![\"\"](\"https:\/\/microcosmpublishing.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/From_Solo_To_Supported_Cover_lg.jpg\")
<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nJessie Kwak, author of\u00a0From Chaos to Creativity,<\/em>\u00a0returns with a guide on networking and building your community, with clear and easy to follow advice. Learn how to form your own \u201cwriting constellation,\u201d how to create an elevator pitch, tips on reaching out (without being a creep), and how to navigate things like events, classes, workshops, and more. A great read for writers new and old to shift their mindset away from the solo grind to enthusiastic collaboration and building an open, welcoming support network.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Keep reading for an excerpt of Jessie L. Kwak<\/a>‘s <\/strong><\/em>From Solo to Supported<\/a><\/strong>, available now from our site or from an indie bookseller near you! <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n One of my favorite parts of any book is the acknowledgments. I mean, I love getting lost in the story and absorbed in the prose. I love bonding with characters and learning new facts and exploring complex ideas. But I really, really love that moment at the end when the author pulls back the curtain and gives the world a peek at how much community goes into writing a book. The average acknowledgments page includes people like editors, critique partners, teachers, and mentors who helped get the dream across the finish line. It also tends to include folks like neighbors and family members and friends and babysitters\u2014all the people around a writer who supported and enabled the dream.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And, of course, there are almost always shout-outs to the nebulous cloud of writer friends and groups who inspired and encouraged the writer, and kept the dream alive in the most frustrating hours. If you\u2019ve only seen depictions of a writer in popular culture, you could be forgiven for thinking we\u2019re all reclusive loners, hermitted away in our cabins in the woods while we work on our magnum opus. But the truth is that almost all successful writers are surrounded by a web (a network! a constellation!) of people who are critical to their journey. Yes, the main requirement of writing is to sit alone with one\u2019s thoughts. But that doesn\u2019t mean writing has to be a solitary pursuit. Instead, it can happen with the support and encouragement of a vibrant, uplifting community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In fact, I would argue that community isn\u2019t just nice for writers to have. It\u2019s actually a huge part of what will make you successful (whatever your version of success looks like). Your writing skill, your perseverance, your mindset\u2014all of that matters. But your community is the electric current that will keep you going for the long term.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They say success is all about who you know\u2014and they\u2019re right. Your community will help you professionally. They\u2019ll tell you about opportunities, invite you to submit to anthologies and promo opportunities, and introduce you to people who will open doors. Your community will hone your craft. They\u2019ll critique your work, challenge you to write better, hold you accountable to your goals, and inspire you to push yourself in new directions. Your community will support you personally. They\u2019ll hear you when you need to vent. They\u2019ll celebrate your wins with you. They\u2019ll get it when you have some weird writer-specific complaint, like how your characters aren\u2019t behaving and have totally derailed your plot. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Success is all about who you know. But I don\u2019t want you to feel like that\u2019s a barrier. I want you to see it as an opportunity. Because you, too, can build a writing community that supports you in the tough times and celebrates with you in the good times. You can make connections with people who will become your collaborators and introduce you to opportunities. You can construct a thriving, healthy network that will make your writing more fun and fruitful, whether you\u2019re pursuing a professional career or simply enjoy writing as a hobby. I know this idea might seem intimidating, especially if you\u2019re shy and introverted\u2014and let\u2019s face it, a lot of writers are. But don\u2019t worry. You don\u2019t need to become a master schmoozer or have been born with a zillion Charisma points to build your writing network.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How do I know? Because when I was in my early twenties, I didn\u2019t know anyone who wrote speculative fiction. I was an incredibly shy kid. I was terrified of introducing myself to strangers and would get tongue-tied any time someone asked me to talk about my writing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here\u2019s the secret: I still am. But I\u2019ve learned to manage that fear. And one person at a time, one encounter at a time, one brave step at a time, I\u2019ve surrounded myself with a writing community that Jessie from twenty years ago couldn\u2019t have even imagined. If I could teach myself how to enjoy networking, believe me, you definitely can.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Build your confidence and your community as a writer with<\/em> From Solo to Supported: A Writer’s Guide to Finding Community<\/a> by Jessie L. Kwak<\/a>, shipping now from Microcosm or your favorite bookseller!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Writing doesn’t have to be lonely Our culture treats the artist toiling in solitude like a romantic idea, but that\u2019s rarely how it happens in the real world. Writing doesn\u2019t have to be isolating\u2014art flourishes in community. If you know where to look, there\u2019s a whole world of writers out there, waiting to connect. Jessie… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[12,51,248,344,240],"class_list":["post-6592","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blogifesto","tag-business-of-publishing","tag-diy","tag-excerpt","tag-fall-2025","tag-writing"],"my_excerpt":"\n Our culture treats the artist toiling in solitude like a romantic idea, but that\u2019s rarely how it happens in the real world. Writing doesn\u2019t have to be isolating\u2014art flourishes in community. If you know where to look, there\u2019s a whole world of writers out there, waiting to connect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jessie Kwak, author of\u00a0From Chaos to Creativity,<\/em>\u00a0returns with a guide on networking and building your community, with clear and easy to follow advice. Learn how to form your own \u201cwriting constellation,\u201d how to create an elevator pitch, tips on reaching out (without being a creep), and how to navigate things like events, classes, workshops, and more. A great read for writers new and old to shift their mindset away from the solo grind to enthusiastic collaboration and building an open, welcoming support network.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Keep reading for an excerpt of Jessie L. Kwak<\/a>'s <\/strong><\/em>From Solo to Supported<\/a><\/strong>, available now from our site or from an indie bookseller near you! <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n","my_excerpt_rendered":"\n Our culture treats the artist toiling in solitude like a romantic idea, but that\u2019s rarely how it happens in the real world. Writing doesn\u2019t have to be isolating\u2014art flourishes in community. If you know where to look, there\u2019s a whole world of writers out there, waiting to connect.<\/p>\n\n\n Jessie Kwak, author of\u00a0From Chaos to Creativity,<\/em>\u00a0returns with a guide on networking and building your community, with clear and easy to follow advice. Learn how to form your own \u201cwriting constellation,\u201d how to create an elevator pitch, tips on reaching out (without being a creep), and how to navigate things like events, classes, workshops, and more. A great read for writers new and old to shift their mindset away from the solo grind to enthusiastic collaboration and building an open, welcoming support network.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Keep reading for an excerpt of Jessie L. Kwak<\/a>‘s <\/strong><\/em>From Solo to Supported<\/a><\/strong>, available now from our site or from an indie bookseller near you! <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/microcosmpublishing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6592","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/microcosmpublishing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/microcosmpublishing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/microcosmpublishing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/microcosmpublishing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6592"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/microcosmpublishing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6592\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6594,"href":"https:\/\/microcosmpublishing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6592\/revisions\/6594"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/microcosmpublishing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6592"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/microcosmpublishing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6592"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/microcosmpublishing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6592"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}It Takes a Community<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Writing doesn't have to be lonely<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\nWriting doesn’t have to be lonely<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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