Welcome to our third round of Storyletter Meet & Greet. Please introduce yourselves and your projects! (You don’t have to be a writer to participate)
After your intro, try to respond to another member’s comment to keep the discussion going. Can’t wait to learn more about you!
Here’s my intro:
Hello, I’m Winston. I live in Utah, but I’m originally from the east coast (TN/FL). I was active duty Air Force before joining the Utah Air National Guard. I have a miniature schnauzer named Vinnie who is 3 years old (turning 4 in April). I’d love to write full-time. I started a publishing company last year in order to learn the ropes and help others in the process. My goal is to get better at storytelling by experimenting with different genres and styles, while building a community of like-minded folks who want to talk shop.
I’m extremely grateful you’re here. I look forward to meeting you. Thanks for sharing your story. ~ WM
Hello, Storyletter creators and readers! I'm Fallon, the DIY editor, and I help fiction authors and memoirists develop authentic stories for humans one step at a time. My primary focus is on teaching basic principles of self-editing using detailed manuscript evaluations and collaborative conversations to bring new ideas and a fresh perspective to the writing process. If you're a writer who wishes developmental edits were a bit more collaborative, we should chat.
I recently had my first flash-fic acceptance, the release date of which is TBD, and I am thrilled! I also maintain a free Substack that has a few experimental flash pieces.
Hey Fallon, so nice to meet you! Thanks for stopping by to introduce yourself. I've subscribed to your Substack. I really like spec-fic and can't wait to get familiar with your work. And congratulations on the publication. That's huge!
I may need your assistance with self-editing. Let's stay in touch please.
Thanks, kindly, Winston! I'm happy to talk through some techniques, and I offer a free self-editing guide for website newsletter subscribers that goes over some developmental basics.
Hello, everyone. I'm Katya. I'm still learning my way around Substack. I've started to serialize my novel 'The Hermit' on Substack this January. It's a contemporary tale about an aging New York finance bro's spiritual crisis. I live on West Coast now, but I spent more than a decade in NY working in financial industry. I wrote my novel to be anti-Wolf Of Wall Street and anti-Big Short and other recent Wall Street fiction, as neither of those focus on the inner worlds of their characters, but only on surface manifestations. I was more interested in depicting what goes on in an average finance bro's head, what's behind his bravado and hubris. Right now I'm on Chapter 4, with 21 more chapters to go (published once a week every Sunday). Some of the chapters are also illustrated by me. Thank you.
Nice to meet you, Katya! I've subscribed to your Substack and look forward to reading your work. I'm very interested in your showcase of a finance bro's inner world haha. I love that term 'finance bro', strikes up a solid mental image without needing a whole lot of description. Thanks for stopping by! Hope you met some cool writers here in the M&G. :)
Hi, Winston. I appreciate your interest. Yes, the inner workings of the mind of a midtown finance bro is an under-explored area. We know all about their surface lives, but we don't know what's going on in their heads. There's a lot of confusion and insecurities there. I ventured to bring at least some of it to light, as I worked closely (and partied) with those guys and witnessed everything first hand. I hope you enjoy my tale. 21 more chapters to go. Katya
Hi, John. That's a long story. I'm not an illustrator. The last time I drew anything I was maybe 13. I tried to find an illustrator willing to take on the project and who's receptive to my artistic vision, but I couldn't find anybody. Then I tried AI, and it just doesn't work for depicting an average finance bro. It doesn't know what a finance bro is. So I decided to do it myself. It takes me a week to draw one picture.
Hi, I'm Ben. I just retired Jan 1st, so I guess that means I can write full time if I want. I just finished my NaNoWriMo Challenge and am in the process of revising it. I write on Scribbler, which I started in June. I write long short stories that are all over the map. First World War, Second World War, Japanese invasion of Manchuria, Congo Independence, Mau Mau uprising. I enjoy writing long stories and hope I can find like-minded readers. I'm tickled pink to be here and hope you look into my page.
Hey Ben! I wrote my first novel thanks to NaNo and really think I may not have become a novelist were it not for them. Great events, wonderful group of folks who run it.
Yeah, same. It definitely got me flowing! I often go beyond the 30 days now. In fact, my current work started in November as part of NaNoWriMo and is still going. I've written many books this way, and it's super helpful.
I know! I brought mine in at 81,000, and then added another 10,000 with my revision. But I knew I wanted to bring it in at that length before I even started it. 50,000 feels more like a novella.
I'm calling it fantasy. Spoiler alert--there's a twist 3/4 of the way through. It's starts off as an adventure story, and then becomes a thriller...well, I can't give too much away...but I'm happy with it.
NaNo is a challenge to yourself. It's a great feeling of accomplishment when you actually do it. There's no prize, except that feeling of accomplishment. I put it up on my Substack because I had three PAID subscribers (all friends of mine) and I was putting a story up that I was editing so they could see the process I followed (as if there's really a process.) Anyway, entering the NaNo and editing the story, and putting up a story every Sunday, I couldn't keep up. So I decided to cut out the PAID part, and put the NaNo story in its place, as I was writing it. I hit the 50,000 word goal, but knew it needed more. So I kept writing it and putting it up. Hopefully people read it and like it. I don't have a lot of followers yet, and hope to work on that this year.
Hey Ben, thanks for posting. Sorry I haven't been able to read your work yet, it's been so hectic. I'm warming up to historical fiction and am starting to appreciate it more with each passing day. I'm curious, do you have published works anywhere to purchase, or are you on the journey like I am to get one polished up and out there soon? Or is that not something you're interested in at the moment?
Jan 26, 2023·edited Jan 26, 2023Liked by Winston Malone
Not published yet. I have stories floating around in the ether somewhere. I never made money writing until I came here. It used to have a paid section, but I took it down. It was too soon to go paid. But I'm retired now, so I have to get up off my ass and make some shit happen. I had to write a synopsis for my story today. I'm thinking I'd better start looking for Alpha readers. It reminds me of a story someone I was on a writing page with told me, he just sent his story in on a whim, and they asked to see it. He sent it to them and now he's got nine books under his belt and it doesn't look like he'll be stopping soon. So I thought I'd start off the year looking for an agent and maybe getting a book sale. What else I got to do?
I'd offer to Alpha read but it'd take me a long time I'm afraid. I listen to most of my books during my commute these days. Alphas are scanning for plot holes and inconsistencies, right? I've only helped out with short stories before. But that initial reader feedback is invaluable.
Hope you find an agent! Keep us posted on your journey. Do you have any specific publishers you like or have in mind?
Nope. That's not in my job description. At this point in my life, I don't care who it is. He could be in front of the Human Rights Tribunal--well, maybe not that bad, but you know what I mean. I don't care. I mean, now-a-days, you got people screaming at you because you didn't have a sensitivity reader. Well...tough. I don't care. If you're going to say I was insensitive and hurt your feelings, I'm gonna say, "grow a pair." Trigger warnings? What the hell are those? Close the book. I don't care, just as long as you buy it first. There's something to be said about starting at the bottom and working your way up. I know I'm not going to be an overnight success. But if I can gather up a little following of paid subscribers--enough so that I can afford the wine we drink, or maybe a toke or two--that's all I need. And about 20 more good years of production, because after 85, well, sometime life kicks you in the nuts.
Heck yeah! Well, I’m excited to see where this all goes for both of us. I admire the traditional route and will be rooting for you. Let me know if you need anything and I’ll try to help out where I can.
I tend to write magical realism set in sundry historical settings. On my Substack page I’ve also made available some sci-fi, horror, and a few works of poetry. Every now and then I write an essay. I’m still new to Substack but I really like this platform and the community. Here’s a link to the list of chapters for my novel that I’m about a third of the way through on. It’s called “The Witch in the Mountain Pass” and is set in northern Greece in the 1930s: https://danielwdavison.substack.com/p/the-witch-in-the-mountain-pass-list
Separately, I’m posting the prologue for a novel I wrote last year tomorrow. It’s called “Snakes and Ladders and the Destinies of Unborn Universes”. I’m really excited about this one. The entire process of writing it was completely spontaneous and unpremeditated. It’s a fusion of sci-fi and magical realism with elements of dark comedy to boot.
Hey Daniel, loving "The Witch in the Mountain Pass" and can't wait for others to experience "Snakes and Ladders and the Destinies of Unborn Universes" (I was lucky enough to beta read!). Thanks for sharing! Love your work.
I love The Witch in the Mountain Pass!!! Your poetry is really great as well, so I hope you continue posting those. I can't wait to see the artwork for Snakes and Ladders.... You always come up with amazing creations!
Hello, I am Cody Langille. I'm a retired Air Force vet and I write horror as well as run Timber Ghost Press. I've been writing for over 25 years, run the local chapter of the Horror Writers Association, and like all things spooky.
Hey Cody! Glad to see you. Loving all of the new releases from Timber Ghost! 2023 is the year I start reviews and I'm planning on showcasing some of your books. Very excited to read them. They've been burning a whole in my shelf... in a haunted, spectral flame kind of way. Ha :)
Jan 25, 2023·edited Jan 25, 2023Liked by Winston Malone
Hello, everyone! I'm Lori, and I'm pretty new to writing. As a child I loved writing stories, but as I grew older I became more self-conscious about everything and stopped writing. Now that I'm 40 years old, I figure I might as well start sharing the story ideas that have been stuck in my brain. My substack, Beyond ForZora, contains a few short essays about me, but I've started posting chapters of my very first novella, In Ruins.
I would love any and all feedback on this! I've already got an idea for my next story, so I hope to begin working on that soon. "Beyond ForZora" is derived from my small business, https://ForZora.art, which was my little project during COVID lockdown. Feel free to check that out as well for some of my custom artwork! It's great to be here and to "meet" so many of you!
Hey, Lori! So nice to meet you. I thought I had subscribed already but apparently not. I’ve remedied that. I looked at your ForZora art and that is such a unique and wonderful idea. I love it so much. I’m super interested in reading more of your work, and can’t wait to get to know you better here on Substack. Thanks for stopping by!
Hi Lori, I was drawn in right away, and enjoyed the ups and downs of chapter one, such as the line "it morphed from a pessimistic depression to an optimistic one" which rather jumped out at me.
I have to take it slow, because my eyes don't do well on dark themes. Yours is a bit less dark than some (which I can't even approach), but I do wish that Substack would allow me override another stack's theme.
At any rate, very nicely done. And glad to meet you, too. All the best.
Yes, I've mentioned it on Office Hours a couple of times. Some people can't handle dark theme; some not light. It would be an extremely beneficial feature to let the reader select. Would open up more stacks to everybody. Well, maybe it's in the works....
Hello! So far I'm having a blast, but it's hard to find time with 2 young children I the house :) One thing I've noticed is worrying that I won't be able to properly tell the story I have in my head. I mean, I see it so clearly in my mind, and I just hope I can do it justice once it's on the page. Not sure if others feel that way as well. Also, finishing one story and starting the next is tricky because my brain is so used to the old characters that I'm still trying to get to know the new ones. But overall, it has been a wonderful creative outlet for me and I'm so glad I've allowed myself to open up again.
I'm T Van Santāna. I write really weird and rambling speculative fiction that veers into erotica, horror, and memoir sometimes. My main work is one giant meganovel called The Secret of Secrets, but it’s made up of something like 30 novels and some short stories and a screenplay and whatever else ends up in there. The first book is in print and you can buy it on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1925819671/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1
You can also have it delivered to your local B&N, and your library should be able to get it for you.
What I’m working on now is the middle section, a kudzu plot, gonzo metafictional novel called Teresa’s Backbone, which I’m putting out through Substack. Here is the link to the latest readers' guide: https://tvansantana.substack.com/p/reading-the-backbone
Despite appearances and my in character literary voice, I am very friendly and talkative, so don’t hesitate to reach out and say hey!
Hey T, thank you so much for that detailed breakdown. I've been reading your posts sporadically but wasn't sure how they all fit together. This explanation helps out a ton. And that chapter guide will definitely help me in the future.
I bought your book "Everything Fails"! Looks awesome. Adding it to the queue. Oh, I had to look up kudzu and gonzo...that's very unique!
Jan 25, 2023·edited Jan 25, 2023Liked by Winston Malone
Hello Storytellers,
I’m Victor David, originally from the states, now an ex-pat living in central Mexico. I have several fruit trees, and three dogs adopted from the street, the most recent a happy puppy who just chewed up a couch. Oh, joy.
I like to write odd, thoughtful, edgy, at times metaphysical fiction that hopefully provokes reflection upon our shared human condition. They don’t fit any particular genre. Mainstream and I parted ways long ago, and we’re both okay with that.
I founded and ran an online poetry / fiction magazine for several years, which has many great pieces from a variety of authors, and is still up, although inactive.
I just found Storytellers a short while ago, and am glad I did. Happy to be here.
Jan 27, 2023·edited Jan 27, 2023Liked by Winston Malone
Thanks Winston! I hope you enjoy what's there / what's coming. The pup is a Belgian Shepard, at least mostly, and 6 months old. She's from the street and that always involves a bit of "more or less" when it comes to age and breed. Anyway, she's happy to have a home and we're happy to have her! She's a sweetie.
p.s. In my original comment, should be "story letter", not "story teller". Oops...
I didn't mention, but some nice art work, too. And authors reading their works with musical accompaniment. And a few videos, also. Mostly poetry, but prose poetry as well, which sort of moves closer to fiction at times.
My main project is a historical trilogy set on the Eurasian steppe in the 5th c. BCE among horse nomads known as Scythians. My protagonist is what ancient Greeks would call an Amazon, but she's no myth or Wonder Woman. She's a nomad on a mission to collect a man's scalp. I've posted Book 1 (Of Wind and Wolves) here on my Substack, and I plan on serializing Book 2 (The Gifts of Heaven) in a few weeks. I'm hoping to revise them both for publication in print, and finish Book 3 (Peace Weaver). The rest of my newsletter is more or less for context. I'm also experimenting a little with different genres and styles... with mixed results!
Nice to meet you all! I look forward to checking out your projects whenever I can :-)
Of Wind and Wolves is at the top of my priorities, Jacquie. I'd like to write a showcase review of it this year. I need to start practicing my review writing. I've created a spreadsheet of all of the books I'm going to review this year. Should be a fun way to get more involved with the stories I read.
Thanks for stopping by! Also, I love the names of the other two books, too. They sound so epic.
Wow, Winston, that sounds amazing! I would be so flattered if you wrote a review of my book (and please be brutally honest :-) I should step up my reviewing game which is currently pretty nonexistent. And I'm glad you like the titles. They're so nerve-wracking to choose. Hope the books live up to them!
Hello all. I'm Leigh. I write mostly historical horror short stories, but occasionally I'll dabble in other genres. I've been writing for 14 years now, but have only felt like my stuff was polished enough to share publicly in the past year or two. I also have a novel going that I will probably finish someday. It's a ghost story set in the USSR in the early 50s. A friend of mine described it as a cross between The Turn of the Screw and 1984, and that's actually pretty accurate.
Hey, Leigh. I can relate to your comment about not feeling like your work was polished enough to share. I learn every day that there's more room for improvement and I've seen such a distinct level of growth occur in my own writing over the past few years. It's odd to be aware of the changes, but kind of neat. It can be crippling, though, during the periods where the writing doesn't seem to flow like it should. Sigh. Writing sprints have helped with that thankfully.
Your ghost story set in the USSR sounds really interesting! Can't wait to read that. I had to look up The Turn of the Screw but that in combination with elements of 1984...whoa! That'll be awesomely spooky.
Hey peoples, I write gritty, soulful, literary fiction here: https://adrianconway.substack.com - flashes, shorts, and my novella The Pelican Crossing which will be out with Troubador in late spring. Based in St Albans, UK with my fam and an imaginary dog. Really appreciate this space and really hope Substack can revolutionise the fiction market! Good vibes.
Hey, Adrian! Congrats again on the publication coming out in Spring. Can't wait to pick that up. Wait, imaginary dog?! What breed though? Asking the real questions, hah!
Glad you stopped by. I'm positive Substack is at least revolutionizing my approach to fiction, hoping the market will come along as well. :)
Thanks, Winston. Appreciated. Irish Wolfhound. 😉 Yes, I’m on a one man mission (dubbed Project Folly) to prove that literary fiction is still monetizable in this day and age! Hoping Substack creates a properly differentiated silo for the fiction reading experience with genre micro-communities. Success with Storyletter.
I'm Austin, currently working on the Protopian, a substack newsletter mainly concerned with exploring the question "How can we best build better futures?". It's part political philosophy, part literary review, but mostly just me rambling. Currently drawing a lot of inspiration from Elle Griffin's Utopian Collective project and all the discussion being had over there.
For me fiction writing is also a way to explore themes that are hard to articulate in non-fiction writing, and I think any good philosophy has a close relationship with storytelling, which is part of the reason I'm here! Really cool what Winston has put together, and happy to see what everyone else is working on here.
Hey, Austin. Thanks for popping in to introduce yourself. I think what you're doing with Protopian is really great. I'm slowly making my way through the posts in my feed and will comment when I get a chance to share my thoughts. I, too, am getting exposed to a lot of new concepts and ideas through Elle's Substack group.
I totally agree that fiction is a perfect playground to explore complex themes. It's truly something special and important to understanding the human condition. Thanks for being a part of the community and willing to share your stories with us. Glad to have you.
I’m following along with Elle’s work as well and recently finished Utopia. I have a lot of thoughts on the idea of ideal societies and discussions on the topic have been fruitful for my work as well.
It’s so great to e-meet all of you! I just started my Substack officially TODAY as a birthday celebration 🥳🍾💃🏻 and am very excited to serialize my zany adventure comedy, Over the Top Secret.
I live in Las Vegas but was born in Florida and am the oldest of five loud siblings. I’m obsessed with and fascinated by storytelling in every medium (from advertising and video games to theme parks and movies!) and loooove to travel. I just got back from a trip to Japan and now I’m in San Francisco!
I’m like a mentos in a coke bottle with how genuinely enthusiastic I am about everything, so please excuse the exclamation points (I swear I’m not yelling at you, lol).
Favorite things in no particular order:
•Playing pickleball outside with the fam
•Secret doors
•Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
•Treasure hunts
•Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios, FL 🤩
•Mysteries and mythology
•History
•To-do lists and checking things off them
•Hummingbirds
•Learning about history, how things are made, and humans in general
•Entertaining others
•Discovering how to best take care of myself
•Substack
Good luck with your writing and nice to meet you all! 👋
Nice to e-meet you, Alexa! Can't wait to read Over the Top Secret.
Where in Florida did you live? I grew up in Clearwater, Largo, Palm Harbor, and St. Petersburg areas. I love the theme parks they have there. I used to go all the time. Went to LEGOLAND last year for the first time, which was a blast.
What a great list of favorites. Glad to have you in the community. Your enthusiasm is very welcomed here!
I grew up in Ormond Beach, right next to Daytona Beach. Been to St Petersburg and Clearwater a few times. Howdy, neighbor! I’ve never been to Legoland! Excited for the new Nintendoland and Universal’s Epic Universe, too. Theme parks are some of the most interesting means of storytelling, I think. So fun!
I've only been to Daytona Beach once when I was younger. I remember the water being way colder than the Gulf side haha. I'd like to venture around other parts of Florida more.
Wait, they are building a Nintendoland there?! And what is Epic Universe? Like Epic Games' Fortnite-type stuff? I really, really want to visit Avatar World next time I go back. They are very fun. Legoland is more for kids, but it was still neat seeing all of the giant Lego builds and walking through the gift shop. I bought a Carnage bust which was neat to build.
Haha that’s awesome! Also, it would be “epic” if there was a Fortnite theme park OMG can you imagine if it was like one giant paintball course with padded obstacles and zip lines?! *take my money*
Universal is building a new theme park roughly the size of both Universal and Islands of Adventure combined! Check out all the info here before I combust from trying to type it all out in this comment: https://orlandoinformer.com/universal/epic-universe/
Oh wow! Thanks for sharing. That is just too incredible sounding. I guess that's why it's aptly named "Epic Universe".
Now I'm trying to figure out the logistics of a life-sized version of Fortnite and how it can work. What if the battle bus was on a tram system and you jumped out into ball pits at different points along the track?! Okay, too much brain power went into that.
Nice to meet you. We share some common interests. I also enjoy learning about history and mythology. (I actually do Folklore Friday articles in my substack regularly that are devoted to specific urban legends and myths).
I just rewatched Skyfall and in their was what’s called a priest’s hole which was a secret passage built to hide during times of persecution. Serendipity!
Hi, I'm Will Edwards. Grew up in New England, currently on the west coast of the U.S. I write fantasy and do hobbyist research into mythology, particularly on the Aztec god Tezcatlipoca. My current fiction project is styled like the script and walkthrough for a fighting game, it's being serialized on my substack (https://warthogreport.substack.com).
In addition to that I'm working on various other projects, including revision of a short story and planning for a Dracula sequel. And I'm doing the editing for the story of an indie fighting game.
Hey, Will, it's nice to meet you! Thanks for signing up. Wow! Glad to have you on board. Let me know if there is anything specific you'd like to see, or need help with in general. I'm always free to answer questions.
Your projects sound really cool. I've subscribed to The Warthog Report and I'm super excited about it because I haven't followed anyone yet on Substack writing about video games, or gaming culture in general. I'm sure there are, but I think the blend of fiction and essays will be great! I checked out the prologue to your series and it looks pretty epic.
It's so great to meet you, Will! Thanks for stopping by to introduce yourself.
Nice to be here. For feedback, I looked at the submission portal and while I could infer what your maximum word count is for stories to be posted on Storyletter based on the payment talk (1,000), I think it'd be good to state it outright and upfront. As someone who often goes over max word counts that's one of the first things I look for with a publication.
I'm still a fairly new subscriber so I need to see more of how things usually go here before making any requests
In college there was a gamejam I signed up for, an event where you have to make a game by a deadline. My team was able to put out a complete visual novel despite me being the only coder and having no experience, we used a simple easy to use engine. My current fiction project is only formatted like a video game.
For the indie game I'm helping edit, I've been playing it in early access for some time and then when the test for story mode came out I sent the developer some screenshots of typos with corrections. He then asked if I'd like to be the editor for the game as a whole since I had already helped.
I'd say the big difference writing for games is that the gameplay inherently serves as a structure you have to work with. Fighting games need to include fights for example, so the question becomes how to make the fights fit in naturally because not including them isn't an option.
I'm a full-time writer and translator from France. I've been writing Science-Fiction and Fantasy for over 30 years. In French, at first, though I decided to switch to English in 2020. I started my Substack a year later and published my first novel in 2022.
I have many projects for this year. The big challenge is to write six novels (I said write, not publish, LOL), including the three sequels to my debut novel.
There will be more free short stories for my Substack, too, and I will keep writing my space opera serial as well.
Hey there, Alex! So glad to hear from you. I didn't realize you'd switched to writing in English in 2020! That's really impressive. I may travel to France this year for work. *fingers crossed*
6 novels is an amazing goal. I hope you do it! That'll be wild. Do you have any published works for purchase? I've been adding Substack authors' books to my TBR list for this year.
Well, I'd written stuff in English before. The switch was really more about focus, as I still write in French as well, but just not in the same proportions ;)
Jan 27, 2023·edited Jan 27, 2023Liked by Winston Malone
Hi, I'm John. Nice to meet you all. :-)
A little about me:
I live in Utah where I work as a sports journalist for the Associated Press and Athlon Sports. I've worked in the media for two decades since graduating from the University of Utah. In addition to Utah, I've also lived in Louisiana and Texas. I love to spend time outdoors whenever I get the chance. I enjoy hiking, photography, stargazing, and a host of other outdoor activities.
I'm an indie author. I've published five novels and two short stories through my imprint Samak Press. My main genres are science fiction and horror, but I plan to write stories in other genres as well. I love storytelling. Few things give me greater happiness than sharing the worlds and characters I've created in my imagination with others. I'm in the early stages of expanding Samak Press into a full-fledged publishing company which will eventually produce the works of other indie authors as well. I'm always looking to evolve and grow as a storyteller and enjoy connecting with other authors and readers.
I write a substack called Strange New Worlds (https://newworlds.substack.com) that offers a mix of original short fiction, poetry, and articles. Looking forward to getting to know you all better.
Hey John, nice to get to know you a bit more. That's awesome that you work as a sports journalist here in Utah. Do you get to work remote or do they have you go into the office?
5 novels?! I didn't realize you had published that many. Great job. It'll be so much fun to see how Samak Press develops in the near future. Glad to be networking with you.
I don't have a traditional office per se. My office as a sports journalist is usually an arena or stadium or practice facility where I'm covering a game or interviewing athletes and coaches for a feature or preview. Some assignments I can do from a home office. It gets pretty time consuming from August through May. June and July are usually my quiet months away from sports.
I'm currently working on developing my next three novels. :-) I'm on Chapter two of the first one, I have a half-completed outline on the second, and I've compiled some character, plot, and setting notes for the third one.
I enjoy college football and college basketball the most. Those were the sports I was passionate about as a kid. I've always loved March Madness. I used to fill out my own hand-drawn brackets in a notebook on Selection Sunday when I was in elementary school.
College is fun to watch. My dad would take me to the Florida Gator games when I lived in FL. I haven’t been to any games here in Utah yet. Maybe I should remedy that soon.
Ironically, the Utah Utes open the 2023 season against the Florida Gators. They will host them at Rice-Eccles Stadium on either August 31st or September 2nd. So you have a chance to check out a game here while going to see a team you use to watch. :-)
Jan 26, 2023·edited Jan 26, 2023Liked by Winston Malone
Hi everyone! Great to see so many people here!
I'm a writer living in Oxford, UK, and I also run a flash fiction competition here. Most of what I have published has been flash fiction, and the past few years I have been trying to write novels - mysteries and whatnot. But it hasn't gone so well... I had a lot of false starts last year on novels, even a novella, and I think I'm still a bit too afraid to get writing again. I decided to have a go at self publishing but it went horribly. Reviews on Netgalley weren't what I had hoped and so I pulled it. I am having a hard time recovering from it, and whether I am cut out for this sort of gig. Sigh.
In summary - I love hiking, toads, curry and crafting! I can't stand peas, and apparently I shuffle more than walk.
Looking forward to 'hanging' out with some other writers here!
Hey, Freya! I've subscribed to The Fun Project. Glad to have you here. I'm very, very curious about your flash fiction competition. I'm relatively new to flash fiction but have come to really enjoy the thrill of it. Not too much of a commitment, but just enough words to open up a whole new world to the reader and have them wanting more.
I'm sorry you had that negative experience with self-publishing. It sounds rough. I'm really dreading the possibility of negative reviews and comments when I finally publish my first book. Glad to see you persevering and still willing to put yourself out there. It's not easy.
I look forward to getting familiar with your work and possibly entering into a flash fiction comp at some point. Thanks for stopping by! So nice to meet you.
I struggled a lot with my novel. It just consumes you whole. You find yourself in s state where you know it has to come out, but there are days when you're just blank. Then, after you're finally done, it's the querying process – writing into a black hole. You do that for months without a feedback. That's how I ended up on Substack. Going forward I want to switch to writing short stories. Katya
Hi Katya, yeah, I’ve a novel sitting there but it’s roughly the weight of the ring in Mordor and I’m a combo of Frodo and Sam lying knackered on the side of Mt Doom. I’ve definitely rediscovered the joy in writing fiction from being on Substack. Hope you get into your groove here too.
Yeah, if you write literary fiction, Substack is the only outlet to publish. You look at agent's wish lists and it's all YA, romance, mystery. Literary is a dead end. You're on your own. Sigh.
Agree. It certainly feels like a very narrow literary world. And, yes, literary fiction writing feels like an utterly gratuitous undertaking. But, well, hopefully it’s some small consolation that we’re on our own together. We can’t go on, we’ll go on.
Hi Freya, am I allowed to ask you to give peas a chance?
For what it’s worth, the book market feels a little like the tyranny of the novel. If you naturally prefer and enjoy the flash fiction form (I’m definitely more of a shortie) then I hope you’ll find traction on Substack and a boost for your self-confidence from the really cool fiction people here.
I have no idea what I naturally feel I enjoy anymore. I feel a bit lost at sea. I'm struggling to get anything down. So have gone back to poetry as my starting point. Hoping time will heal.
But I'm afraid my childhood trauma of peas cannot be healed... :D
I'm Matthew, but go by M. S. Arthadian! I live in Southern California and am the Loremaster and Creative Director for Arthadian Anthologies! It's been some time since I've joined one of these threads (mainly bcuz of how busy I am with all my projects) but it's fantastic to see all the new faces here in the Storyletter community!
Right now I'm working on developing a game module for my online TTRPG Reborn in Power and building my own community around it. I have a 150+ podcast series that dives into The CORE Realms, a new expanding universe I aim to turn into a shared universe for many other creators to take part in the expansion of.
If you enjoy audio fiction or even Tabletop RPGs, I think you'd get a kick out of what I'm developing. And I look forward to seeing what you all are making as well!
It’s my first time here and I feel like I stumbled into a party and vaguely recognize some folks already here. I’m from NJ and have worked in healthcare for almost 15 years. I’ve always written in some form, but decided to start up a few years ago. My Substack is my call into the void in hopes someone will hear it. Happy to commune with the folks who have.
I’m usually publishing essays, short fiction, and poetry, but published a longer piece, “Ithaka”, which was released in the fall of 2022 with accompanying audio. I’m focusing now on the subject of world building and exploring all the ways in which a society is formed and maintained. I’ll be releasing an essay on it soon. I like writing about music or memory, family generations, and the dark side of my emotions. I’m proud of my body of work.
Hey, Chevanne! Nice to meet you. I've subscribed to The FLARE and look forward to familiarizing myself with your work.
Worldbuilding is such a fun topic. I can't wait to read your essay on it. Do you write in a particular genre? When I hear worldbuilding, I think Fantasy, but I suppose it could be anything speculative.
Jan 30, 2023·edited Jan 30, 2023Liked by Winston Malone
Thank you!
It’s sci fi/mystery with folks from Earth who emigrated to another planet. I do write horror, slice of life, even romance for my shorter fiction. One I’m really proud of is called “In Time” which has a Twilight Zone feel for me.
I participated on the last intro, so I'm just updating here. I write super-hero stories, Mega's in my universe, and random shorts whenever stories pop into my head. My substack is not full of content yet because I like to finish my stories first and release chapters later. My universe is not YA, but made for adults. There is nothing amorous, but there is violence, so you've been warned lol.
It is on my bucket list to write something Winston can champion. :O) I had the beginning of a short but then it just floated out of my head. So, lesson learned, write everything down.
Hello, Victor! Glad to see you again. You published a book in December?! Congratulations on that and the article publication. That's freaking awesome. Great work. I've added Fiasco of Adventures to my wish list and will purchase soon. Woohoo!
Hello, Storyletter creators and readers! I'm Fallon, the DIY editor, and I help fiction authors and memoirists develop authentic stories for humans one step at a time. My primary focus is on teaching basic principles of self-editing using detailed manuscript evaluations and collaborative conversations to bring new ideas and a fresh perspective to the writing process. If you're a writer who wishes developmental edits were a bit more collaborative, we should chat.
I recently had my first flash-fic acceptance, the release date of which is TBD, and I am thrilled! I also maintain a free Substack that has a few experimental flash pieces.
Nice to meet you all!
Hey Fallon, so nice to meet you! Thanks for stopping by to introduce yourself. I've subscribed to your Substack. I really like spec-fic and can't wait to get familiar with your work. And congratulations on the publication. That's huge!
I may need your assistance with self-editing. Let's stay in touch please.
Thanks, kindly, Winston! I'm happy to talk through some techniques, and I offer a free self-editing guide for website newsletter subscribers that goes over some developmental basics.
Fallon's flash-fic is really good on her substack, I highly recommend them. Awesome news on the publication Fallon! It was only a matter of time.
Congrats on the flash fic! That's awesome. I'm starting to self edit my story as well, so let's keep in touch!
Thanks, Ben! I'd love to keep in touch, and I've subscribed to your sub, too. Cheers!
Hey Fallon! Congrats on the publication! That's awesome.
Thanks kindly!
Hello, everyone. I'm Katya. I'm still learning my way around Substack. I've started to serialize my novel 'The Hermit' on Substack this January. It's a contemporary tale about an aging New York finance bro's spiritual crisis. I live on West Coast now, but I spent more than a decade in NY working in financial industry. I wrote my novel to be anti-Wolf Of Wall Street and anti-Big Short and other recent Wall Street fiction, as neither of those focus on the inner worlds of their characters, but only on surface manifestations. I was more interested in depicting what goes on in an average finance bro's head, what's behind his bravado and hubris. Right now I'm on Chapter 4, with 21 more chapters to go (published once a week every Sunday). Some of the chapters are also illustrated by me. Thank you.
Nice to meet you, Katya! I've subscribed to your Substack and look forward to reading your work. I'm very interested in your showcase of a finance bro's inner world haha. I love that term 'finance bro', strikes up a solid mental image without needing a whole lot of description. Thanks for stopping by! Hope you met some cool writers here in the M&G. :)
Hi, Winston. I appreciate your interest. Yes, the inner workings of the mind of a midtown finance bro is an under-explored area. We know all about their surface lives, but we don't know what's going on in their heads. There's a lot of confusion and insecurities there. I ventured to bring at least some of it to light, as I worked closely (and partied) with those guys and witnessed everything first hand. I hope you enjoy my tale. 21 more chapters to go. Katya
How long does it take for you to create illustrations for your chapters?
Hi, John. That's a long story. I'm not an illustrator. The last time I drew anything I was maybe 13. I tried to find an illustrator willing to take on the project and who's receptive to my artistic vision, but I couldn't find anybody. Then I tried AI, and it just doesn't work for depicting an average finance bro. It doesn't know what a finance bro is. So I decided to do it myself. It takes me a week to draw one picture.
Hi, I'm Ben. I just retired Jan 1st, so I guess that means I can write full time if I want. I just finished my NaNoWriMo Challenge and am in the process of revising it. I write on Scribbler, which I started in June. I write long short stories that are all over the map. First World War, Second World War, Japanese invasion of Manchuria, Congo Independence, Mau Mau uprising. I enjoy writing long stories and hope I can find like-minded readers. I'm tickled pink to be here and hope you look into my page.
I can attest that they’re great historical stories!!!!
Hey Ben! I wrote my first novel thanks to NaNo and really think I may not have become a novelist were it not for them. Great events, wonderful group of folks who run it.
I like that it forced me to get a certain amount of words written a day.
Yeah, same. It definitely got me flowing! I often go beyond the 30 days now. In fact, my current work started in November as part of NaNoWriMo and is still going. I've written many books this way, and it's super helpful.
I know! I brought mine in at 81,000, and then added another 10,000 with my revision. But I knew I wanted to bring it in at that length before I even started it. 50,000 feels more like a novella.
Agreed. I've read some novels that short, but yeah. Most need to be 65-70 at a minimum to get the scope.
Your latest post seems to be speculative fiction. Is that right?
I'm calling it fantasy. Spoiler alert--there's a twist 3/4 of the way through. It's starts off as an adventure story, and then becomes a thriller...well, I can't give too much away...but I'm happy with it.
Congrats on winning Nano Ben. Was the challenge part of your Scribbler substack, or a separate thing?
NaNo is a challenge to yourself. It's a great feeling of accomplishment when you actually do it. There's no prize, except that feeling of accomplishment. I put it up on my Substack because I had three PAID subscribers (all friends of mine) and I was putting a story up that I was editing so they could see the process I followed (as if there's really a process.) Anyway, entering the NaNo and editing the story, and putting up a story every Sunday, I couldn't keep up. So I decided to cut out the PAID part, and put the NaNo story in its place, as I was writing it. I hit the 50,000 word goal, but knew it needed more. So I kept writing it and putting it up. Hopefully people read it and like it. I don't have a lot of followers yet, and hope to work on that this year.
Hey Ben, thanks for posting. Sorry I haven't been able to read your work yet, it's been so hectic. I'm warming up to historical fiction and am starting to appreciate it more with each passing day. I'm curious, do you have published works anywhere to purchase, or are you on the journey like I am to get one polished up and out there soon? Or is that not something you're interested in at the moment?
Not published yet. I have stories floating around in the ether somewhere. I never made money writing until I came here. It used to have a paid section, but I took it down. It was too soon to go paid. But I'm retired now, so I have to get up off my ass and make some shit happen. I had to write a synopsis for my story today. I'm thinking I'd better start looking for Alpha readers. It reminds me of a story someone I was on a writing page with told me, he just sent his story in on a whim, and they asked to see it. He sent it to them and now he's got nine books under his belt and it doesn't look like he'll be stopping soon. So I thought I'd start off the year looking for an agent and maybe getting a book sale. What else I got to do?
I'd offer to Alpha read but it'd take me a long time I'm afraid. I listen to most of my books during my commute these days. Alphas are scanning for plot holes and inconsistencies, right? I've only helped out with short stories before. But that initial reader feedback is invaluable.
Hope you find an agent! Keep us posted on your journey. Do you have any specific publishers you like or have in mind?
Nope. That's not in my job description. At this point in my life, I don't care who it is. He could be in front of the Human Rights Tribunal--well, maybe not that bad, but you know what I mean. I don't care. I mean, now-a-days, you got people screaming at you because you didn't have a sensitivity reader. Well...tough. I don't care. If you're going to say I was insensitive and hurt your feelings, I'm gonna say, "grow a pair." Trigger warnings? What the hell are those? Close the book. I don't care, just as long as you buy it first. There's something to be said about starting at the bottom and working your way up. I know I'm not going to be an overnight success. But if I can gather up a little following of paid subscribers--enough so that I can afford the wine we drink, or maybe a toke or two--that's all I need. And about 20 more good years of production, because after 85, well, sometime life kicks you in the nuts.
Heck yeah! Well, I’m excited to see where this all goes for both of us. I admire the traditional route and will be rooting for you. Let me know if you need anything and I’ll try to help out where I can.
I hope you like it, and hope you sign up.
Hello, fellow writers!
I tend to write magical realism set in sundry historical settings. On my Substack page I’ve also made available some sci-fi, horror, and a few works of poetry. Every now and then I write an essay. I’m still new to Substack but I really like this platform and the community. Here’s a link to the list of chapters for my novel that I’m about a third of the way through on. It’s called “The Witch in the Mountain Pass” and is set in northern Greece in the 1930s: https://danielwdavison.substack.com/p/the-witch-in-the-mountain-pass-list
Separately, I’m posting the prologue for a novel I wrote last year tomorrow. It’s called “Snakes and Ladders and the Destinies of Unborn Universes”. I’m really excited about this one. The entire process of writing it was completely spontaneous and unpremeditated. It’s a fusion of sci-fi and magical realism with elements of dark comedy to boot.
Hey Daniel, loving "The Witch in the Mountain Pass" and can't wait for others to experience "Snakes and Ladders and the Destinies of Unborn Universes" (I was lucky enough to beta read!). Thanks for sharing! Love your work.
I got a beta read of "Snakes and Ladders" as well.... It's such a wild ride!
It sure is. Can’t wait to see the new iteration.
I love The Witch in the Mountain Pass!!! Your poetry is really great as well, so I hope you continue posting those. I can't wait to see the artwork for Snakes and Ladders.... You always come up with amazing creations!
Hey Daniel! That sounds like a wild ride. Can't wait to check it out!
I just posted the Prologue to “Snakes and Ladders and the Destinies of Unborn Universes” here: https://danielwdavison.substack.com/p/snakes-and-ladders-and-the-destinies-59a
I just subscribed! Can’t wait to get to know you through your writing.
Thank you so much, Alexa!
That sounds very interesting.
Hello, I am Cody Langille. I'm a retired Air Force vet and I write horror as well as run Timber Ghost Press. I've been writing for over 25 years, run the local chapter of the Horror Writers Association, and like all things spooky.
Running an (I'm assuming) small press and a local chapter must be a lot of work, either way I'm impressed.
For sure, tons of work. It's fulfilling though. :)
Hey Cody! Glad to see you. Loving all of the new releases from Timber Ghost! 2023 is the year I start reviews and I'm planning on showcasing some of your books. Very excited to read them. They've been burning a whole in my shelf... in a haunted, spectral flame kind of way. Ha :)
Hello, everyone! I'm Lori, and I'm pretty new to writing. As a child I loved writing stories, but as I grew older I became more self-conscious about everything and stopped writing. Now that I'm 40 years old, I figure I might as well start sharing the story ideas that have been stuck in my brain. My substack, Beyond ForZora, contains a few short essays about me, but I've started posting chapters of my very first novella, In Ruins.
https://beyondforzora.substack.com/p/in-ruins-chapter-1
I would love any and all feedback on this! I've already got an idea for my next story, so I hope to begin working on that soon. "Beyond ForZora" is derived from my small business, https://ForZora.art, which was my little project during COVID lockdown. Feel free to check that out as well for some of my custom artwork! It's great to be here and to "meet" so many of you!
Hey, Lori! So nice to meet you. I thought I had subscribed already but apparently not. I’ve remedied that. I looked at your ForZora art and that is such a unique and wonderful idea. I love it so much. I’m super interested in reading more of your work, and can’t wait to get to know you better here on Substack. Thanks for stopping by!
Hi Lori, I was drawn in right away, and enjoyed the ups and downs of chapter one, such as the line "it morphed from a pessimistic depression to an optimistic one" which rather jumped out at me.
I have to take it slow, because my eyes don't do well on dark themes. Yours is a bit less dark than some (which I can't even approach), but I do wish that Substack would allow me override another stack's theme.
At any rate, very nicely done. And glad to meet you, too. All the best.
Thank you so much! I'm so happy you enjoyed the first chapter :)
I didn't even realize the dark/light theme wasn't an option. That seems like something they should definitely add into the interface.
Oh that's right! We're on opposite sides of the dark mode fence! I wish they would fix that instead of trying to be like Twitter ;)
Yes, I've mentioned it on Office Hours a couple of times. Some people can't handle dark theme; some not light. It would be an extremely beneficial feature to let the reader select. Would open up more stacks to everybody. Well, maybe it's in the works....
Hard agree. I'm not a coder, so I don't know for sure, but. Seems like an easy fix?
Also, your ForZora project is beautiful.
I agree!
Hey Lori! Forty-six here, forty-seven in a minute. Glad you're back into writing. How are you liking it so far?
Hello! So far I'm having a blast, but it's hard to find time with 2 young children I the house :) One thing I've noticed is worrying that I won't be able to properly tell the story I have in my head. I mean, I see it so clearly in my mind, and I just hope I can do it justice once it's on the page. Not sure if others feel that way as well. Also, finishing one story and starting the next is tricky because my brain is so used to the old characters that I'm still trying to get to know the new ones. But overall, it has been a wonderful creative outlet for me and I'm so glad I've allowed myself to open up again.
Hey y’all,
I'm T Van Santāna. I write really weird and rambling speculative fiction that veers into erotica, horror, and memoir sometimes. My main work is one giant meganovel called The Secret of Secrets, but it’s made up of something like 30 novels and some short stories and a screenplay and whatever else ends up in there. The first book is in print and you can buy it on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1925819671/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1
Or Barnes & Noble here: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/everything-fails-t-van-santana/1129015353?ean=9781925819670
You can also have it delivered to your local B&N, and your library should be able to get it for you.
What I’m working on now is the middle section, a kudzu plot, gonzo metafictional novel called Teresa’s Backbone, which I’m putting out through Substack. Here is the link to the latest readers' guide: https://tvansantana.substack.com/p/reading-the-backbone
Despite appearances and my in character literary voice, I am very friendly and talkative, so don’t hesitate to reach out and say hey!
Hey T, thank you so much for that detailed breakdown. I've been reading your posts sporadically but wasn't sure how they all fit together. This explanation helps out a ton. And that chapter guide will definitely help me in the future.
I bought your book "Everything Fails"! Looks awesome. Adding it to the queue. Oh, I had to look up kudzu and gonzo...that's very unique!
Hello Storytellers,
I’m Victor David, originally from the states, now an ex-pat living in central Mexico. I have several fruit trees, and three dogs adopted from the street, the most recent a happy puppy who just chewed up a couch. Oh, joy.
I like to write odd, thoughtful, edgy, at times metaphysical fiction that hopefully provokes reflection upon our shared human condition. They don’t fit any particular genre. Mainstream and I parted ways long ago, and we’re both okay with that.
I founded and ran an online poetry / fiction magazine for several years, which has many great pieces from a variety of authors, and is still up, although inactive.
I just found Storytellers a short while ago, and am glad I did. Happy to be here.
Hey, Victor! So glad that you stopped by to introduce yourself here. What breed of puppy do you have?!
I'm super interested in your fiction! I've subscribed to Dynamic Creed. Can't wait to start reading.
Thanks Winston! I hope you enjoy what's there / what's coming. The pup is a Belgian Shepard, at least mostly, and 6 months old. She's from the street and that always involves a bit of "more or less" when it comes to age and breed. Anyway, she's happy to have a home and we're happy to have her! She's a sweetie.
p.s. In my original comment, should be "story letter", not "story teller". Oops...
Awe. I'm glad she has a home! Dogs are amazing.
Hey Victor! I'm T. Do you have a link for the site?
Hi T Van,
It's Subprimal Poetry Art, https://subprimal.com
I didn't mention, but some nice art work, too. And authors reading their works with musical accompaniment. And a few videos, also. Mostly poetry, but prose poetry as well, which sort of moves closer to fiction at times.
Very nice! Thanks so much for sharing!
Hi All!
My main project is a historical trilogy set on the Eurasian steppe in the 5th c. BCE among horse nomads known as Scythians. My protagonist is what ancient Greeks would call an Amazon, but she's no myth or Wonder Woman. She's a nomad on a mission to collect a man's scalp. I've posted Book 1 (Of Wind and Wolves) here on my Substack, and I plan on serializing Book 2 (The Gifts of Heaven) in a few weeks. I'm hoping to revise them both for publication in print, and finish Book 3 (Peace Weaver). The rest of my newsletter is more or less for context. I'm also experimenting a little with different genres and styles... with mixed results!
Nice to meet you all! I look forward to checking out your projects whenever I can :-)
Of Wind and Wolves is at the top of my priorities, Jacquie. I'd like to write a showcase review of it this year. I need to start practicing my review writing. I've created a spreadsheet of all of the books I'm going to review this year. Should be a fun way to get more involved with the stories I read.
Thanks for stopping by! Also, I love the names of the other two books, too. They sound so epic.
Wow, Winston, that sounds amazing! I would be so flattered if you wrote a review of my book (and please be brutally honest :-) I should step up my reviewing game which is currently pretty nonexistent. And I'm glad you like the titles. They're so nerve-wracking to choose. Hope the books live up to them!
I always enjoy reading your stories. :-)
Thanks, John! Same here :-)
That sounds epic!!
Thanks, Alexa!
Hello all. I'm Leigh. I write mostly historical horror short stories, but occasionally I'll dabble in other genres. I've been writing for 14 years now, but have only felt like my stuff was polished enough to share publicly in the past year or two. I also have a novel going that I will probably finish someday. It's a ghost story set in the USSR in the early 50s. A friend of mine described it as a cross between The Turn of the Screw and 1984, and that's actually pretty accurate.
Hey, Leigh. I can relate to your comment about not feeling like your work was polished enough to share. I learn every day that there's more room for improvement and I've seen such a distinct level of growth occur in my own writing over the past few years. It's odd to be aware of the changes, but kind of neat. It can be crippling, though, during the periods where the writing doesn't seem to flow like it should. Sigh. Writing sprints have helped with that thankfully.
Your ghost story set in the USSR sounds really interesting! Can't wait to read that. I had to look up The Turn of the Screw but that in combination with elements of 1984...whoa! That'll be awesomely spooky.
That's certainly my hope! It's been quite the understand, but I think it should be worth it.
Hey peoples, I write gritty, soulful, literary fiction here: https://adrianconway.substack.com - flashes, shorts, and my novella The Pelican Crossing which will be out with Troubador in late spring. Based in St Albans, UK with my fam and an imaginary dog. Really appreciate this space and really hope Substack can revolutionise the fiction market! Good vibes.
Hey, Adrian! Congrats again on the publication coming out in Spring. Can't wait to pick that up. Wait, imaginary dog?! What breed though? Asking the real questions, hah!
Glad you stopped by. I'm positive Substack is at least revolutionizing my approach to fiction, hoping the market will come along as well. :)
Thanks, Winston. Appreciated. Irish Wolfhound. 😉 Yes, I’m on a one man mission (dubbed Project Folly) to prove that literary fiction is still monetizable in this day and age! Hoping Substack creates a properly differentiated silo for the fiction reading experience with genre micro-communities. Success with Storyletter.
Apparently that's one of the largest dog breeds. Dang.
Here's to monetizing fiction and imaginary dogs. Cheers!
Hey everyone!
I'm Austin, currently working on the Protopian, a substack newsletter mainly concerned with exploring the question "How can we best build better futures?". It's part political philosophy, part literary review, but mostly just me rambling. Currently drawing a lot of inspiration from Elle Griffin's Utopian Collective project and all the discussion being had over there.
For me fiction writing is also a way to explore themes that are hard to articulate in non-fiction writing, and I think any good philosophy has a close relationship with storytelling, which is part of the reason I'm here! Really cool what Winston has put together, and happy to see what everyone else is working on here.
Hey, Austin. Thanks for popping in to introduce yourself. I think what you're doing with Protopian is really great. I'm slowly making my way through the posts in my feed and will comment when I get a chance to share my thoughts. I, too, am getting exposed to a lot of new concepts and ideas through Elle's Substack group.
I totally agree that fiction is a perfect playground to explore complex themes. It's truly something special and important to understanding the human condition. Thanks for being a part of the community and willing to share your stories with us. Glad to have you.
I’m following along with Elle’s work as well and recently finished Utopia. I have a lot of thoughts on the idea of ideal societies and discussions on the topic have been fruitful for my work as well.
It’s so great to e-meet all of you! I just started my Substack officially TODAY as a birthday celebration 🥳🍾💃🏻 and am very excited to serialize my zany adventure comedy, Over the Top Secret.
I live in Las Vegas but was born in Florida and am the oldest of five loud siblings. I’m obsessed with and fascinated by storytelling in every medium (from advertising and video games to theme parks and movies!) and loooove to travel. I just got back from a trip to Japan and now I’m in San Francisco!
I’m like a mentos in a coke bottle with how genuinely enthusiastic I am about everything, so please excuse the exclamation points (I swear I’m not yelling at you, lol).
Favorite things in no particular order:
•Playing pickleball outside with the fam
•Secret doors
•Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
•Treasure hunts
•Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios, FL 🤩
•Mysteries and mythology
•History
•To-do lists and checking things off them
•Hummingbirds
•Learning about history, how things are made, and humans in general
•Entertaining others
•Discovering how to best take care of myself
•Substack
Good luck with your writing and nice to meet you all! 👋
Nice to e-meet you, Alexa! Can't wait to read Over the Top Secret.
Where in Florida did you live? I grew up in Clearwater, Largo, Palm Harbor, and St. Petersburg areas. I love the theme parks they have there. I used to go all the time. Went to LEGOLAND last year for the first time, which was a blast.
What a great list of favorites. Glad to have you in the community. Your enthusiasm is very welcomed here!
I grew up in Ormond Beach, right next to Daytona Beach. Been to St Petersburg and Clearwater a few times. Howdy, neighbor! I’ve never been to Legoland! Excited for the new Nintendoland and Universal’s Epic Universe, too. Theme parks are some of the most interesting means of storytelling, I think. So fun!
I've only been to Daytona Beach once when I was younger. I remember the water being way colder than the Gulf side haha. I'd like to venture around other parts of Florida more.
Wait, they are building a Nintendoland there?! And what is Epic Universe? Like Epic Games' Fortnite-type stuff? I really, really want to visit Avatar World next time I go back. They are very fun. Legoland is more for kids, but it was still neat seeing all of the giant Lego builds and walking through the gift shop. I bought a Carnage bust which was neat to build.
Haha that’s awesome! Also, it would be “epic” if there was a Fortnite theme park OMG can you imagine if it was like one giant paintball course with padded obstacles and zip lines?! *take my money*
Universal is building a new theme park roughly the size of both Universal and Islands of Adventure combined! Check out all the info here before I combust from trying to type it all out in this comment: https://orlandoinformer.com/universal/epic-universe/
Oh wow! Thanks for sharing. That is just too incredible sounding. I guess that's why it's aptly named "Epic Universe".
Now I'm trying to figure out the logistics of a life-sized version of Fortnite and how it can work. What if the battle bus was on a tram system and you jumped out into ball pits at different points along the track?! Okay, too much brain power went into that.
😱🤯🙌 YES! Who do we pitch this to?!
Nice to meet you. We share some common interests. I also enjoy learning about history and mythology. (I actually do Folklore Friday articles in my substack regularly that are devoted to specific urban legends and myths).
That’s too cool!
Who doesn’t love hummingbirds?
SECRET. DOORS.
If I ever build a house, I will have secret doors, pocket doors, doors with archways and rounded hobbit ones too.
YESSS! 🙌 If we were neighbor BFFS we could even built a secret tunnel to a secret library/game room! 🤓
I just rewatched Skyfall and in their was what’s called a priest’s hole which was a secret passage built to hide during times of persecution. Serendipity!
I was thinking mosaic tile for the passage walls.
1) Love that movie
2) That’s going to be EPIC 🤩
Hi, I'm Will Edwards. Grew up in New England, currently on the west coast of the U.S. I write fantasy and do hobbyist research into mythology, particularly on the Aztec god Tezcatlipoca. My current fiction project is styled like the script and walkthrough for a fighting game, it's being serialized on my substack (https://warthogreport.substack.com).
In addition to that I'm working on various other projects, including revision of a short story and planning for a Dracula sequel. And I'm doing the editing for the story of an indie fighting game.
Hey, Will, it's nice to meet you! Thanks for signing up. Wow! Glad to have you on board. Let me know if there is anything specific you'd like to see, or need help with in general. I'm always free to answer questions.
Your projects sound really cool. I've subscribed to The Warthog Report and I'm super excited about it because I haven't followed anyone yet on Substack writing about video games, or gaming culture in general. I'm sure there are, but I think the blend of fiction and essays will be great! I checked out the prologue to your series and it looks pretty epic.
It's so great to meet you, Will! Thanks for stopping by to introduce yourself.
Nice to be here. For feedback, I looked at the submission portal and while I could infer what your maximum word count is for stories to be posted on Storyletter based on the payment talk (1,000), I think it'd be good to state it outright and upfront. As someone who often goes over max word counts that's one of the first things I look for with a publication.
I'm still a fairly new subscriber so I need to see more of how things usually go here before making any requests
Thanks for the subscription. I've also found that there don't seem to be too many other gaming related substacks around, but I know of at least two, Game & Word (https://gameandword.substack.com/) and Arcade Press (https://www.thearcadepress.com/).
I'll update the submission portal this weekend. It's outdated. Thanks for that feedback.
Current max word count is 6,000 words at .01 cent per word, or a flat $10 payment for anything under 1,000. Sorry for the confusion.
I appreciate those recommendations! I'll check them out as well.
That is too cool! I’ve always been fascinated by the workflow of creating video games. How did you get into writing for that medium?
In college there was a gamejam I signed up for, an event where you have to make a game by a deadline. My team was able to put out a complete visual novel despite me being the only coder and having no experience, we used a simple easy to use engine. My current fiction project is only formatted like a video game.
For the indie game I'm helping edit, I've been playing it in early access for some time and then when the test for story mode came out I sent the developer some screenshots of typos with corrections. He then asked if I'd like to be the editor for the game as a whole since I had already helped.
I'd say the big difference writing for games is that the gameplay inherently serves as a structure you have to work with. Fighting games need to include fights for example, so the question becomes how to make the fights fit in naturally because not including them isn't an option.
So awesome 🤓
I'm a full-time writer and translator from France. I've been writing Science-Fiction and Fantasy for over 30 years. In French, at first, though I decided to switch to English in 2020. I started my Substack a year later and published my first novel in 2022.
I have many projects for this year. The big challenge is to write six novels (I said write, not publish, LOL), including the three sequels to my debut novel.
There will be more free short stories for my Substack, too, and I will keep writing my space opera serial as well.
Should be fun!
Hey there, Alex! So glad to hear from you. I didn't realize you'd switched to writing in English in 2020! That's really impressive. I may travel to France this year for work. *fingers crossed*
6 novels is an amazing goal. I hope you do it! That'll be wild. Do you have any published works for purchase? I've been adding Substack authors' books to my TBR list for this year.
Well, I'd written stuff in English before. The switch was really more about focus, as I still write in French as well, but just not in the same proportions ;)
And yes, my debut novel is out. It's available in both ebook and paperback formats. Here's the link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BDGGF1TF/
PS. Let me know if you come to the south of France, maybe we can meet up ;)
Ah, I see. That’s still really neat. I went ahead and picked up a paperback copy! It looks exciting. I haven’t read scifi a whole lot lately.
I’m not too sure where in France yet, but I’ll keep you posted. I’d love to get your signature!
Ha! That'd be funny. Well, I hope you enjoy the book ;)
Hello Alex and to write six novels this year is out of this world. I must say I'm in awe. All the best!
Thanks. I plan to document my progress on my Substack once a month ;)
Hi, I'm John. Nice to meet you all. :-)
A little about me:
I live in Utah where I work as a sports journalist for the Associated Press and Athlon Sports. I've worked in the media for two decades since graduating from the University of Utah. In addition to Utah, I've also lived in Louisiana and Texas. I love to spend time outdoors whenever I get the chance. I enjoy hiking, photography, stargazing, and a host of other outdoor activities.
I'm an indie author. I've published five novels and two short stories through my imprint Samak Press. My main genres are science fiction and horror, but I plan to write stories in other genres as well. I love storytelling. Few things give me greater happiness than sharing the worlds and characters I've created in my imagination with others. I'm in the early stages of expanding Samak Press into a full-fledged publishing company which will eventually produce the works of other indie authors as well. I'm always looking to evolve and grow as a storyteller and enjoy connecting with other authors and readers.
I write a substack called Strange New Worlds (https://newworlds.substack.com) that offers a mix of original short fiction, poetry, and articles. Looking forward to getting to know you all better.
Hey John, nice to get to know you a bit more. That's awesome that you work as a sports journalist here in Utah. Do you get to work remote or do they have you go into the office?
5 novels?! I didn't realize you had published that many. Great job. It'll be so much fun to see how Samak Press develops in the near future. Glad to be networking with you.
I enjoy networking with you too, Winston.
I don't have a traditional office per se. My office as a sports journalist is usually an arena or stadium or practice facility where I'm covering a game or interviewing athletes and coaches for a feature or preview. Some assignments I can do from a home office. It gets pretty time consuming from August through May. June and July are usually my quiet months away from sports.
I'm currently working on developing my next three novels. :-) I'm on Chapter two of the first one, I have a half-completed outline on the second, and I've compiled some character, plot, and setting notes for the third one.
That’s so interesting!! Thanks for sharing. What’s your favorite sport to report on?
I enjoy college football and college basketball the most. Those were the sports I was passionate about as a kid. I've always loved March Madness. I used to fill out my own hand-drawn brackets in a notebook on Selection Sunday when I was in elementary school.
College is fun to watch. My dad would take me to the Florida Gator games when I lived in FL. I haven’t been to any games here in Utah yet. Maybe I should remedy that soon.
Ironically, the Utah Utes open the 2023 season against the Florida Gators. They will host them at Rice-Eccles Stadium on either August 31st or September 2nd. So you have a chance to check out a game here while going to see a team you use to watch. :-)
Hi everyone! Great to see so many people here!
I'm a writer living in Oxford, UK, and I also run a flash fiction competition here. Most of what I have published has been flash fiction, and the past few years I have been trying to write novels - mysteries and whatnot. But it hasn't gone so well... I had a lot of false starts last year on novels, even a novella, and I think I'm still a bit too afraid to get writing again. I decided to have a go at self publishing but it went horribly. Reviews on Netgalley weren't what I had hoped and so I pulled it. I am having a hard time recovering from it, and whether I am cut out for this sort of gig. Sigh.
In summary - I love hiking, toads, curry and crafting! I can't stand peas, and apparently I shuffle more than walk.
Looking forward to 'hanging' out with some other writers here!
Hey, Freya! I've subscribed to The Fun Project. Glad to have you here. I'm very, very curious about your flash fiction competition. I'm relatively new to flash fiction but have come to really enjoy the thrill of it. Not too much of a commitment, but just enough words to open up a whole new world to the reader and have them wanting more.
I'm sorry you had that negative experience with self-publishing. It sounds rough. I'm really dreading the possibility of negative reviews and comments when I finally publish my first book. Glad to see you persevering and still willing to put yourself out there. It's not easy.
I look forward to getting familiar with your work and possibly entering into a flash fiction comp at some point. Thanks for stopping by! So nice to meet you.
Welcome aboard! The flash train is good fun. It's hugely satisfying. You will love it!
I struggled a lot with my novel. It just consumes you whole. You find yourself in s state where you know it has to come out, but there are days when you're just blank. Then, after you're finally done, it's the querying process – writing into a black hole. You do that for months without a feedback. That's how I ended up on Substack. Going forward I want to switch to writing short stories. Katya
Hi Katya, yeah, I’ve a novel sitting there but it’s roughly the weight of the ring in Mordor and I’m a combo of Frodo and Sam lying knackered on the side of Mt Doom. I’ve definitely rediscovered the joy in writing fiction from being on Substack. Hope you get into your groove here too.
Yeah, if you write literary fiction, Substack is the only outlet to publish. You look at agent's wish lists and it's all YA, romance, mystery. Literary is a dead end. You're on your own. Sigh.
Agree. It certainly feels like a very narrow literary world. And, yes, literary fiction writing feels like an utterly gratuitous undertaking. But, well, hopefully it’s some small consolation that we’re on our own together. We can’t go on, we’ll go on.
I write with that mindset. It needs to be written, whether it's read or not. It's our lot.
May the road rise to meet you.
Hi Freya, am I allowed to ask you to give peas a chance?
For what it’s worth, the book market feels a little like the tyranny of the novel. If you naturally prefer and enjoy the flash fiction form (I’m definitely more of a shortie) then I hope you’ll find traction on Substack and a boost for your self-confidence from the really cool fiction people here.
Thank you Adrian!
I have no idea what I naturally feel I enjoy anymore. I feel a bit lost at sea. I'm struggling to get anything down. So have gone back to poetry as my starting point. Hoping time will heal.
But I'm afraid my childhood trauma of peas cannot be healed... :D
Got a lot of people happening here. I hope I can keep up.
I didn't expect such a great turnout! Wow. So many new faces. Loving the supportive network everyone is helping to build here, too. Go team!
Hi 👋
I'm Matthew, but go by M. S. Arthadian! I live in Southern California and am the Loremaster and Creative Director for Arthadian Anthologies! It's been some time since I've joined one of these threads (mainly bcuz of how busy I am with all my projects) but it's fantastic to see all the new faces here in the Storyletter community!
Right now I'm working on developing a game module for my online TTRPG Reborn in Power and building my own community around it. I have a 150+ podcast series that dives into The CORE Realms, a new expanding universe I aim to turn into a shared universe for many other creators to take part in the expansion of.
If you enjoy audio fiction or even Tabletop RPGs, I think you'd get a kick out of what I'm developing. And I look forward to seeing what you all are making as well!
Glad to see you again, Matthew. Loving what you're developing with Reborn in Power. Thanks for sharing your intro!
Hello everyone! 👋🏾
It’s my first time here and I feel like I stumbled into a party and vaguely recognize some folks already here. I’m from NJ and have worked in healthcare for almost 15 years. I’ve always written in some form, but decided to start up a few years ago. My Substack is my call into the void in hopes someone will hear it. Happy to commune with the folks who have.
I’m usually publishing essays, short fiction, and poetry, but published a longer piece, “Ithaka”, which was released in the fall of 2022 with accompanying audio. I’m focusing now on the subject of world building and exploring all the ways in which a society is formed and maintained. I’ll be releasing an essay on it soon. I like writing about music or memory, family generations, and the dark side of my emotions. I’m proud of my body of work.
Hey, Chevanne! Nice to meet you. I've subscribed to The FLARE and look forward to familiarizing myself with your work.
Worldbuilding is such a fun topic. I can't wait to read your essay on it. Do you write in a particular genre? When I hear worldbuilding, I think Fantasy, but I suppose it could be anything speculative.
Thank you!
It’s sci fi/mystery with folks from Earth who emigrated to another planet. I do write horror, slice of life, even romance for my shorter fiction. One I’m really proud of is called “In Time” which has a Twilight Zone feel for me.
https://theflare.substack.com/p/challenge-accepted
OOOOoooo that sounds amazing. Thank you!
Hello everyone,
I participated on the last intro, so I'm just updating here. I write super-hero stories, Mega's in my universe, and random shorts whenever stories pop into my head. My substack is not full of content yet because I like to finish my stories first and release chapters later. My universe is not YA, but made for adults. There is nothing amorous, but there is violence, so you've been warned lol.
It is on my bucket list to write something Winston can champion. :O) I had the beginning of a short but then it just floated out of my head. So, lesson learned, write everything down.
My first book Fiasco of Adventures was just published in December and you can find it at these retailers on my linktree: https://linktr.ee/megacosm?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=5a71fbde-b722-4544-b12d-aec0e62dc0f6
To stretch my legs, I recently branched out into writing articles, my first on Bleeding Fool here: https://bleedingfool.com/culture/modern-cartoons-cant-be-trusted-heres-the-best-80s-toons-for-kids/
Nice to meet everyone!
Hello, Victor! Glad to see you again. You published a book in December?! Congratulations on that and the article publication. That's freaking awesome. Great work. I've added Fiasco of Adventures to my wish list and will purchase soon. Woohoo!
Hey, thanks Winston, hope you enjoy it. Also, congrats on the growth of your substack! This is amazing!
Thank you! I purchased your book today via Bookshop
Very much appreciated. Truly.