Spring brings creative gifts into the world (and we're ready to accept them)
Newsletter for March 2025
Hey, nester!
Did you wake up on the first day of spring feeling rather . . . springy?
The air is a little fresher, the sun a little warmer, the birdsong a little sweeter, the day a little bouncier. And because of all that -erness, the work is a little creativer.
Yep, creativer. 🌈
Taking liberties with one’s writing is the mark of a language innovator. Shakespeare himself unashamedly created roughly 1,700 new words to use in his plays, so I’m unabashedly accepting “creativer” into my vernacular. It’s totally not a dumpster fire of a word or anything.
Beyond the creation of new words apparently happening in my neck o’ the woods, when spring comes, it brings with it a heap of gifts: New colors, sounds, scents, textures, and flavors.
Spring also brings THAT ITCH.
The itch to get creativer
If your creativity is anything like mine, you, too, tend to pile on all the things because creation lives in your blood; it’s what you do, how you feel best about yourself and the world. Separate from editing and writing, creativity in my life looks like gardening.
The first day of spring brought with it such beautiful weather that part of me wished to race into the yard, wake all my tools from winter hibernation, and till to my heart’s content. But those of you who know me personally know I’m a fierce protector of native habitats and am actively re-wilding my slice of the suburbs. This summer, I’ve even plans to certify my family’s yard as a wildlife habitat.
Since the pollinators are still happily snoozing away in the leftover plant stems of last year’s garden and I don’t want to risk killing them, my tools shall snooze for another six weeks or so, waking only when the dandelions and wild violets start popping and I know there’ll be food available for the newly wakened and ravenous bees.
Instead of senselessly destroying the very habitats I work hard to create, I took my daughter to our neighborhood farm market for seed-starting soil. Now my fat cat’s sunny daytime napping spot has been temporarily commandeered. (And I get to obsessively check on those precious, precious seed babes approximately 47 times each day.)
While the seeds are busy germinating, sending out their sturdy little taproots and pushing up their first leaves, I’m reading, thinking, drumming, hunting for new bands to listen to (a saga for another day), and looking for new opportunities to write and edit and dig in my creative heels to spite the AI-gen bot-slop. It’s a delicate creative balance.
As I write this, I’ve a short story out on submission and another piece spinning around the ole noodler.
I’ve also been slowly and consistently working on my novel, little by little, every Tuesday morning in The Novel Nest, which reminds me . . .
The novel nest writer’s group has a new home (and a lower price)
When I created The Novel Nest writer’s accountability group, my goal was simple: Create a dedicated space for busy people to come together weekly in pursuit of their dream books. The group setup, however, was not simple, and change was necessary. Our group home has moved to Discord.
Here are some things you should know about the newly moved novel nest group:
The Novel Nest Tuesday morning group writing sessions will now be free. You do not need to pay for a membership just to show up and write in the group on Tuesday mornings from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. ET. Consider this your formal invitation to get on in here! Mics muted, cameras optional, writing required.
The NestPlus paid membership tier is now only $29.99 per month. The paid membership includes a private mini coaching session (about 15-20 minutes) with me each month and access to two private Discord forums so you can get help with your writing business or more focused help with your writing itself.
NestPlus members get discounts on all the private services I offer. And because every writer needs or wants something slightly different, offers include private coaching, manuscript evaluations, developmental and line editing, tarot readings for creativity, and more. If you know you want an editorial service and you're curious about the discounted price, just ask! I'm no stranger to budgeting and planning and I never want to cause you sticker-shock. Writers have enough to deal with on a day-to-day basis. ;)
Writing Craft Roundup
Use Reader Feedback (Without Losing Your Mind)
External feedback — from beta readers or editors — will help you see your blind spots so you can fill them and meet reader expectations while staving off overwhelm.
3 Tips for Tight Writing
Learn three ways to tighten your writing on a technical level by reducing fat, remaining consistent, and using parallel constructions for reader ease.
Telling the Two-Sided Story
Playing with dual POVs or timelines? Here are questions to ask to make sure a two-sided storytelling approach is right for the story you’re writing now.
POV Deep Dive: The First Person
The first person is the only POV with a true narrator, but your reader will need to know who the narrator is early in the story, so they understand your protagonist.
P.S. This is the first article of a POV deep-dive series. The other four perspectives (second person, third person, omniscient person, and objective person) will be in next month’s newsletter. Cannot wait until next month? Grab my POV booklet from my Gumroad shop by naming your fair price.
Articles from the Substackiverse
From Brooke Warner, publisher:
Why it matters: Amazon is not a good ally for authors wishing to develop their careers and actually make livings. Amazon, like any other giganto-corporate player, cares only about itself, its pockets, not yours.
From Jessica Payne, author:
Why it matters: Sitting down and dumping out thousands of words per writing session feels productive until you sit down with your printed pages and realize they’re shit, that you’ll need to start over. If you’re not a rewriter, the fast-drafting method is probably more hassle than anything else.
From Entirely Bonkers, reader:
Why it matters: While the article focuses on erotica, which I don’t work with, the lessons therein are valid: Cover art matters, proper placement of books in genres and on shelves matters, and sex can be sold to children as easily as candy when packaged in shiny colors and dressed up in cartoon characters, which we’re obviously trying to avoid.
Platform-building for writers burning out on social media
I recently shared on Books & Bullshit, my other Substack, that I’m leaving behind conventional social media marketing.
Lots of folks—agents, editors, publishers, and marketers alike—will tell authors that paltform-building is a must, and many folks believe social media is a requirement. While it can be helpful, social media is not actually required to sell books; tenacity is.
Platform-building is the practice of connecting and creating relationships with the folks who will be best positioned to read your work and/or help you spread the word about your work. It takes a number of impressions before strangers will begin to not only recognize and trust you but take the chance on buying and reading your work.
When your book finally becomes available, you’ll want at least a few people to be there listening your announcement. But to get folks to listen, you must invite them into your creative space, preferably well before your book is ready. A one-and-done, “I wrote a book, buy it here!” message won’t cut it and will likely come off as the desperation effort it truly is.
Sure, marketing isn’t easy and requires a new skill set, but you’re writing a book! You’re mastering loads of skill sets because your characters are doing stuff you’ve not done before. You can handle a little marketing, a little platform-building. And your platform begins with you.
If you’re burning out on social media, don’t rely on platforms you don’t like to share your good book news. Instead, look at other places in your life where your people may be: Your contacts, any previous work you’ve published, any previous or current media you have or use, your readers or ideal readers, and more.
Talk to them. Let them know you’re writing. Tell them what your book is about. And if you want more inspiration or direction in building your platform outside of social media, this piece from The Write Life hits the big stuff.
Don’t forget to reply to this email or leave a comment to let me know what you liked, what you skimmed or skipped entirely, and how I can best serve you through this monthly newsletter. We all get better when we help each other succeed.
So glad to see this in my inbox this week. Lots of great news and articles to catch up on! Currently arranging schedule for weekly write-ins. :)