Demerara syrup, twist. Pretty durn good; might have another. #cocktails

There have been nearly 23,000 book bans in public schools since 2021. The Books Save Lives Act protects the freedom to read and defends the right of every person to see themselves in the pages of a book. #library #books via @everylibrary.bsky.social www.saveschoollibrarians.org/booksavelives

PETITION: Support the Books Save Lives Act

There Have Been Nearly 23,000 Book Bans in Public Schools Since 2021.

saveschoollibrarians.org

A freshly-baked monarch sunning on a sunflower in our backyard today. Credit goes to @heybourget.bsky.social for both the photo and the butterflies, since she planted all the milkweed that attracts the moms-to-be laying their eggs. We've had a monarch bonanza this summer!

Well, all of them aren’t THAT simple, but good overview here of working measures to improve writing: https://www.writersdigest.com/how-to-be-a-writer-in-10-simple-steps

How to Be a Writer in 10 Simple Steps

Author Susan Wiggs shares 10 very simple steps on how to be a writer that (at the very least) worked for her.

writersdigest.com

My paean to the pleasures of the Big Sur region, coastal poetry: https://medium.com/globetrotters/big-sur-and-surrounds-zounds-5921fc609f71

Big Sur and Surrounds: Zounds!

Every cliff, every cove, every twist and turn—yes

medium.com

Do you want the Federal Government controlling your local school libraries? Help stop the Federal Book Ban Bill today!  action.everylibrary.org/hr_7661 via @everylibrary.bsky.social

PETITION: Don't Let the Federal Government Regulate Your Reading

Not one country's freedom and liberty has ever been increased by banning books.

action.everylibrary.org

Tweets disappear. Emails get buried. But a postcard on a desk? That gets noticed. civicmail.org/about-campai... via @civicmail.bsky.social

Don't Ban Books in the United States

Across the country, politicians are trying to decide what Americans are allowed to read. Books are being pulled from school shelves, challenged in public libraries, and targeted for removal not becaus

civicmail.org

Good—(God!); what? hath, we wrought…? (Dunno) https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/2026/08/punctuation-internet-texting-generational-divide/687632/?gift=8-Jj1zvOmyW4EAUIhrtUkWg5C0AfTSM0Jnylm40IC6s&utm_source=copy-link&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=share

Punctuation: A Generational Divide

Can parents ever learn to text like their kids? Should they even try?

theatlantic.com

As mama said, there will be days like this…

Hahahahahahaha

Sean Marshall@seanyyz.bsky.social · 4w ago

Why I’m a fan of the Oxford comma.

Tonight's delight: an Old Pal, w/Woodford rye, Dolin dry vermouth and Atost aperitif. (Supposed to be Campari for the bitter, but none about, and Gran Classico is better anyway.) Lemon twist and Friday away! #cocktails

The Builder’s Creed seths.blog/2026/07/the-...

The Builder’s Creed

A hundred and fifteen years ago, Christian Larson wrote one of the first popular self-help manifestos. The Optimist’s Creed argued that it was a choice, and a useful promise. Not to promise t…

seths.blog

This guy or gal came by the house the other day, and has been hanging around the neighborhood. It’s a juvenile red-tailed hawk, and obviously well-dressed. Plenty of varmints in the nearby fields to terrorize.

Ahh, c'mon. No machine could think and write for you. That would take it stealing from all the accumulated knowledge in history, not paying the actual writers for it, and regurgitating limp pap. Oh, wait... www.theguardian.com/books/2026/j...

Dave Eggers: ‘Once you have a machine think and write for you, you’re cooked as a species’

As his new novel is published, the US author talks about nurturing the next generation of creatives, debating Sam Altman – and why he writes on a boat in San Francisco Bay

theguardian.com

Friday delight: a variant on a Manhattan (called a Manhattan Beach by the Atost folks, but I varied their recipe even more): WhistlePig 6-year rye, Atost—thanks Marie!—aperitif, and Cocchi vermouth, with Angostura bitters and candied (yum) orange peel. Not a bad thing... #cocktails

Friday frolic: a Black Manhattan variant, with the last dribbles of a too-large Knob Creek bourbon, amplified with some Woodford Reserve bourbon, Cocchi vermouth and Montenegro amaro. Peychaud's and Angostura bitters, and brandied cherry to boot. Takes the pain of too much bad news away. #cocktails

View from a cliff at Ft. Ord Dunes State Park (north of Monterey, CA) today. Dazzling stuff, and walking down that little canyon to the water was just as good.

Fabulous is not a strong enough word to describe the heart, soul and grit in this essay.

Rebecca Solnit@rebeccasolnit.bsky.social · 2mo ago

My hundredth essay at my newsletter (in just under 500 days). It's about beauty and pleasure, films and trees and singing, about the small things,and their relationship to democracy and the large things.

Finding some good (and my, do we need it). But, hey, how 'bout that Knicks game? www.theatlantic.com/philosophy/2...

The Ordinary Miracle of Existing

Being alive at all is the most extraordinary stroke of good luck any of us will ever experience.

theatlantic.com

@jessicavalenti.bsky.social "I’ll take the time to explain, again, why calls for Democrats to move to the right on their most popular political issue are fucking stupid. But first, I have to say this: I am so tired. I am tired of having to defend my humanity and the humanity of other women."

The "Middle" Men of the New York Times

Oh look, another dude wants Democrats to compromise on abortion

jessica.substack.com

Page 56 of Trump’s proposed budget calls for the destruction of the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The ONLY source of federal support for libraries. action.everylibrary.org/petitionimls... via @everylibrary.bsky.social

PETITION: Stop Trump's Proposed Elimination of Federal Funding for Libraries

Page 56 of Trump’s proposed budget calls for the closure of the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The ONLY source of federal funding for libraries.

action.everylibrary.org

A salute to my dad, Sgt. Bentley, on this #MemorialDay: he was a waist gunner on a B-17 in the European Theater in WWII and over Korea, many missions, and unlike many of his compatriots, survived to a rich old age. Long gone now, but never forgotten. (Most importantly, he was a good man.)

Friday fly-in: a Boulevardier w/ Knob Creek bourbon, Cocchi vermouth and Gran Classico (Campari’s OK, Classico’s better). Yesssss… #cocktails

What Actually Sells Books open.substack.com/pub/brookewa... #books #publishing #booksales

What Actually Sells Books

The Magic AI Can't Touch

open.substack.com

New #WriterBeware blog post: The Anthropic copyright settlement has writers re-assessing the importance of copyright registration and rights reversion. Should they be re-assessing the importance of ISBNs as well? writerbeware.blog/2026/05/22/h...

Has the Anthropic Settlement Changed Everything? - Writer Beware

Recent developments in the world of copyright have been making many writers rethink their attitudes toward copyright registration and reversion of publishing rights. Because many artificial intelligen...

writerbeware.blog