Pinned
I'm blown away to find out that "Of Seagrass Fins and Slippery Fingers" has made the British Science Fiction Association shortlist!!!
I'm so grateful for everyone who has read and loved this story! 🐟 Story 🔗 and voting info below ⬇️
A.J. Van Belle (they/them)
23.1K posts
A.J. Van Belle (they/them)
@ajvanbelle
Writer. Rep: @lauren_bieker of @FinePrintLit ✍️
Literary agent @BookerAlbertLit. ajvanbellenews.substack.com.
They/them or he/him🏳️⚧️🌈
Joined December 2018
- Very excited to share that I am now a junior literary agent at @BookerAlbertLit! It's been such a great 18 months there as an intern, and now I get to work with this wonderful team and bring new stories to the world. Not open to queries yet but will be soon--stay tuned!!
- Just wrote a scene in which characters are camped out under the stars. With a fire. Also wrote that it's too hot for a blanket. So tell me, dear characters, why then did you build a fire? (They don't need it to cook their food.) This is why edits were invented.
- I'm now open to queries!! I'm so excited to read your work. My QM is in my bio, and below. Mini-thread on what I'm looking for ⬇️
- Writers, what is most often the very first whiff of a story idea you get? A vibe? Characters? A central conflict? I want to see something.
- I am beyond thrilled to announce that Bloomsbury has acquired my YA nonfiction book A DOZEN DYSTOPIAS AND HOW TO DODGE THEM, about the real science behind fictional dystopian scenarios. This is an absolute dream project. Sign up for my newsletter for updates! ⬇️
- #WritingCommunity, I'm thrilled to say I'm now represented by @claireawheeler of Regal Hoffman & Associates! Claire is wonderful, and I can't describe how excited I am about moving forward with a shared vision of my SF trilogy!
GIF - The last text you sent is the title of your next book. Hit me with some great titles for novels/autobiographies/nonfiction treatises/picture books/whatever you think your title belongs to, #WritingCommunity. Mine: "I Was a Sardine on My Ride Home." A sardonic lit fic, maybe?
- I'm excited to announce I'm now a literary intern at the Booker Albert Agency! Nurturing new talent in mentorships & working w/ my own agent has made me realize I love this side of the business as well, so I'm thrilled to be able to learn from the awesome folks @BookerAlbertLit!
- #WritingCommunity Let's play another predictive text game! Type "My character is unique because..." into your phone and see what the suggestion gives you. "My character is unique because of his shirt and shorts." I think I might need to get a little more creative there!
- Has anyone here ever taken Ray Bradbury's advice and written a short story a week for a whole year? If so, how was the experience?
- Would love to help out folks who are participating in #PitMad tomorrow! If you're pitching and would like me to RT your pinned pitch, comment here to let me know! Remember to pin your pitch to your profile so others can find it easily. And good luck!
GIF - I'll be browsing #QuestPit pitches today! If I like your pitch, you can query me at querytracker.net/query/3779 Remember to let me know this is a #QuestPit query. If I miss your pitch but you think we'd be a fit, query me anyway!
- Encouragement on rejections: For an agent to take on a book, they have to love it madly. Not just like it. Not just admire it. But love it with a crazy passion. How often do I love a book that much? Not often. So, fellow #writers, keep going! Find the person who falls in love
