Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 10/11/2025When you read a book and it's the perfect comp to your WIP 🤩🤩 #amwriting 020
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 16/10/2025I have three scenes left to write in this first draft of my new WIP. Think I can finish it by the end of the week? 🤞 #amwriting 260
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 10/10/2025I told myself I couldn't hyperfocus on the draft of this MS. One scene per day for an estimated 9 weeks should do it. But I'm currently on track to finish before then. Within 8 weeks. It might be a skinny first draft for this chronic over-writer, but I'm pretty proud of myself for getting it done. 120
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 10/10/2025I just entered #RevPit #10Queries. Enter now for a chance to win free feedback on your query and 1st 5 pages. Wish me luck! 🤞 #amquerying #writesky 180
Reposted by Cat BurgessRevise & Resub @reviseresub.bsky.social · 08/10/2025💃THREE more days! 💃 Submissions open in three(!) days for your opportunity for FREE feedback from our lovely editors on your query letter + first pages. Question of the day: have you queried this manuscript before? What's your journey been like? #amquerying #amwriting #writersky #writersofbsky 1114
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 08/10/2025The thing about #amquerying is you get excited to hear back from someone, even if it's a rejection. And then you have to pause and remind yourself, oh yeah, I'm supposed to be sad about that. 🤦♀️ I'm thankful, though, for the agents who give quick, kind rejections. My spreadsheet thanks you, too. 🫶 030
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 07/10/2025I gave into that impulse to kiss her without asking, without warning, and I scared her. God, I can’t stand the thought of her being uncomfortable around me. I have to put us back on safe footing, even as my heart pounds against my ribs that it’s an enormous step backward. #WIPSnips #amquerying 0231
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 29/09/2025“I thought the hotel changed some things between us.” His brows are drawn down. “Nope,” I say way too quickly, and take a step back. I do not want to hear what he has to say about that night. I can’t bear to think about the way he’d held me like he was afraid I would disappear any second. #WIPSnips 0151
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 25/09/2025Guilt twists in my belly when I think about the last couple weeks. His tenderness when I burned my hand, and the way I’d melted into his touch, absorbing the glow of his attention like it was a ray of sunshine after weeks of rain. #WIPSnips #amquerying 2261
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 24/09/2025His fingers slip under my shirt leaving a trail of fire everywhere & I arch into his touch, letting him tilt my head as he leaves a hot line of kisses over my collarbone. He skims down my back & around my ribcage, thumbs gently stroking the underside of my breasts & I whimper into his lips #WIPSnips 1191
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 19/09/2025The vineyard uses fake plants for decor. That’s ironic. My eyes snag on a pothos on the end of a floating shelf. Maybe that one’s real. A patron brushes it on their way to the bathrooms and I watch the vine wave too stiffly. #WIPSnips #amquerying 0222
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 18/09/2025I had been this close to losing her. I’d been beating myself up for it, imagining her on a Hawaiian beach with the wrong man when I’d come into the greenhouse and frozen at the sight of her red puffy eyes, and felt my heart start to beat again. #WIPSnips #amquerying 1211
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 17/09/2025Today's weather reminded me of living in Dublin, walking beneath woolly clouds as a cool breeze carried my hair. And getting that whiff of cigarette smoke as I passed one house just really put the finishing touch on the scene. Real authentic experience. 👌 000
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 17/09/2025I change in the bathroom & run my hands under the water. A twenty minute car ride with Mackenzie shouldn’t make my hands shake. I spend forty hours alone in a greenhouse w/ her every week, for crying out loud, why is this different? You know why, a small voice in my head says. #WIPSnips #amquerying 0191
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 16/09/2025But because Collin’s watching me and our competition is clearly still on, I lift my chin. “I wouldn’t be so sure.” Okay, I’ve had better lines, but kissing this man has put me out of practice. His smirk deepens like he knows just looking at him scrambles my brain now. #WIPSnips #amquerying 0251
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 12/09/2025“One of us has to leave,” I say instead. “Leave where? You’re at my house, if you’ll remember.” “I mean Potting Around.” The only sound from the bathroom is the faucet’s slow drip. “Why?” he finally asks. “Because we’re the worst functioning team there ever was." #WIPSnips #amquerying #booksky 1182
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 11/09/2025“He looks happy with her.” Collin takes a half step closer, hands wrapping around both my arms. I go still, suddenly unable to meet his eyes. “He would’ve been happy with you if he knew what was good for him,” he says so firmly that my vision blurs. “Do you hear me, Mackenzie?” #WIPSnips #amquerying 1181
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 10/09/2025It feels like I'm doing a lot of waiting around these days. Waiting to hear back from agents. Waiting to hear back about competitions, about that short story that was going to be pubbed ages ago. And all of it is out of my control. Best I can do is find something else to do. #amquerying #amwaiting 250
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 10/09/2025The sounds from the deck are a low hum outside, and this is the first time I’ve been alone with her all evening. “Mind if I join?” I ask with an up-nod. She offers me a small smile. “Sure.” I sink into the sofa and inhale more of that heavenly floral scent I’ve been missing. #WIPSnips #amquerying 1192
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 09/09/2025Very disappointed to report that, despite exhaustive planning and plotting, this first draft is still destined to be a shitty first draft. Someone remind me it's SUPPOSED to be terrible the first time, and that I should have expected this all along. 🤌 #amwriting #writesky 120
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 09/09/2025Her hair is loose, falling over her shoulder in a cascade of blond curls, and her cheeks are rosy. Those blue eyes are hooded with drowsiness, and there’s a sudden pressure on my chest as I realize this is what Mackenzie looks like when she wakes up. #WIPSnips #amquerying 0162
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 08/09/2025“I can put on a bandaid, you know. I don’t need you to —” “Just … let me,” Collin says in a pained kind of voice I’ve never heard before. Surprise dries up my retort. I don’t recognize this version of Collin who’s developed a psychic ability to tell when I’m upset or hurting. #WIPSnips #amquerying 0181
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 05/09/2025Nothing like drafting a new WIP to take your mind off your #amquerying MS! Even if it's only until you finish a scene and then check your inbox ✨just in case.✨ One week in, and I'm at 17K words and getting excited for this new story 🥰 4100
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 05/09/2025Collin’s hand closest to me twists in the sheets and he clears his throat. “And after an event like solstice I’d settle you into my couch with blankets and a show, get takeout, and keep my arm wrapped around you when you fell asleep even if it went numb.” #WIPSnips #amquerying 0202
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 04/09/2025I #amquerying these days, so I'm really enjoying how the #WIPSnips make me pull out little bits of my MS & remind me how much I love this story. How even when I get a rejection, I still have something beautiful here, & it makes me proud. It's motivating me to keep trying. #booksky #writingcommunity 2260
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 04/09/2025“What’d I miss?” he asks. Collin and I glance at each other, last night heavy between us. “Not much,” Collin says, affecting a casual air as he sips his second coffee of the day. I can’t stop looking at him. He catches my eye and a soft smile hooks the corner of his mouth. #WIPSnips #amquerying 1221
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 03/09/2025“He thinks I cheated on him. With you.” Collin blinks. His hands rake through his hair, then tug at the ends as he growls, “That piece of shit.” “I tried telling him it wasn’t true. I mean how insane would that be? You and me?” He pauses and releases a long breath. “Yeah." #WIPSnips #amquerying 0181
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 02/09/2025“Mackenzie,” Collin says softly, & my breath hitches. “What’s going on? Is everything okay?” He looks like my answer actually matters. The ache in my chest swells, overpowering my self preservation. No, it’s not okay. I’m so tired of our rivalry. I wish we could’ve been friends. #WIPSnips #BookSky 0151
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 29/08/2025“I’m not going to lose.” “But what if you do.” “You’re so negative.” I scrub the rag over the handle of a trowel. Urushiol oil is the worst. This is the last time I poison ivy anyone. But she has a point, I need a backup plan. #WIPSnips #WriteSky 0181
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 28/08/2025That morning was a fever dream. His warm hands, the black shirt against his green eyes, his perfectly tousled brown hair, that broad smile & the sandpaper kiss on my cheek. Fake or not, it was more romantic than any date Aaron & I had, & I’d relished being precious to someone. #WIPSnips #WriteSky 0151
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 27/08/2025She comes to stand in front of me, and in the tight space, she’s close again. I force long breaths through my nose and remind myself we’re not “faking it” anymore for Nicki. It’s just the two of us, and now the only faking I have to do is act like I don’t want to reach for her. #WIPSnips #WriteSky 1182
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 26/08/2025Still refreshing my inbox like a querying newb hoping, just hoping to hear back. #amquerying 050
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 25/08/2025I had this one house project. I didn't think I could do it, it felt way out of my skillset and out of my usual Type B "good enough" personality. But ... I did it. And I'm so stinking proud. 030
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 13/08/2025I'm big on plotting, but sparks fly whether I'm in the plotting or drafting phase. I planned a whole scene out but then in the drafting an idea came to me, so I added it, and it became a significant piece in the story, slotting other pre-planned elements together rather nicely :) #writersofbsky 141
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 13/08/2025Is it just me, or did something happen to QueryTracker? I can't tell if it's glitching or if a significant percentage of the agents I've queried have deleted their accounts, and I'm a little worried. #amquerying #amwriting #booksky #writingcommunity 130
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 31/07/2025I sent out 5 more queries with my revisions & I'm already questioning everything. Is the query bland? Too vague? I swear it's an interesting story, I just don't feel confident in my ability to talk succinctly about it. The subjectivity of the industry makes it hard to tell. #amquerying #writersky 070
Reposted by Cat BurgessMister Hand @misterhand1.bsky.social · 29/07/2025The post that no one has asked for: one like, one opinion from a query trench lifer #amquerying #writingcommunity 1111
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 18/07/2025After a little hiatus to revisit my query package, I #amquerying again! And of course, I'm fueled by newly-querying-author optimism that THIS time I've got it right and it'll catch an agent's eye! Here's hoping 🤞 #WritingCommunity #writersky 040
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 11/07/2025I'm very disappointed to report that my manuscript did not fix itself in the night and I still have to do revisions on it. Very rude if you ask me. #amwriting #writersky #writingcommunity 030
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 08/07/2025I love stovetop popcorn. I'm a bit of a snob about it. Tonight, I'm trying purple popcorn using truffle oil and I am a little afraid, because what if I like it and I become even snobbier about my popcorn? 000
Reposted by Cat BurgessLJ Pemberton @ljabouttown.bsky.social · 26/06/2025Things about mainstream publishing I wish more people knew: 1) The NY Times Bestseller List is a marketing list, not an accurate list of the best-selling books for that period. 🧵 6493143
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 26/06/2025Query re-writes are hard, but I'm thankful for @joelbrigham.bsky.social's keen eye on my query package to identify why it's not working in the trenches! If you're only getting form rejections, consider booking a critique with him. He'll find the problems & give you tools to fix them. #amquerying 142
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 01/05/2025Oh definitely Mackenzie. We'd swap plants and eat takeout on the couch and eat all the sourdough bread that Collin would make for us and it would be perfect. #CampRevPit #CRPDamselflies 060
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 29/04/2025Mackenzie would swear off relationships for years then settle for a fellow horticulturist who was safe and stable, even if he didn't thrill her. Collin would promptly enter therapy to work through his falling-too-fast tendencies eventually settle for a town councilwoman #camprevpit #CRPDamselflies 280
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 28/04/2025*sighs in obsessive planning mode. #camprevpit #crpdamselfliesmedia.tenor.coma man is standing in front of a bulletin board with a picture of a spider and the words pepe silvia on itALT: a man is standing in front of a bulletin board with a picture of a spider and the words pepe silvia on it 0130
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 24/04/2025Oh man I'm trash for tropes! Love: enemies/rivals-to-lovers, friends-to-lovers, Divine Rivals-esque letter writing, forced proximity, fake dating, forbidden romance. Not my vibe: some opposites attract & fish out of water. In my WIP? rivals-to-lovers/forced proximity/fake dating. #CRPDamselflies 1121
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 24/04/2025Hi #CRPDamselflies! I just found my way to the cabin today and I feel covered in twigs and leaves for how disastrously late I am, but I'm Cat, and I'm so excited to be here and talk romance and get to know everyone! 🌻 2150
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 23/04/2025So um 👉👈 I didn't do #RevPit this year because I was still editing, but is #CampRevPit just for people who participated this year? 240
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 21/04/2025I sent off my first five queries today and am officially #amquerying!! I'm so excited to be sending my manuscript, ROOTING FOR YOU, out into the agenting world! Wish me luck guys! 🤞 3120
Cat Burgess @catburgess.bsky.social · 17/04/2025Finally got my romance MS formatted the way I want it. Goodness gracious I love Scrivener, but there's still so much to learn, even after 5 years. #amwriting #WritingCommunity 050
