Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 12hOh my gosh this is brilliant and I've never wanted anything more 010
Reposted by MegMarty Cahill @mcflycahill90.bsky.social · 05/10/2026You know, every single instance of someone telling me NOT to read something has only ever made me want to read it even more. Read far. Read wide. Read everything you can get your hands on. Do not obey in advance, especially when it comes to your own education of the world and the folks in it.static.klipy.comHarley Quinn's Sassy Tea TimeAlt: Harley Quinn's drinking tea while reading 2163
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 01/10/2026Is the name of the artist for this image known? It's a style I'd like to see more of. 👀 100
Reposted by MegAnna Holmes @annabookwriter.bsky.social · 01/10/2026Some things I wish I had known when I was a new writer: Being accepted by traditional publishers has less to do with skill than whether they think they can sell it. Just because publishers aren’t ready for a story doesn’t mean readers aren’t. Writing the book is the easy part. 🧵 1132664
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 01/10/2026Lens used to be really useful but unfortunately has been integrated with ai now also 😩 Newer ai images have something called a "synth id" that I think Google can check for (I haven't used it yet, but so far it's the most reliable way to check suspicious pics) 110
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 01/10/2026Yeah the rocks texture and the whiskers are the biggest giveaway to me 😔 110
Reposted by MegAlyssa Matesic @alyssamatesic.bsky.social · 30/09/2026In good dialogue, subtext is everything. The best dialogue scenes aren't about what's actually being said. They're about what's running BENEATH the conversation. The things we know the characters are feeling, but can't bear to say aloud. Here's what subtext looks like on the page: 1124
Reposted by MegJessica Ellis @baddestmamajama.bsky.social · 30/09/2026It feels genuinely ridiculous having to say this, but the point of art is to connect with another human. Someone thought of that painting or melodic line or scene or paragraph that is suddenly making you weep, and that means that they saw you and understood you without even meeting you. 91142271
Reposted by MegDavid Dalglish @ddalglish.com · 23/09/2026Two years ago I wrote a stupidly long reddit post about writing a climactic battle scene for your novels, and I still get notifications every now and then from someone stumbling onto it and finding it useful. Figure I'll reshare again! www.reddit.com/r/writing/s/...reddit.comFrom the writing community on RedditExplore this post and more from the writing community 081
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 22/09/2026I'm convinced planning (and revising for that matter) is just an endless cycle of shuffling the problems around in the plot until they're in the most acceptable places. 010
Reposted by MegAlyssa Matesic @alyssamatesic.bsky.social · 21/09/2026Bad dialogue is one of the most obvious signs of amateur writing. And it's one of the things that will make a reader set down your story prematurely. Here are the 5 most common dialogue mistakes I see in manuscripts and how to fix them. 2388
Reposted by MegAlyssa Matesic @alyssamatesic.bsky.social · 09/09/2026Your first page is arguably the most important in your entire novel. It's where your reader — or a literary agent — decides: do I want to keep reading this? After spending years evaluating queries and editing hundreds of books, I've noticed that the best first pages contain these 4 elements. 0124
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 19/09/2026Really grateful to Marty for this post bc it's turned my entire timeline into non mainstream book recommendations :D 142
Reposted by MegCoach Finstock @coachfinstock.bsky.social · 18/09/2026AI critics: This is a theft machine for lazy turds with no imagination AI Stans: This is the greatest, most powerful tech in history. It is not a theft machine. There are no original thoughts anymore People Who Created AI: This is a theft machine for lazy turds with no imagination 3526170
Reposted by MegJeni Chappelle @jenichappelle.bsky.social · 18/09/2026⬆️Look for the FREE resources in my bio!⬆️ My favorite revision tools involve making a plan (yes, PANTSERS, this will work for you, too!) My Writing Reverse Outlines Like a Pro workshop is on sale for $27! Grab it while you can! Link in bio. #writingcommunity 022
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 18/09/2026I am learning the most curious etymology. Did you know cab as in taxi cab came from cabriolet, the 2 wheeled horse carriages, which is French derived from the Italian "capriolo" which is a young goat. Because they bounce like baby goats. WE STILL USE THIS WORD. 000
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 18/09/2026One really fun thing about writing in a completely fictional setting that is based heavily on a real life historical period is that sometimes the easiest word you want to use to describe something wouldn't exist in said fictional setting, so you have to reinvent the hansom cab. #writing 110
Reposted by MegAlejandra Caraballo @esqueer.net · 12/09/2026Once again this isn't like gay marriage. We're not asking for something new. We're asking not to lose rights we've had for decades. When Dems say they agree with enacting new restrictions on trans people, that's a betrayal. They are actively going out of their way to harm trans people. 92568333
Reposted by MegOliver K. Langmead @oliverklangmead.bsky.social · 10/09/2026Pre-orders are a huge deal and, very selfishly, I'm hoping that The Killing of a Chestnut Tree will sell enough copies that I can continue writing Havelock Harper mysteries! I love the characters. Right now, there's a pre-order sale on at Barnes & Noble, with a whole 25% off, if it'd tempt you! 165
Reposted by MegAllison Alexander @aealexander.bsky.social · 09/09/2026A query letter issue I've repeatedly seen lately is the plot summary reading like this: "X happened. Then Y happened. Then Z happened." Instead, it should read: "BECAUSE X happened, Y happened. BECAUSE Y happened, Z happened." Show how the events in your novel are connected. #Querying #WritingTip 1207
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 02/09/2026I chanced across this book just a few weeks ago and absolutely loved it, might have to snag this 👀 110
Reposted by MegJohn Scalzi @scalzi.com · 26/08/2026Just to remember it's not personal and that every writer gets rejected. Queries and submissions are shots on goal. Lots don't make it into the net, but every once in a while, one will. Keep lining up shots. 927210
Reposted by MegAlyssa Matesic @alyssamatesic.bsky.social · 25/08/2026It’s officially Day 2 of QUERY PREP WEEK, so let’s get to work on what’s arguably the most important part of your query letter: The description. 121
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 22/08/2026I overwrite SO bad but only because I prefer trimming in revisions over padding. Do you find it easier to add stuff while revising? 👀 111
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 21/08/2026Wow wow wow wow just. Wow. I'm so glad I stumbled across this book. When I realized what the first big twist was gonna be only a quarter of the way in there was no doubt that this story was going to be incredible and insane and it was and I loved it so unbelievably much #reading 010
Reposted by MegThomas S Brown @tomsbrown.bsky.social · 20/08/2026Tasseltails are up on the Tattercat store! Book ponies, not just for pony books! thomas-brown-1.sumupstore.com/product/tass... thomas-brown-1.sumupstore.com/product/tass... Discworld Attendees were the first to see these and the pony people (of every age) were not difficult to spot. 1276
Reposted by Meg404 Media @404media.co · 17/08/2026SCOOP: 404 Media placed a tracking device in a shipment of rare books to see which AI company was buying it. What did we find? It ended up at an Amazon facility where Amazon scans and destroys books. Yes. This is literally the logo outside the Amazon warehouse door. Read now:404media.coWe Tracked a Shipment of Rare Books. It Ended at an Amazon AI Training FacilityWe placed a tracking device in a shipment of rare books to see which AI company was buying it, and found an Amazon facility where Amazon scans and destroys books. 15162283922
Reposted by MegJeni Chappelle @jenichappelle.bsky.social · 13/08/2026Some perfectionist misconceptions: Queries must be perfect to send to an agent. FALSE. Polished? Yes. Comps should be exactly like your book. NOPE! Show where your book fits. An agent gave a form response on your last book, so they’re not going to want this one. INCORRECT. #writing 1113
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 12/08/2026Rain for the next 3 days ouo Wait for me, Outside. I'm coming. 010
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 12/08/2026Ellipsus is a great online alternative for writers, it's free and anti-ai. 100
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 11/08/2026I like to go for long evening walks to work out particularly hairy problems in my WIP. Unfortunately it is currently One Billion Degrees With Smoke outside and Does Not Cool Down At Night; I just can't bring myself to suffer these conditions. #writing 030
Reposted by MegVicky Weber - Agent, Author, Educator 📚 @vickyweberbooks.bsky.social · 09/08/2026One of the most discouraging assumptions I see writers make is that querying a book and then moving on means that book is dead forever. That walking away from it now means you’re giving up on it completely. No. Just…no. Seriously, tell your self-doubt that Vicky says to kick rocks. 3316
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 04/08/2026No cheating, post your lock screen! Commission of one of the protags from my casual unpublished trilogy, from azadael on tumblr! 010
Reposted by MegJoanne Harris @joannechocolat.bsky.social · 30/07/2026Unsolicited writing advice, no. 763: Having a tough time? Good. Got a rejection? Good. Got a bad review? Good. Had to abandon a project because it wasn't working? Good. These things all teach you resilience, patience and determination; the things you need most as a writer. 1147356
Reposted by MegMatt Ortega @mattortega.com · 28/07/2026Stephen Miller said just the other day that all asylum claims are "fake." A couple deported from the U.S. to Guatemala were gagged, bound, and shot dead. Their 14-month old found crying next to their mother's body. People like Miller don't care though because this is the point: ethnic cleansing.stlpr.orgOverland couple shot dead in Guatemala after local ICE stop led to deportationsThe couple’s 14-month-old daughter was found crying beside her mother’s body in a sugarcane field last week, according to Guatemalan authorities and media. 13239141969
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 27/07/2026YEAH a few months ago my brain was so shot by revisions that it melded my WIP with my Bluesky feed and spat out a dream of one of my characters meeting a very confused Ira. 110
Meg @megsteadman.bsky.social · 27/07/2026Delightful read from @elizmanderson.com , thoroughly enjoyed it all the way, very glad my weird dream recommended it 😌 Also laughed so much to find one "yeeted" still in there. 120
Reposted by MegAlyssa Matesic @alyssamatesic.bsky.social · 24/07/2026I spent years at a top literary agency reviewing query letters — hundreds of them every single week. And the ones that made me stop in my tracks all had one thing in common: 272
Reposted by MegMadelyn Knecht ✨🌈 @madelynknecht.bsky.social · 23/07/2026A quick dirty guide to COMP TITLES: DO I NEED COMP TITLES? Yes WHY? 1) Positioning in the market 2) Shows awareness of the market 3) Gives you the chance to point out why your book is different #writersky #amquerying 1/4🧵 2192
