Recently I returned to a novel manuscript that I hadn’t touched since 2023. Initially, all I wrote was fiction. I never imagined a self-help book would be what got me over the publication finish line. And now I haven’t written fiction in three years.

The other week I tweeted about my experience working with my agent to sell my second novel—and how our efforts had not succeeded. Which somehow got me invited onto the Joined Up Writing Podcast! My episode is out today.

There’s a lot to worry about these days (understatement of the year). But one good thing about the whole world being stuck inside is that so many literary events and classes have moved online, making them more accessible. I’ve been fortunate enough to take several craft workshops with some of my favorite authors over the past few months, and I figured I’d share my favorite takeaway from each class with you.

I’ve been nominated for Best Small Fictions by Longleaf Review! I also attended Courtney Maum’s “Getting Ready for a Book Deal” master class, which provided lots of insights about preparing manuscripts and drafting letters to agents. Here are some statistics and resources from my own querying experience.