15 Comments

So is there a June prompt?

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Jun 13·edited Jun 13Liked by Meg Oolders

Yes, at 5pm CDT. today.

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Dealing with my mom’s death sentence because of cancer

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My thoughts are with you at this time.

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Jun 14·edited Jun 14Liked by Meg Oolders

Summer goal: getting BACK INTO writing fiction. I was gone for several years, but recently decided to get back to it. As a fan of X-Men--specifically Storm and Gambit--I think it's cool someone is writing fanfiction about it.

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I'm with you, Ororo! I've misplaced my fiction fire-starter and it's been far too long since I wrote a new story. Here's hoping we both find the inspiration we need this summer to make story magic. 🪄

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Indeed!

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Jun 20Liked by Meg Oolders

Summer goal: start a new fiction series. So today, at the solstice, I've launched 'Moon Hook' via my newsletter. Weird, weekly fiction about an Island off Ireland. https://splinister.substack.com/p/moon-hook-i-1

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Fantastic, Maura! Thank you for sharing and best of luck on your series this summer. 🔥🍀

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Thanks, Meg.

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Aug 11Liked by Meg Oolders

Hey fellow Fictionistas!

Just had time to catch up with the Summer Dreams replay today. June was a brutal last month of the year and July was a much needed month off for me.

I got back to work in August and I'm feeling recharged and healthier. Both my kids (1st and 2nd year junior high school) are still at home for their summer break. So I'm also spending more time with them. My fiction writing and community involvement has taken a back seat because of this.

I'm quite excited about a novel I've been working on for quite a while. I've finished a short draft that I didn't like at all last year, and I felt quite down about that. I'm finally quite excited about my latest outline and I have a structure for the book that I really like. I've not been writing much fiction besides working on my novel as I find it distracts me from finishing this project.

I feel Fictionistas is a community base that writers can dip into each month. I like the idea of regular guest posts and fiction challenges and tips to perhaps encourage new (and old) subscribers to interact more. I think we all enjoy writing and reading fiction, and that's what we are here for.

Much writerly love to all from a sweltering Taiwan summer.

Q

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Thanks so much for catching up with us, Quenntis. And congratulations on your novel reboot. Most of the Fictionistas crew has been on a summer hiatus, so we feel your situation, RE: time off to recharge and enjoy the kids before school kicks back in.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts on future content here. We are doing some summer housekeeping behind the scenes but hope to revive many of those dormant features of yore (and maybe a few new ones) as we head into the fall.

Enjoy the last few weeks of summer! 🥂

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Aug 13Liked by Meg Oolders

Thanks Meg.

I love hiatuses!

Thanks for replying. 'Novel Reboot' sounds so much better than 'Novel Rewrite'. Thanks for helping me change how I think about this iteration/evolution of the novel.

Best writerly regards!

Q

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Hi Meg - You might find this 'origin story' of a tool for fiction writers appropriate. Serializing my unpublished satirical sci-fi novel about persona hopping inspired me to create something real—a mobile app for authors to chat by voice with their characters to brainstorm stories. There’s short video at charactersoncall.substack.com to see what I came up with. I am looking for fiction writers on substack to give this a workout but don't want to be spammy, so advice on how to proceed is welcome.

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Hi Keith. Thanks for the introduction to your character chat app! Outside of continuing to write about the product on your Substack and sharing your posts on Notes or in a relevant comment section like this one, I'm not sure how else to advise you to get the word out. You might keep your eye out for writers who are experimenting with AI already as part of their fiction writing process to see if they might be willing to test the product. A direct message to a writer whose work you've taken the time to engage with can't hurt. At worst they'll say no thanks and at best they'll be interested! TBH, AI stuff makes me queasy, so I'm afraid I won't be taking part. 🙂But I can certainly see the value for those who enjoy working with tech and also struggle with character development, etc. Best of luck with the roll-out. 🥂

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