Author J.A. McCoy
@jamccoyauthor.bsky.social
Debut fantasy author of the Recovery Series, seeking representation. D&D fanatic, husband, father to humans and dogs, and overall hyper-focuser who operates on caffeine and spite.
Debrief begins for the latest #writingbattle and I couldn’t be more excited for the results of my first pro-judged battle!
If you want to check out my entry, follow the link below:
www.writingbattle.com/story/debrie...
#WritingCommunity #AmWriting #writing #shortstory #contests #tempestowl
If you want to check out my entry, follow the link below:
www.writingbattle.com/story/debrie...
#WritingCommunity #AmWriting #writing #shortstory #contests #tempestowl
Writing Battle — Write. Read. Win.
Write. Read. Win. A competitive writing platform for storytellers around the world.
Receive oodles of feedback.
Join the most supportive writing community on the web. You up for the chal...
www.writingbattle.com
January 20, 2026 at 2:19 PM
Debrief begins for the latest #writingbattle and I couldn’t be more excited for the results of my first pro-judged battle!
If you want to check out my entry, follow the link below:
www.writingbattle.com/story/debrie...
#WritingCommunity #AmWriting #writing #shortstory #contests #tempestowl
If you want to check out my entry, follow the link below:
www.writingbattle.com/story/debrie...
#WritingCommunity #AmWriting #writing #shortstory #contests #tempestowl
By a round of applause, how many people are thiiiiis close 🤏 to gnawing off their own arm waiting for query replies from the agents they're most excited about?
#querying #AgentQueries #WritingCommunity #AmWriting #DebutNovel #DebutAuthor #EmergingAuthor
#querying #AgentQueries #WritingCommunity #AmWriting #DebutNovel #DebutAuthor #EmergingAuthor
January 9, 2026 at 8:56 PM
By a round of applause, how many people are thiiiiis close 🤏 to gnawing off their own arm waiting for query replies from the agents they're most excited about?
#querying #AgentQueries #WritingCommunity #AmWriting #DebutNovel #DebutAuthor #EmergingAuthor
#querying #AgentQueries #WritingCommunity #AmWriting #DebutNovel #DebutAuthor #EmergingAuthor
Reposted by Author J.A. McCoy
Fact 1: Writing a book will be one of the hardest things you’ll ever do.
Fact 2: It'll test your patience, your confidence, your sanity.
Fact 3: It’ll also be one of the most rewarding experiences ever.
Fact 2: It'll test your patience, your confidence, your sanity.
Fact 3: It’ll also be one of the most rewarding experiences ever.
January 9, 2026 at 5:01 PM
Fact 1: Writing a book will be one of the hardest things you’ll ever do.
Fact 2: It'll test your patience, your confidence, your sanity.
Fact 3: It’ll also be one of the most rewarding experiences ever.
Fact 2: It'll test your patience, your confidence, your sanity.
Fact 3: It’ll also be one of the most rewarding experiences ever.
The bad news: I got another query rejection.
The good news: it wasn’t one of the agents I felt the most confident would be a great fit.
Starting the new year with a silver lining.
#querying #AgentQueries #AmWriting #WritingCommunity #DebutAuthor #DebutNovel
The good news: it wasn’t one of the agents I felt the most confident would be a great fit.
Starting the new year with a silver lining.
#querying #AgentQueries #AmWriting #WritingCommunity #DebutAuthor #DebutNovel
January 6, 2026 at 7:28 PM
The bad news: I got another query rejection.
The good news: it wasn’t one of the agents I felt the most confident would be a great fit.
Starting the new year with a silver lining.
#querying #AgentQueries #AmWriting #WritingCommunity #DebutAuthor #DebutNovel
The good news: it wasn’t one of the agents I felt the most confident would be a great fit.
Starting the new year with a silver lining.
#querying #AgentQueries #AmWriting #WritingCommunity #DebutAuthor #DebutNovel
My next #battle with @writingbattle.bsky.social begins in just under eight days! Super excited for this one, as it will be my first attempt with their new genre system. I get to CHOOSE fantasy as the core of my writing, and the rest of the prompts are fixated around it!
January 6, 2026 at 4:30 AM
My next #battle with @writingbattle.bsky.social begins in just under eight days! Super excited for this one, as it will be my first attempt with their new genre system. I get to CHOOSE fantasy as the core of my writing, and the rest of the prompts are fixated around it!
Seems only fair to buy the physical copies of the books you’re using as direct comps for the debut novel you’re querying agents for, even if you’ve already read them. @joeabercrombie.com
#NewBook #ScarsBook #TraumaToTriumph #DarkFantasy #HealingJourney #RecoverySeries #DebutAuthor #DebutNovel
#NewBook #ScarsBook #TraumaToTriumph #DarkFantasy #HealingJourney #RecoverySeries #DebutAuthor #DebutNovel
December 28, 2025 at 9:50 PM
Seems only fair to buy the physical copies of the books you’re using as direct comps for the debut novel you’re querying agents for, even if you’ve already read them. @joeabercrombie.com
#NewBook #ScarsBook #TraumaToTriumph #DarkFantasy #HealingJourney #RecoverySeries #DebutAuthor #DebutNovel
#NewBook #ScarsBook #TraumaToTriumph #DarkFantasy #HealingJourney #RecoverySeries #DebutAuthor #DebutNovel
The answer is yes, Jake did in fact crank out that chapter. And half of the next.
Let’s see if I can crank out this FMC introductory chapter tonight.
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #Romantasy #NewBook #EmergingWriter
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #Romantasy #NewBook #EmergingWriter
December 22, 2025 at 11:58 PM
The answer is yes, Jake did in fact crank out that chapter. And half of the next.
Today I Learned!
Did you know?
It's only called an acronym when you pronounce the abbreviation as a real word (ex. NASA, UNESCO). Otherwise, it is known as an initialism (ex. FBI, BBC, or USA), where you say each letter out loud.
#Writing #AmWriting #Acronym #Initialism #DidYouKnow #IndieAuthors
It's only called an acronym when you pronounce the abbreviation as a real word (ex. NASA, UNESCO). Otherwise, it is known as an initialism (ex. FBI, BBC, or USA), where you say each letter out loud.
#Writing #AmWriting #Acronym #Initialism #DidYouKnow #IndieAuthors
December 22, 2025 at 2:27 AM
Today I Learned!
Let’s see if I can crank out this FMC introductory chapter tonight.
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #Romantasy #NewBook #EmergingWriter
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #Romantasy #NewBook #EmergingWriter
December 21, 2025 at 11:36 PM
Let’s see if I can crank out this FMC introductory chapter tonight.
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #Romantasy #NewBook #EmergingWriter
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #Romantasy #NewBook #EmergingWriter
December 18, 2025 at 12:48 AM
Plotted out my entire new Romantasy concept that takes loose inspiration from Fourth Wing, using Randy Ingermanson’s “How to Write a Novel Using the Snowflake Method”, last night in about four hours.
Scars was very much written as a “Plantser”, seeing if going full “Planner” makes a difference.
Scars was very much written as a “Plantser”, seeing if going full “Planner” makes a difference.
December 15, 2025 at 8:15 PM
Plotted out my entire new Romantasy concept that takes loose inspiration from Fourth Wing, using Randy Ingermanson’s “How to Write a Novel Using the Snowflake Method”, last night in about four hours.
Scars was very much written as a “Plantser”, seeing if going full “Planner” makes a difference.
Scars was very much written as a “Plantser”, seeing if going full “Planner” makes a difference.
Reposted by Author J.A. McCoy
Let's rip the Band-Aid off now...your story will not be everyone's cup of tea.☕
And that's ok!
If you pursue traditional publishing, you'll get rejected by literary agents and publishers. And even once you publish, you'll get bad reviews.
And that's ok!
If you pursue traditional publishing, you'll get rejected by literary agents and publishers. And even once you publish, you'll get bad reviews.
December 12, 2025 at 5:02 PM
Let's rip the Band-Aid off now...your story will not be everyone's cup of tea.☕
And that's ok!
If you pursue traditional publishing, you'll get rejected by literary agents and publishers. And even once you publish, you'll get bad reviews.
And that's ok!
If you pursue traditional publishing, you'll get rejected by literary agents and publishers. And even once you publish, you'll get bad reviews.
Reposted by Author J.A. McCoy
What do you NEED to be a writer? 🤨
Let the truth set you free: there are NO specific qualifications you have to meet.
You can be any age. You can come from any background. You can have a college degree—or not.
Becoming a writer requires just one simple thing: writing over and over again.
Let the truth set you free: there are NO specific qualifications you have to meet.
You can be any age. You can come from any background. You can have a college degree—or not.
Becoming a writer requires just one simple thing: writing over and over again.
December 10, 2025 at 4:59 PM
What do you NEED to be a writer? 🤨
Let the truth set you free: there are NO specific qualifications you have to meet.
You can be any age. You can come from any background. You can have a college degree—or not.
Becoming a writer requires just one simple thing: writing over and over again.
Let the truth set you free: there are NO specific qualifications you have to meet.
You can be any age. You can come from any background. You can have a college degree—or not.
Becoming a writer requires just one simple thing: writing over and over again.
2007 (left) meets 2025 (right). Todd Lockwood will forever be my favorite artist (and who I am determined to get to do the art for at least ONE of my own novels, in my life), but alas — the editions with his art aren’t sold commercially anymore and I really need to rebuild my whole Drizzt set.
December 9, 2025 at 9:27 PM
2007 (left) meets 2025 (right). Todd Lockwood will forever be my favorite artist (and who I am determined to get to do the art for at least ONE of my own novels, in my life), but alas — the editions with his art aren’t sold commercially anymore and I really need to rebuild my whole Drizzt set.
Even though I did not win, here’s some of the wonderful feedback that keeps me going, in the comments!
#writersoffacebook #debutauthors #contests #WritingCommunity #shortstory #writingcompetition #AmWriting #writingcontest #autumnbattle #writingbattle #writinglife #authorsofinstagram #AuthorsGuild
#writersoffacebook #debutauthors #contests #WritingCommunity #shortstory #writingcompetition #AmWriting #writingcontest #autumnbattle #writingbattle #writinglife #authorsofinstagram #AuthorsGuild
December 7, 2025 at 9:58 PM
Even though I did not win, here’s some of the wonderful feedback that keeps me going, in the comments!
#writersoffacebook #debutauthors #contests #WritingCommunity #shortstory #writingcompetition #AmWriting #writingcontest #autumnbattle #writingbattle #writinglife #authorsofinstagram #AuthorsGuild
#writersoffacebook #debutauthors #contests #WritingCommunity #shortstory #writingcompetition #AmWriting #writingcontest #autumnbattle #writingbattle #writinglife #authorsofinstagram #AuthorsGuild
It’s Debrief time! That means I can finally open the story up to the public! If you’d like to check it out, you can find my Vampirical Romance here: www.writingbattle.com/story/debrie...
#contests #writingbattle #AmWriting #WritingCommunity #ShortStory #WritingContest #DebutAuthor
#contests #writingbattle #AmWriting #WritingCommunity #ShortStory #WritingContest #DebutAuthor
Writing Battle — Write. Read. Win.
Write. Read. Win. A competitive writing platform for storytellers around the world.
Receive oodles of feedback.
Join the most supportive writing community on the web. You up for the chal...
www.writingbattle.com
November 27, 2025 at 5:05 PM
It’s Debrief time! That means I can finally open the story up to the public! If you’d like to check it out, you can find my Vampirical Romance here: www.writingbattle.com/story/debrie...
#contests #writingbattle #AmWriting #WritingCommunity #ShortStory #WritingContest #DebutAuthor
#contests #writingbattle #AmWriting #WritingCommunity #ShortStory #WritingContest #DebutAuthor
The Agent Querying process is less disheartening than it is maddening. Rejection, I can take. If I got 15 no’s back to back, it would bother me less than waiting 3-4 months between decisions, to then be told no and have to repeat the process.
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #DebutAuthor #AuthorLife
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #DebutAuthor #AuthorLife
November 23, 2025 at 8:00 PM
The Agent Querying process is less disheartening than it is maddening. Rejection, I can take. If I got 15 no’s back to back, it would bother me less than waiting 3-4 months between decisions, to then be told no and have to repeat the process.
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #DebutAuthor #AuthorLife
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #DebutAuthor #AuthorLife
I took 2 days off from the day job to make an attempt at focusing on my new Romantasy concept, and I come back to enough emails and Teams messages to carry me through the first five hours of the day. I haven’t actually accomplished anything today. This feels like a punishment.
November 12, 2025 at 6:17 PM
I took 2 days off from the day job to make an attempt at focusing on my new Romantasy concept, and I come back to enough emails and Teams messages to carry me through the first five hours of the day. I haven’t actually accomplished anything today. This feels like a punishment.
Break from the usual writing posts, but the wifey and I finally broke down and bought a Dutch oven. Our house has never smelled better.
#WritingCommunity #AmWriting #Cooking #LasagnaSoup #MarriedLife
#WritingCommunity #AmWriting #Cooking #LasagnaSoup #MarriedLife
November 8, 2025 at 11:10 PM
Break from the usual writing posts, but the wifey and I finally broke down and bought a Dutch oven. Our house has never smelled better.
#WritingCommunity #AmWriting #Cooking #LasagnaSoup #MarriedLife
#WritingCommunity #AmWriting #Cooking #LasagnaSoup #MarriedLife
Reposted by Author J.A. McCoy
TONIGHT at 10 pm ET. The four genres drop!
You'll be given seven days to write a 2000 word story.
Join the Battle: www.writingbattle.com/join-battle
#writersofbluesky
You'll be given seven days to write a 2000 word story.
Join the Battle: www.writingbattle.com/join-battle
#writersofbluesky
October 26, 2025 at 9:57 AM
TONIGHT at 10 pm ET. The four genres drop!
You'll be given seven days to write a 2000 word story.
Join the Battle: www.writingbattle.com/join-battle
#writersofbluesky
You'll be given seven days to write a 2000 word story.
Join the Battle: www.writingbattle.com/join-battle
#writersofbluesky
It’s that time again y’all! @writingbattle.bsky.social is back, and this time instead of nanofiction, we’re going with 2000 words. I am so excited to get back into the game, can’t wait to see what prompts I draw on Sunday! #writingcontest #AmWriting #shortstory #writingbattle #autumnbattle
October 24, 2025 at 10:55 AM
It’s that time again y’all! @writingbattle.bsky.social is back, and this time instead of nanofiction, we’re going with 2000 words. I am so excited to get back into the game, can’t wait to see what prompts I draw on Sunday! #writingcontest #AmWriting #shortstory #writingbattle #autumnbattle
Reposted by Author J.A. McCoy
It's that time of year again! If you want to apply to my 318R creative writing class, this is for you. We'll be accepting applications for 1 hour from 10:00-11:00 pm MT on Oct 23rd. The application, tips for getting accepted, and other FAQs can be found here:
faq.brandonsanderson.com/article-cate...
faq.brandonsanderson.com/article-cate...
BYU College Class | Brandon Sanderson
faq.brandonsanderson.com
October 23, 2025 at 5:11 PM
It's that time of year again! If you want to apply to my 318R creative writing class, this is for you. We'll be accepting applications for 1 hour from 10:00-11:00 pm MT on Oct 23rd. The application, tips for getting accepted, and other FAQs can be found here:
faq.brandonsanderson.com/article-cate...
faq.brandonsanderson.com/article-cate...
Reposted by Author J.A. McCoy
So excited to see my upcoming book with QueryTracker's Patrick McDonald listed on Simon & Schuster's website, cover and all! It's getting real 🥹
THE MODERN GUIDE TO QUERYING LITERARY AGENTS is coming to you summer 2026! 👀
THE MODERN GUIDE TO QUERYING LITERARY AGENTS is coming to you summer 2026! 👀
October 21, 2025 at 10:20 PM
So excited to see my upcoming book with QueryTracker's Patrick McDonald listed on Simon & Schuster's website, cover and all! It's getting real 🥹
THE MODERN GUIDE TO QUERYING LITERARY AGENTS is coming to you summer 2026! 👀
THE MODERN GUIDE TO QUERYING LITERARY AGENTS is coming to you summer 2026! 👀
Reposted by Author J.A. McCoy
I've been a book editor for 10 years. 1,000+ authors and countless manuscripts later, the biggest lessons I’ve learned might surprise you.
Here are the 3 biggest takeaways from the past decade that totally changed the way I approach editing.
They might help you take your story to the next level!
Here are the 3 biggest takeaways from the past decade that totally changed the way I approach editing.
They might help you take your story to the next level!
October 8, 2025 at 3:59 PM
I've been a book editor for 10 years. 1,000+ authors and countless manuscripts later, the biggest lessons I’ve learned might surprise you.
Here are the 3 biggest takeaways from the past decade that totally changed the way I approach editing.
They might help you take your story to the next level!
Here are the 3 biggest takeaways from the past decade that totally changed the way I approach editing.
They might help you take your story to the next level!