Face your (last) fear

Moving away from substack

Hi folks,

I'm moving my newsletter away from Substack slowly because of the controversy surrounding their allowance of racially bigotted users (The N--- word, commonly associated (ironically in this instance) - with Austria) - promoting and allowing racial bigotry to occur on the website isn't something I can be associated with, so I'm staying in-house with my website provider, Wix, and trying out their service. Let's see how user-friendly it is.

What I've been up to...

I've been concentrating on editing this last half year or so, and have completed edits for four books, with another three on the way. I was the editor on Tyler Jones' Heavy Oceans, Gwendolyn Nix's Bone Knuckles and the Rose Scavenger, Brennan LaFaroe's The Denizens, and I'm currently working on the following: Ross Jeffery's Harvesting the Nightmare Fields, Zachary Rosenberg's Devils and the deep blue sea, Briana Morgen's Tiger Cult, and I was an ARC reader of TC Parker's To Coventry, Daniel Barnett's Blind Spots and another project of his which has yet to be titled definitively.

It kills me to say I am not allowed to share some of their covers, but here are some illustrations I can share:

With regards editing, here are some kind words I've received if you are considering someone editing your manuscript:

"Austrian Spencer performs edits with the care and grace of a surgeon, truly collaborating with writers and taking the time to understand the story and make suggestions that will strengthen, rather than alter the author's original vision. His incisive notes and expansive considerations force the author to think deeply about their work, ultimately making the finished product shine."

- Brennan LaFaro, author of the Slattery Falls trilogy, Noose...

"Finally: someone who loves (functional) grammar as much as I do! Andy is no pedant. But his feel for the rhythms of language and storytelling is exceptional, and his eye for linguistic detail is extraordinary. I’ve heard the edit described as the heartbeat of a text. And it’s no coincidence that Andy approaches his editing work with the skill and precision of a cardiac surgeon: every flourish of his scalpel ensuring that the pulse of your story quickens and slows exactly as it needs to, with just the right amount of blood allowed to flow onto the page. Get in touch with him today - he’s the editor you need in your writing life."

- TC Parker, author of Saltblood, Hummingbird...

That's all for now...

Let's keep this short and sweet, this is a test run for a more regular newsletter, and, I hope, a less inflammatory and ignorant provider.

 Before I go, I want to share a tradition I have on New Year's Eve - instead of the usual drinking and celebrating, I focus on a word that I manifest for the upcoming year. The word occurs to me, just before the clock strikes. It isn't always good, or positive, but I take my luck with what comes and try to make the best of it. Sometimes they have been pretty bad, but I have a good feeling going into this year.

I'll let you know what the word is in the next newsletter. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

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