Hacks for Hacks: Sense of humor requiredThe complexities of the publishing industry can confuse new and aspiring writers. Inspired by Ambrose Bierce’s The Devil’s Dictionary, I present this handy lexicon to
show you all the terms you need to know as you start your literary career.
#amwriting (slang): Twitter hashtag that signals the arrival of a context-free non-sequitur. Designed to make the activity of sitting in front of a computer sound interesting.
Advance (n.): a sum of money offered to a writer prior to publication; invariably smaller than the advance given to that one author you hate.
Amazon (n.): the Great Beast slouching toward New York City via free Prime shipping. Hey, the UPS truck is here!
Comic Sans (n.): a whimsical typeface derived from Latin sans for “without” and comic for “dignity.”
Aspiring writer (n.): what authors refer to themselves as when they’re blogging instead of working on their manuscript.
Barnes & Noble (n.): america’s leading retailer of notebooks, pens, and coffee mugs.
Beta reader (n.): a reader who sees an almost-ready draft of your novel before you show it to your VHS readers.
Blogging (v.): authors sharing writing advice with their audience, who presumably consist only of other writers.
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