New Newsletter, Same… Everything Else.
I moved to Substack but that's it.
Welcome to the New Newsletter. New NEW Newsletter?
Dear Readers,
Thanks for following me over here. This may be the third platform you’ve made it to. I am sad I can’t make this newsletter as cute as the MailerLite one, but the archive offerings on that one weren’t great, and with some other changes they were making, it felt like time to embrace Substack. So here we are!
It won’t be as cute here, because Substack doesn’t allow all the adorable layout options and such I was able to use back at MailerLite, but I decided — in a rare move for me — that I couldn’t let cuteness alone be the deciding factor in where to publish a newsletter. I’m as surprised as you are!
This business of writing a newsletter is something I actually really love, starting back when I wrote one called The Check-In about writing and craft and productivity. At the time, my anxiety overtook me and I talked myself out of continuing that newsletter, even though I loved writing it and hearing from y’all. It’s one reason I focus so much on talking about writing and such now. One thing I especially loved about The Check-In was that I often included tips from other authors, and so I’ve decided I’m bringing that back. Starting now! It’ll be similar in that I have some pretty standard questions I’ll ask; I am so excited to share the wisdom of others with y’all. I also hope that even if you are NOT a writer that this advice is helpful for you; I think in all creative pursuits that so much of the advice — from general to incredibly granular — is applicable. Also sometimes life is a creative pursuit, so, there’s that.
Finally, on the topic of moving to Substack, I wanted to note that I did not remove the paid option when I set this up. In 2023, it is exceedingly harder for many writers to make a living from writing alone. Me, I’ve had a dayjob since always AND I also teach workshops and freelance edit! I actually like all my jobs, but in full transparency I know that sometimes readers of my books and/or the newsletter have asked for ways to support authors, so I am including the paid Substack option! My plan is to include fun stuff that doesn’t totally fit into this newsletter there, but I want no one to feel ANY pressure to sign up; my book news and writing advice will always be in this free newsletter, and even if I include book stuff or writing advice on the paid-only posts, those will be EXTRA and you will not find A LACK here! OK! I said my peace! My piece? Where is a copy editor when you need one? AND I want to say that IF YOU HAVE IDEAS for paid post content HOLLER AT ME, like, if you were all AMY I WOULD SUBSCRIBE IF YOU STARTED WRITING ABOUT— well let me know!
If you’re a subscriber to this newsletter, you probably already know that I have a new book coming out early next year. But Amy, you wonder, didn’t you JUST have a new book out this year? Actually, I had two new books this year! And I’m still having a blast talking about For Her Consideration and No Boy Summer! But I am also getting so excited to share At Her Service with the world; I hope y’all love Max and Sadie and Johnny’s as much as I do. I’ll start sharing some fun stuff soon, and, yes, that will include the pre-order campaign I am already bonkers excited about. Do not fear: if you’ve already pre-ordered OR WANT TO, LIKE, RIGHT NOW, I will honor any early pre-orders no matter where they’re from because I like rewarding early birds and kids who sit in the front of the classroom and other types of overachievers.
I still give summer a thumbs-down but am writing this on a day it’s weirdly cool out, so, no heat-specific complaints from me today.
xoxoAmy
Consumption
Experiencing
Is it dumb to recommend The Eras Tour? Sure, it’s super sold out and everyone has heard of it. But I was floored with how genuinely good it was; there is an earnestness (or at least a performative earnestness) to Taylor Swift’s performance/persona, and at heart I am still a snarly ‘90s teen who is used to being repelled by such things. It can be nice to literally scream in wonder at things.
Eating
I have rediscovered Starbucks oatmeal and, I dunno, I really love it. Sometimes something can be boring.
Playing
I really love the new New York Times game Connections and I hope they make it a permanent one!
Listening
Anyone who knows me well may already know I am a huge Leon Neyfakh fangirl (I had a dayjob meeting last week with a podcast network and barely acted normally while discussing Slow Burn), and I am also someone with a degree in Media Studies who spent most of her grad school years analyzing pop culture and what it says about society, so, look, it is NOT SURPRISING that I loved Neyfakh and Jay Smooth’s podcast Think Twice about Michael Jackson. I found it unflinching, honest, thoughtful, and responsible.
Get Your Ask On
I am so excited to start sharing advice from other writers who aren’t me! For our inaugural issue, we’ve got advice from Celia Laskey, author of So Happy for You.
I finished my manuscript and it's time to start revising, but I have no idea how to get started.
CL: Matt Bell's Refuse to be Done is a great craft book for revision! Also hiring someone like Amy is a great idea if you can afford it! [ed. note: Thank you, Celia!]
How did you find your agent and/or get your first book deal?
CL: I know a lot of aspiring authors think there's some trick to this, or that you need a referral from someone in the biz, but I literally just googled agents and chose people who sounded like a good fit and cold queried — I also just googled how to write a query letter! Writer's Digest has a lot of good resources for querying.
Any additional thoughts?
CL: As an aspiring author, you can waste SO MUCH time and energy doubting yourself. All that does is make it harder to do the work and get it out there. If you just skip the step of doubting yourself and instead believe in yourself, you're giving yourself a much better chance of realizing your dreams!
If you have any questions about writing, publishing, revising, genres, querying, being on submission, etc., reply to this email and ask! Your question may be featured in an upcoming newsletter!
My Next Romance, At Her Service, Coming in 2024
A sweetly sexy, thoroughly modern new novel about single life, social media, career goals, and making the bold move to grab your own happiness—and write your own love story.
Max Van Doren has a wish list, and a great career and a girlfriend are at the top. But despite being pretty good at her job as an assistant to one of Hollywood’s fastest rising talent agents, she has no idea how to move up the ladder. And when it comes to her love life, she’s stuck in perpetual lust for an adorably perfect bartender named Sadie. Her goals are clear—and Max has everything but the self-confidence to go for them. Even her mother seems to assume she’ll be crawling home to her childhood bedroom at some point . . .
When Max’s roommate, Chelsey—an irritatingly gorgeous and self-assured influencer in plus-size and queer spaces—offers to sponsor her for a new self-actualization app, Max gives in. If she can’t run her own life, maybe an algorithm guiding her choices will help? Suddenly Max is scoring big everywhere, and her dreams are achingly close to coming true. But when one of Chelsey’s posts reveals Sadie’s part in the app’s campaign, Max is poised for heartbreak on all fronts. Tired of the sponcon life with its fake friends and endless selfies, Max realizes that to have true influence, she’ll have to find the courage to make her own, totally authentic way in the world.
“At Her Service offers a poignant and heartwarming look at modern love. With affirming themes of found family and self-belief, plus a sizzling romance that roars into a wildfire, prepare to fall hard for Max and Sadie! Amy Spalding is a powerhouse in romance, and At Her Service is a validating gift to the queer community.” —Courtney Kae, author of In Case of Heartbreak
Well, we did it!