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Valeria Vescina

@valeriavescina.bsky.social

1.5K followers 1.6K following 250 posts

Author 'That Summer in Puglia' (2018). Creative-writing tutor, runs writing retreats in the Alps. Founder member @WomenWritersNet. Lit Dir, Hampstead Arts Fest. #HistFic novel inspired by true events in 16th-century Italy out in 2026. Women's history nerd.

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Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · Nov 15

Good morning from Switzerland! I’ve just joined BlueSky, and would love to connect here with friends old and new! #WritingCommunity #earlymodern #histfic #LitFic

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Reposted by Valeria Vescina

Women Writers Network @womenwritersnet.bsky.social · 1d

What do you do when all you've ever wanted to do is write but your life is just too busy? Our very own Liz Champion is struggling with this dilemma.
Read her Substack, Midlife without a Map. Touching, funny, honest.

lizchampion.substack.com/p/my-life-is...

My life is not working

I need to make a change

lizchampion.substack.com

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Reposted by Valeria Vescina

Madeleine F White @madeleinefwhite.bsky.social · 11h

Today's fab Showcase features:
Poetry from Mary herself, Lesley Forward, Bejamin Doteh, Natalie and fiction from Caroline Burrows.
Read the full showcase: pentoprint.org/showcase-bab...
#WritingCommunity #WednesdayMotivation #WriterWednesday #AmWriting #PoetryCommunity

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Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 23h

Registration for the @genevawriters.bsky.social Conference is now open. One of very few writers' conferences in Continental Europe, it takes place every two years. I attended the last one, and it was superb! genevawriters.org/gwg-conferen... #WritingCommunity #writing #writerslife

GWG Conference 2025

genevawriters.org

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Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 1d

Looking for a tutored #writingretreat? I’m holding three in the Alps in 2026: in March, June and September. To learn more and to book: valeriavescina.com/teaching/wri... #writing #WritingCommunity #writingworkshop #holidays #writingcourse #writersretreat #writingadvice #writingtips #writerslife

Writing Retreats

Hasliberg – view from the lounge Creative writing retreats in idyllic Switzerland 7 – 13 September 2025 – completed 1 – 7 March 2026 14 – 20 June 2026 6 – 12 Sep…

valeriavescina.com

Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 2d

Sometimes, a truly 'miraculous' #shortstory comes along! Such is 'The Stone' by Louise Erdrich on the @newyorker.com Fiction podcast. And how sensitively read and discussed by author Karen Russell in conversation with Deborah Treisman! Highly recommended. #reading

Karen Russell Reads Louise Erdrich

On the Fiction Podcast, Karen Russell joins Deborah Treisman to read and discuss “The Stone,” by Louise Erdrich, which was published in The New Yorker in 2019.

www.newyorker.com

Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 2d

An article with links to fascinating research! #womenwriters #womenshistory @brethertonwords.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/science/2025...?

Was prehistory a feminist paradise?

Visions of matriarchal utopia may be wishful thinking, but there’s growing evidence of women wielding power

www.theguardian.com

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Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 2d

Looking forward to reading @lilydunn.bsky.social’s “Into Being”, which launches today, live on Substack at 7 pm BST! #writing #memoir

Manchester University Press @manchesterup.bsky.social · 19d

Join us next month as @lilydunn.bsky.social hits the road next month to launch her new book, 'Into being', sharing the secrets of writing memoir.

Coming to a bookshop, festival or university near you, visit our Events page for more info and tickets: manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/events #booksky

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Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 2d

Thank you, @drnaomibaker.bsky.social. 👏 It really is vital for a wide public to be aware of the path by which we get to real conquests - not just to fully appreciate these, but also not to take them for granted.

Naomi Baker @drnaomibaker.bsky.social · 5d

As the first female Archbishop of Canterbury is appointed, it’s worth remembering that dissenting women were preaching to mixed sex congregations in London as early as 1645. My book Voices of Thunder has a whole section on 17th-century “she-preachers”

#earlymodern

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Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 3d

Well done for having the first draft! Such an important milestone. 👏 Editing tends to take longer than writing the first draft, so it helps to think of it as something to be expected and enjoyed. It’s an integral part of the creative process. 💪

Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 3d

… and #Autumn has come to the Swiss Alps. Never seen so many varieties of mushrooms on one walk. Here are just four types. We didn’t pick any, as we don’t know anything about mushrooms, but they were beautiful to look at.

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Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 3d

Yearning for a #writingretreat to kickstart your #writing or to breathe new energy into a work in progress? Here is a glimpse into my retreats – in participants’ own words. Come and join me in March, June, or September 2026! valeriavescina.com/2025/01/27/a... #WritingCommunity #writingworkshop

A writing retreat in the Swiss Alps

Here’s a post to give you a flavour of the writing retreats in the Bernese Oberland. I’ve run several retreats in this spectacular corner of the world, and it’s where I’ll be hosting future ones. T…

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Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 4d

I loved reading this. The discovery of layers and layers of historical details hidden in and underneath legal documents has also been my experience, while researching and writing my second novel, which is set in sixteenth-century Italy. #writing #earlymodern

Dr Laura Sangha (@lsangha.bsky.social)

I really liked the fact that Dylan chose to research a 'boring' will from our collection - one with very few personal or sentimental bequests. As you will read, even wills like this contain a lot of…

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Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 4d

Good luck with your search!

Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 5d

Or the illegitimate daughter of someone who eventually left her something in his/her will?

Reposted by Valeria Vescina

Bryn Donovan @bryndonovan.bsky.social · 5d

The most common error I see as a book editor is incorrectly punctuated dialogue.

NO: “Nice to meet you.” She said.
YES: “Nice to meet you,” she said.

NO: “Likewise.” The editor said.
YES: “Likewise,” the editor said.

NO: She smiled, “Hi."
YES: She smiled. “Hi.”

Repost to save a life 😂
#writesky

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Reposted by Valeria Vescina

Jana M. Perkins @janajm.com · 6d

For Women of Letters, I had the great pleasure of talking with @corinnelow.com.

We discuss her new book, the economics of women’s lives, why she left a job at the top consulting firm in the world, becoming a tenured professor at Wharton, & so much more. 📚💙

womenofletters.substack.com/p/corinne-low

A screenshot of text that reads:

Having It All: In Conversation with Corinne Low

"I really did not want my book to gaslight women about the real challenges that we face in making it all add up. I wanted to be really honest about my own struggles to make that all work."

WOMENOFLETTERS.SUBSTACK.COM

A screenshot of text that reads:

Fast-forward to today. How did the path to what you’re doing now unfold?

CL: I majored in economics while I minored in kind of my true passion of writing.

I loved economics, and I thought it was a really elegant and beautiful way to understand the world. I didn’t necessarily know what a career in economics looked like, but a lot of my friends were interviewing for consulting positions. So, at the same time as I was deciding, like, maybe writing isn’t what’s going to pay off my student loans, my friends were interviewing for these consulting positions. They were like, “Oh, you get a signing bonus— it’s great!” And I was like, “I’ll just give it a try. I’ll interview.”

“You’re not going to be able to plan it out from the beginning. But how are you setting yourself up for that next step?”

A screenshot of text that reads:

In her meticulously researched, newly published book, Corinne brings her years of expertise as a Wharton professor and an economist studying gender to answer the age-old question: is it possible for women to have it all?

From parenting to partnership to career planning to self-care, she offers a wealth of accessibly articulated and data-rich insight into so many subjects central to women’s lives—including a detailed account of the many reasons why, historically, ‘having it all’ has been such an elusive goal. If there was one book published on this topic in the last year I would recommend as essential reading, it would be this one.

Jana M. Perkins
 Founder, Women of Letters

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Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 5d

The September #writingretreat brought together writers who had previously attended one of my tutored retreats, so it was extra-special for all of us! Old friendships were deepened, new ones forged, and the group will continue meeting online for feedback & support!

A special writing retreat

Our September 2025 writing retreat has just wrapped up! This special gathering brought together writers who had previously attended one of my tutored retreats. They returned for a week of workshops…

valeriavescina.com

Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 6d

If you're in or near London between today and 12 Nov, here's a fab list of literary events taking place! #WritingCommunity #BookSky #books #literature #writing #reading

All book talks 2 Oct - 12 Nov 2025

Master (mistress) list of London's book talks over the next 6 weeks

literarylistingslondon.substack.com

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Reposted by Valeria Vescina

John McCafferty @jdmccafferty.bsky.social · 6d

Head of a Mourning Woman
Ercole de' Roberti (Ferrara, c. 1455-1496), or after him.

Walters Art Museum

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Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 6d

It is beautiful!

Reposted by Valeria Vescina

Alice Roberts @profaliceroberts.bsky.social · 6d

I’m sad to hear the news that the wonderful Jane Goodall is no longer in the world. Her work with chimpanzees at Gombe in Tanzania taught us to look at other apes - and ourselves - differently. I was privileged to meet her later in life and tell her what an inspiration she was to me.

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Reposted by Valeria Vescina

Joanna Hastings @joannahastings.bsky.social · 6d

Jane. The world is poorer for this loss. May your spirit rise a hundredfold in new brilliant scientific compassionate fearless activists. Your legacy is beyond price. www.theguardian.com/science/2025...

Jane Goodall, world-renowned primatologist, dies aged 91

Jane Goodall Institute says ‘tireless advocate’ for natural world died in California during US speaking tour

www.theguardian.com

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Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 6d

Ever wondered what #writingretreats are like, how they differ from one another, and why they enable leaps forward for #writers at every level of experience? Then this post should be helpful. Happy reading! valeriavescina.com/2022/07/25/t... #WritingCommunity #writingretreat

Top 10 reasons to go on a writing retreat

A view from Flüeli-Ranft Writing away Ever wondered what a writing retreat is all about and whether it would benefit you? There are at least 10 reasons why writing retreats are invaluable. You̵…

valeriavescina.com

Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 7d

In or near Birmingham? Hear @jencalleja.bsky.social speak at @vocebooks.bsky.social this Thursday, 2 October. #newbooks #translation #lifewriting #writerslife

Voce Books (@vocebooks.bsky.social)

🗣️ AUTUMN/WINTER EVENTS AT VOCE BOOKS 📚 Excited to welcome @jencalleja.bsky.social back to Voce with an invitation to join the book fair, art fair, (possibly fun fair?) where her new book FAIR: THE…

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Valeria Vescina @valeriavescina.bsky.social · 8d

Registration is now open for the 2025 @genevawriters.bsky.social conference! #writing #WritingCommunity

Geneva Writers Group (@genevawriters.bsky.social)

✨ The wait is over — registration is now OPEN for the 2025 Geneva Writers Conference! 🎟️ Spots are limited — secure your ticket today! Discover the programme and register here:…

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