JustPlainDan 🇨🇦
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justplaindan.croutch.ca
JustPlainDan 🇨🇦
@justplaindan.croutch.ca
IT by day, freelance writer by night, husband and father always. Golf fanatic, watcher of F1. Proud Canadian 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦
*removes author bio and book pitch pin* Welp, time to hang that hat up and carry on to other things. It was a fun ride.
December 5, 2025 at 6:10 PM
All of social media is this.
It became pointless.
it’s unfortunate that @mcuban.bsky.social gets so much hate on bluesky. i miss seeing his posts but can’t blame him at all for not posting because i’ve seen the replies when he does
December 1, 2025 at 7:23 AM
Of all the form rejections THE BLACKSMITH'S REBELLION has (there are quite a few now), this one from
Julie Crisp was the most authentic and encouraging one yet. As disappointing as this rejection was, I'm left feeling energized. #amquerying
November 21, 2025 at 1:04 PM
Fun fact. I wrote a book. Maybe someday you'll get to read it.
November 19, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Only three more weeks of surgeries on board! Crazy to think the 2025 field service is just about done.
November 19, 2025 at 7:33 PM
So excited to start a new role on the Africa Mercy. Earlier than I expected, I have stepped into the Operations Director role on board overseeing the IT, Finance, Transportation, Supply, Hospitality, Hotel, and Dining room/Galley teams on board. Another two years on board!
November 13, 2025 at 2:03 PM
This is why we can't have good discourse, and why echo chambers exist. We should block and move on from *anyone* who spews hate, bigotry, and lies, not just “the right”. There needs to be room for healthy cross-ideological debate without the vileness of those things polluting it.
October 18, 2025 at 6:41 AM
Are the days of successful authors, however one chooses to define that, who take on mentees still a thing? Was that ever a thing? Or has social media changed that entire dynamic? #writingcommunity
October 16, 2025 at 5:37 PM
Reading through one of the comps that my beta readers provided, and staring at the reply ratio in QT, has me feeling all of the self-conscious feels about my story today. There's so much good writing in this genre! #amwriting #amquerying
October 16, 2025 at 9:10 AM
Boosting this for the daytime crowd.
Hello, #pcgaming #gamingpc #gaming communities. I'm running a case study for a mini-MBA course I'm taking about a business concept. I'm looking for anyone who might want a gaming PC to fill it out. Please take some time and lend your answers! t.co/RcyVvD9VRr #mba #businessworld
https://forms.microsoft.com/r/XMiWPjpaGt
t.co
October 14, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Hello, #pcgaming #gamingpc #gaming communities. I'm running a case study for a mini-MBA course I'm taking about a business concept. I'm looking for anyone who might want a gaming PC to fill it out. Please take some time and lend your answers! t.co/RcyVvD9VRr #mba #businessworld
https://forms.microsoft.com/r/XMiWPjpaGt
t.co
October 13, 2025 at 10:00 AM
Ever since I put time limits on my phone, it's a lot harder to get onto and post social media.
October 7, 2025 at 6:14 PM
Published authors of the interwebs, did any of you set up Discord servers for your book/books readers? If so, did it help or hurt? Were you indie or trad published? #AmWriting #WritingCommunity
October 3, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Things like water, electricity, healthcare, and basic human rights are things we take for granted in the West. We forget what we have until we're confronted by those fighting to get it. Watching this unfold in front of us is heartbreaking. apnews.com/article/mada...
Madagascar imposes nighttime curfew after violent protests over water and power cuts
The government of Madagascar has imposed a nighttime curfew following protests over ongoing water and power cuts.
apnews.com
September 26, 2025 at 2:20 PM
Sometimes, when it seems everything is going wrong, it's nice to stand in awe of God’s creation beauty. These Malagasy sunsets bring me such peace.
September 25, 2025 at 2:59 PM
I keep forgetting about my social media accounts. I'm still struggling to find a purpose for them in my life. Honestly, outside of the requisite networking as an aspiring author, there's very little else I post about. There's much more to me than writing, however.
September 22, 2025 at 6:43 PM
Another rotation around the sun successfully completed. I've never felt so unsure yet so sure about the year ahead.
September 21, 2025 at 9:19 AM
Reposted by JustPlainDan 🇨🇦
I’ve opened back up to queries! Please *only* use my Query Manager form or my query email.

Anything sent to my main email will be deleted.

I’m excited to dive into new work!!

MSWL: www.publishersmarketplace.com/members/alev...
Alexandra Levick | Member | Publishers Marketplace
www.publishersmarketplace.com
September 15, 2025 at 2:40 PM
Our latest update from the Africa Mercy, where surgeries continue, and we look to reconnect with our place in the mission after some rest. Check out our blog for the latest! Back on board, back to school, and back to mission. croutch.ca/back-on-boar...
Back on board, back to school, and back to mission – The Croutch Family Mercy Ships Adventure
croutch.ca
September 14, 2025 at 11:05 AM
The thing about instant gratification is that its only gratifying for an instant. You have to keep chasing it to stay gratified. That's not freedom, that's enslavement. Look out yourself and love your fellow humans deeply from the heart, and you'll find lasting gratification.
September 14, 2025 at 6:31 AM
Hello, #litagents and #writingcommunity. It goes against all convention, but a growing (louder) number of beta readers are demanding the follow up to THE BLACKSMITH’S REBELLION. Should I write it to appease them or keep holding them off while it languishes in the query trenches?
September 7, 2025 at 2:44 PM
Looking back through my email history at that one time, in 2011, an agency campaigning for a senator at the time offered to help me illegally vote.
September 7, 2025 at 11:54 AM
Man cold coming on. Prepare for mild sniffles and incessant moaning.
September 4, 2025 at 6:04 PM
Hello #amwriting and #writingcommunity friends, I’m still looking for volunteer beta readers for my manuscript. You don't have to be an epic fantasy fan to join. I enjoy getting feedback from genre fans and reading fans. Shoot me a DM if you want to join, or share the word!
THE BLACKSMITH’S REBELLION, a high fantasy where apprentice blacksmith Ari discovers he is one of the six Misigothian Chosen destined to rule Carnin, setting up a showdown against the five kings already in power, who’ve corrupted Ari’s friend as their pawn. #questpit #q #a #f
September 1, 2025 at 6:17 PM
#amwriting friends, this person uses Grok to generate her chapter feedback. Unless you're okay with your unpublished work getting fed into a Gen AI and paying someone to do it, you'll want to avoid working with this person. (Verified by prompting Grok myself, ugh)
August 29, 2025 at 10:24 AM