Alex Kempsell 🖋️

I just remember Bluesky exists. Authors, editors, other publishing pros... how we doing over here? #authorsky

Favorite writing quote of the day:

"Writing is making complicated ideas into simple sentences."
-from "Unfuck Your Writing" by Joe Biel & Faith G. Harper

#authorsky #writersky

The Importance of Taking Breaks and the real, absolutely true reason why I haven't posted in so long.

Finally, after months of slacking, I've posted something new to The Pen Doesn't Have to Be Red! (I also managed to remember that BlueSky exists, so woohoo!)
#Editorsky #authorsky

open.substack.com/pub/akempsel...

Okay, so... I might've forgotten that Bluesky exists for a little bit.

How we doing, folks?

Granted, CMOS is a guidebook, so the whole thing is technically just preference. But I'm talking about things that are even more preference-y than others.

Hopefully some authors will see this and realize that their manuscript wasn't as error iddled as they thought.

#BookEditor #WriterCommunity

After struggling to get myself to write sentence after sentence, I did this.
And immediately wrote about seven paragraphs without issue.

Bag on the head works, my friends! Weird shit works! Idk why, but it does.

#writingcommunity

One of the best testimonials I’ve ever gotten from an author. It’s so sweet and validating, it made me tear up!
It’s also so long I couldn’t fit the whole thing. So if you want to read it all, you can find it on TikTok, insta, and soon my website.

#writingcommunity #bookeditor

If you get really good at past perfect tense, you will be your editor's best friend. That is a 100% guaranteed promise.

#authorcommunity #writingcommunity #authorsky

Woo! Taking care of business!! Well done CO peeps! 🙌

I'm so sorry. I can't even imagine. I'm gonna be a mess when the time comes for one of my cats. 😭

This promise is appreciated though. Bad things happening to pets is one of the only TW items that can make me refuse to edit a book.

Epithets annoy me, and they should annoy you too And you better believe I'll tell you every little reason why. Buckle up, my friend!

New post is up in the Substack! The week hasn't ended yet, so I count this as sticking to my bi-weekly schedule. Plus I got to rail against epithets, so that's fun.
Enjoy!
#writingcommunity #Bookeditor
open.substack.com/pub/akempsel...

Hey, it's me, that really good idea for your story you had while you were showering, driving, doing dishes, or sleeping.

...

You're never gonna fuckin see me again. ✌️

#writersky #writingcommunity

I can’t help you with copyright, but I can help with copyleft… by helping take care of the errors you LEFT in this COPY.

…

I’ll see myself out.

#writersky #bookeditor #writingcommunity

For context, this was the conversation leading into these people's swooping. (The other person's info is redacted because they did nothing wrong; they were just asking me for info.)

Editors, when we see someone ask another editor a direct question via social media, what we're NOT gonna do is swoop into the comments with things like this.
This is predatory toward the author and rude to the editor they were asking.

I get that we're all just trying to make a living, but c'mon...

a woman is crying while holding a napkin in front of a box with the letter i on it ALT: a woman is crying while holding a napkin in front of a box with the letter i on it

Oh, okay author-client... so you're just gonna make me cry this morning with how thoughtful, supportive, and appreciative your responses on my feedback form were? Just gonna make me weep with sheer niceness and validation? Huh?!

WHO GAVE YOU THE RIGHT?! WHERE DO YOU FIND THE AUDACITY?!
#BookEditor

And now for some positivity!
The authors I work with are the best, and I shall hear nothing to the contrary. 🤩

#BookEditor #writingcommunity #writersky

New post on Substack, finally.
I’ll confess that this one is a thinly veiled excuse to tell everyone about one of my favorite DC villains: Torque! But I still tied it into writing.
Check it out!

open.substack.com/pub/akempsel...

I think what non-ADHD people don't understand about ADHD medication is that it doesn't make you concentrate. It's not some magic 'cure.' It doesn't make you focused or motivated.

It just makes these things *possible.*

The medication just unlocks the door. You still have to get it open.

I don't know if I'll ever learn to vibe with text-based social media. It just feels so much more like shouting into the void than video-based kinds.
But also, maybe I just don't know how to do it right? Eh. 🤷

So the thing with me and social media is that when I fall out of the habit of posting, I REALLY fall out of the habit.
Like, I forgot/was too busy to post for a week, and now I feel an aversion to even looking at the apps. 😮‍💨

Hey, you know what’s cool?

…

No, seriously, do you? I wanna know. None of these youths think I’m hip and happenin’.

Went out of town for the weekend (plus Monday) and decided to make it a social media break while I was at it.
I feel refreshed!

“Alex, you’re crying! You okay?”

Yeah, I was just thinking about the Portals scene from Avengers: Endgame again.

Writers! Authors! Lend me your ears--er... or your eyes, I guess. Ahem. We've got an updated editing availability for the first half of 2025!

I offer copy, line, and developmental editing, along with a few other smaller services.

Let's talk about your manuscript!

#writersky #editorsky #authorsky

My favorite editor-community moment was when some doofus posted something like "Ugh, so the word 'they' can be singular now? I don't think I'll ever get used to that" and every book editor in the world came crashing down on them like a tidal wave of UM ACTUALLY. 😂
#editorsky

I just typed "does it feet" instead of "does it fit" into a comment of this manuscript and didn't realize it until I went back to check something else an hour later.

I might be tired.

#editorsky
#writersky
#authorsky

Over a blurry picture of a dog is this quote: "You understand why humans make up songs. But dogs are born already knowing theirs, and you let a soft Woooo escape your lips. Maybe it will carry across the emptiness and reach those below. Maybe." Beneath that it lists the name of the story this excerpt is from (First) and the writer of that story (Andrew Wernette). Further down is the link to the publication where the story is posted: NecessaryChaos.substack.com

Dang it. This story made me cry again, just trying to find the quote. 😭 Seriously, my writing partner struck emotional gold with this one. Go read.

open.substack.com/pub/necessar...

#writersky #authorsky

As I work on this short story competition entry, I’ve discovered a roadblock I never considered:
It’s possible to just not vibe with the prompts. I didn’t have this problem with the Flash Fiction competition, but they're just not meshing with my brain.
Still gonna give it my all, though.
#writersky

Me: "I've got some good story ideas, but I'm struggling to figure out an emotional core for them."

Writing Partner: "You tend to start with plot. Try starting with character this time."

Me: "... oh, so you're just casually going to read me at the core level like that? Damn." 👀

#writersky