Author Notes #19 (May 2025) - and it's my 100th Substack post!

Featuring time covers, writing prizes, AI updates, sensitivity reads, cookbook scandals, new writing resources, and lots more!

May 29, 2025

Welcome to May’s Author Notes!

This is an exciting post for a couple of reasons. First of all, it’s my 100th post here at The Resilient Author! When I began writing here, one of my main aims was to publish regularly and reliably, and so far I have hardly missed a week, plus I still have a huge list of things I want to write about. Substack really is my author home base and I love the opportunity to regularly connect with you all and chat about all sorts of different topics. So a massive thanks for subscribing and reading, and here’s to the next 100 posts!

This is also my first Author Notes edition for paid subscribers, where I round up the publishing and author-related news and views that have caught my eye this month. If you’re a free subscriber then rest assured there will always be some good notes before the paywall, and I hope you enjoy the preview section! And if you want more of my posts, please check out my free reader newsletter Story Matters, as I also post there fortnightly on writing and culture (alternating with my posts here). You’ll also find my ongoing chat about the Handmaid’s Tale TV series final season over on Story Matters - and I have a LOT of thoughts about this week’s finale!

Finally, my About page and Welcome page have both been refreshed: so if you’d like to learn more about my reasons for writing here on substack, and/or see a list of everything I’ve written so far, head on over to check these out. Last year’s posts will also be moving behind the paywall soon, so this is a good chance to check out any articles you might have missed.

Welcome to The Resilient Author! Please start here

Sara Foster

May 29

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And now, on with the notes:

It’s been a month! If you’re in Australia you’ll probably already be familiar with the cookbook scandal where Brooke Bellamy was accused of stealing recipes from … (while both were up for the an ABIA, one of the top Australian publishing awards). Bellamy has suffered an intense amount of backlash over the situation, and I felt pretty sorry for her - although I also heard that the specific wording copied from the recipes made this a potentially clear-cut case of plagiarism. I haven’t spent time on in-depth research here, but it’s been discussed in many of the industry spots I’ve spent time in over the last month. The Conversation featured an article on cookbook controversies that you might enjoy if you’ve been absorbed in this one.

One of my favourite authors, Taylor Jenkins-Reid, was featured on the cover of Time magazine this month, under the headline, ‘How Taylor Jenkins Reid became a publishing powerhouse,’ thanks to her incredible success and to celebrate the release of her forthcoming novel Atmosphere. (There are not too many books I’d race out early on release day for, but this will be one. I love a good astronaut story, and one written by TJR should be next level!) The article is a fascinating look at the era of TikTok mega-sellers, and I appreciate the way Taylor speaks about her mental battle when faced with snobbery and criticism of her writing. Definitely one to read for insight if you’re writing commercial fiction.

Audible is opening up AI narration for publishers. Sigh. I think of all the incredible voice artists - including one of my sisters - currently making at least part of their living this way. Would you want AI to read one of your stories for audio? Are we trying to push back against the inevitable here? (You know, the weird thing is that when we all accept it as inevitable, that’s when we really do make it inevitable, right? Which suits the tech bros 100%. Should we be thinking more about this ‘inevitable’ narrative?)

Notes continue below for paid subscribers. Would you like to become a paid subscriber and support my work here? There’s plenty more beyond the paywall:

More Author Notes (this month I’ve got a new US$100K prize for aspiring novelists, notes on book bans, authors writing for video games, the role of sensitivity reads and an AI story that will get you fired up in one way or another!)
Australian Author Corner: the latest publishing stories from Down Under
Short notes and shout-outs
My selected recommended reads on Substack for this month
Plus you’ll find the new paid subscriber password so you can access this month’s writing resources on my website. This month’s offer is tips on writing suspense and the ‘ultimate’ character questionnaire.

You can also access more posts from me by following me on my Substack for readers, Story Matters, which will always be free. Thank you for reading The Resilient Author!

Writing school The Novelry have announced a whopping 75,000 GBP (or US $100,000) prize for an aspiring writer based on just the first three pages (1500 words) of their novel, which will be judged by a panel including Yann Martel, Emma Roberts and Julia Quinn. In addition, eight shortlisted entries, chosen by the judges, will win The Finished Novel Course from The Novelry, the world’s top-rated fiction writing school, which will help authors turn their winning idea into a publishing-ready book. You can enter if you’re based in the UK, US, Australia or Canada and the comp closes 31st July. Check the website for full terms and conditions and to find out more.

In Jodi Picoult’s May newsletter for readers she discusses the 574 banned books in the Monroe County school district libraries in Tennessee, including Mad Honey, which she wrote with Jennifer Finney Boylan. Jodi’s book Nineteen Minutes is currently the most banned book in the US, and she speaks a lot on the subject, but what struck me was the list of some of the titles also banned in Monroe County. Such as: Ancient Egypt, Ancient Greece, Brown Girl Dreaming by Jackie Woodson, European Art to 1850, Judaism, Gray’s Anatomy, the medical textbook, Hidden Figures (about the African American female mathematicians who helped launch the space program), Hinduism, Impact of the Holocaust, Islam, Maus (a graphic novel about the Holocaust), Mexican, Central and South American Art, Moses and Judaism, Muhammad and Islam, Origins of the Holocaust, Persecution and Emigration, Read with Dick and Jane series, The Book Thief, The First Americans, The Hidden Children of the Holocaust, The Holocaust and Life Under Nazi Occupation, The Nazi Death Camps.

Also from Jodi: ‘A lot of people ask me what THEY can possibly do to fight book bans. Here is the answer. Start at the grassroots, local level. Run for your school and public library boards and speak out against book bans. Write letters to the editor of local papers. Put banned books in little free libraries. Start a banned book club. If you live in TN or anywhere else books are being banned in schools, go show up at a school board meeting and tell them why access to all books matters. Then write your reps and demand repeal of laws which allow parents to impose their own beliefs on other parents and their children.’

From my POV, book bans are something we should all be aware of and ready to respond to, as this is an ongoing and deeply concerning situation.

I loved this article on novelists writing for video games, in which I discovered that one of my favourite authors, Naomi Alderman, is also part of this group. This could be another income possibility for authors who might enjoy a side hustle - although I should imagine it’s a place to watch out for growing AI influence too. I read recently somewhere that kids are being actively discouraged from learning coding now, as AI has already taken over 1 in 4 jobs and is expected to largely dominate this space.

Check out this great article in The Conversation written by Allanah Hunt, outlining the role and process of sensitivity reads. I had a sensitivity read on When She Was Gone and found the process invaluable. The sensitivity reader was able to reassure me about certain parts of the story and fill in gaps in my knowledge and awareness in other places. Highly recommend.

I don’t want you to miss this article from the Guardian which was first published back in March: Open AI’s metafictional short story about grief is beautiful and moving, by Jeanette Winterson. You can also read the short story here. I agree that it’s a beautiful piece of writing, and I can get somewhat on board with her suggestion that ‘in all the fear and anger foaming around AI just now, its capacity to be “other” is what the human race needs. Our thinking is getting us nowhere fast, except towards extinction, via planetary collapse or global war.’ However, Winterson’s conclusion: ‘AI reads us. Now it’s time for us to read AI’ makes me shudder. Surely we should meet such brand-new, overarching technology with a critical eye not a fully accepting, warm embrace. We can’t reduce the massive complexities this will bring into creative life into brief statements of surrender. And we should also remember that this story was generated by Sam Altman, founder of Open AI, who has everything to gain from articles like this one, while others have a lot to lose - with many creative livelihoods on the line. I might write more about this one down the track. As always, would love your thoughts.

AUSTRALIAN AUTHOR CORNER: THE LATEST PUBLISHING STORIES FROM DOWN UNDER

If you’re looking to publish internationally (or wherever you’re published now) this story about visiting international publishers and what they’re looking for is well worth your time, while this excellent article in The Conversation about the rising costs and shrinking margins of Australian books is also essential reading if you publish in Australia. And you’ll also want to be aware of the latest controversy around free speech at the moment, because you may already have seen the furore arising from author Karen Wyld's black&write award being revoked, after Arts minister John-Paul Langbroek and Queensland Premier David Crisafulli wrote to the State Library about her social media posts on Gaza. I haven’t been able to see the tweet that caused the complaint, but many writers have expressed their outrage and support for Wyld, including resigning from their roles as prize judges, and the situation is one to watch.

This follows the effective cancellation of the SLV's Teen Writing Bootcamps, which were to be presented by authors including Alison Evans, Jinghua Qian, Ariel Ries, and Omar Sakr, as reported by the ASA in July 2024. The ASA has since reported that, following a Duty of Care Review, the State Library of Victoria has published a Ways of Working Commitment, including information on the State Library's approach to freedom of expression and a statement from the Board. The ASA also mention that they’ve been hearing from creators concerned about the contractual terms they have been asked to agree to for one-off engagements with a range of literary organisations. If you are asked to sign an agreement for a public appearance and you are uncertain or uncomfortable about the terms, please get in touch with the ASA at asa@asauthors.org.

And finally, in more positive news, the ASA also has an opportunity for authors to work as expert manuscript assessors at the moment. Follow this link for more information.

SHORT NOTES AND SHOUT-OUTS

Salman Rushdie’s attacker was sentenced this month after the author was seriously hurt in an attack at a literary event in 2022.
The Guardian rounded up Margaret Atwood’s ten best books this month. Do you agree with the order? I think I’m in general agreement - personally, I have adored some of Atwood’s novels and struggled with others. (But she’ll always be one of my author superheroes!)
Lots of prizewinners and shortlists announced this month. Congratulations to the ABIA winners, Michelle de Kretsner for winning the Stella with Theory and Practice (keen to read this one!) and congratulations to everyone on the West Australian Young Readers’ Book Awards shortlist and the Davitt longlist. Prizes remain a brilliant way to help authors to spread the word about their books.

BONUS RESOURCES FOR PAID SUBSCRIBERS

My new bonus resources for you are:

a two page tip sheet on how to write nail-biting suspense
a big character questionnaire to help you get to know your characters in different ways (please note unless you absolutely love this stuff then filling the whole thing in might be a bore chore - use the questions sparingly to help you dig deeper into character without turning this into a mission!)

You can visit this page on my website to access these resources. The password until the end of May will be ‘Bridesmaid20’ - and from 1 June it will change to ‘Staywarmandwrite’ as there’s been a sudden shift to the cold weather here in Perth!