Dave Swan is querying

@davesswan

Writer, ex-journalist, freelance editor. Querying #HistoricalFiction; short stories at daveswanauthor.wordpress.com/. This feed shames fascists. #GoBlue

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Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· 15d

A modest proposal. Here's another one: next time, hire an editor! #writing #copyediting

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· 16d

Every legendary villain began as somebody’s ex, or boss, or neighbor. #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and John Grisham quote: “The good thing about writing fiction is that you can get back at people.”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· 20d

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· 21d

Oh AP, dear, sweet precious AP. You ought to know better.

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· 23d

Keep polishing your craft. Even if you’ve been at it for years. #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and Pearl Cleage quote: “Many times, what people call writer’s block is the confusion that happens when the writer has a great idea, but their skill is not up to the task of putting it down on paper.”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Jul 14

Readers don’t want safety. They want their hearts warmed and their spines tingled. #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and Lucy Prebble quote: “Feeling intimidated is a good sign. Writing from a place of safety produces stuff that is at best dull and at worst dishonest.”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Jul 7

Except for these: Have fun! Do your best work. Don’t insult your readers or let the Debbie Downers get to you. #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and Doris Lessing quote: “There are no laws for the novel. There never have been, nor can there ever be.”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Jul 2

How do you screw up something this simple? Especially when the correct state is right there in the caption?

Photo of Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell with caption indicating he's from Kentucky.

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Jul 1

He was Hemingway and Fitzgerald’s editor, so he knew about “real novelists.” I’m one. Don’t sweat it if you are too. #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and Maxwell Perkins quote: “If you get discouraged, it is not a bad sign but a good one. If you think you are not doing it well, you are thinking the way real novelists do.”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Jun 29

My wife and I woke up to find these two big redtails hanging out on our neighbor's fence this morning. They seem to have taken up residence around here. Welcome! #nature #birds #summer2026

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Jun 26

Doctorow never had a GPS but the principle is the same. Try it! #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and E. L. Doctorow quote: “Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can only see as far as your headlights but you can make the whole trip that way.”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Jun 12

Primaries and runoffs matter here in Georgia and everywhere. We need the best candidates at all levels of government to lift us out of this nightmare. VOTE! #electionupdate #election2026 #primaryvoting

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Jun 9

Just remember: you can kill them off if necessary. #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and Shonda Rimes quote: “You can’t tell stories and really walk in someone’s shoes and not have a love for them, even if they’re doing horrible things.”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Jun 3

My summer #writing space on our new screened porch. Hope I don't get too relaxed to be creative. #writerslife

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Jun 2

That’s a sure ticket to frustration for you and boredom for your readers. After all, Lincoln didn’t sit down to write THE GETTYSBURG ADDRESS. #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and Douglas Adams quote: “There’s nothing worse than sitting down to write a novel and saying, ‘Well, okay, I’m going to do something of high artistic worth.’”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Jun 1

Does reading the New Yorker's fiction issue count as writing? Asking for a friend. #amwriting #writerslife

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· May 26

Go ahead - you won’t get sued. Just don’t borrow so much that your readers notice. #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and Molly Ivins quote: “I often plagiarize from myself. I like to think of this as ecological journalism: I recycle.”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· May 25

These are the people we've lost in Trump's war. Remember. #Iranwar #MemorialDay2026

List of names of U.S. service members who've died in the Iran war.

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· May 23

Had a great seafood lunch at the Captain's Table in Panama City FL. #gulfofmexico #memorialdayweekend2026

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· May 20

Any questions? Good! #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and Tony Kushner quote: “Torture yourself over your failures. And then get back to work.”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· May 18

I thank the Atlanta Writers Club for recognizing my short story “Everything Must Go” in the club’s annual writing contest. It's about a woman whose moving sale is a cover for a life-changing decision. Hopefully you’ll be able to read it soon; my other stories are at daveswanauthor.wordpress.com.

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· May 12

Some people turn their hate into a full-time job. But you already have at least one of those. #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and Brene Brown quote: “Don’t try to win over the haters. You are not a jackass whisperer.”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· May 10

My new side hustle! #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· May 5

Be yourself. Nobody else will. #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and Nicola Yoon quote: “Let your freak flag fly. Your odd, quirky, unique voice is what makes your story special. Be who you want and be joyful.”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Apr 28

“Safe art” is an oxymoron. You’re putting yourself out there, period. But what else can you do? #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and Francis Ford Coppola quote: “There can’t be art without risk. It’s like saying No Sex and then expecting there to be children.”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Apr 25

#amwriting #books

Woman in front of 3 bookshelves labeled, Best Sellers, New Releases, and Books you still haven't finished yet, Claire.

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Apr 21

Trends come and go. Find your truth and keep telling it. #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and Barbara Kingsolver quote: “Don’t try to figure out what other people want from you, figure out what you have to say. It’s the one and only thing you have to offer.”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Apr 14

Tame that thesaurus! A verb should convey action, not esoterica. #amwriting #writetip #WritingCommunity #writerslife

Ocean sunrise and Johnathan Franzen quote: “Interesting verbs are seldom very interesting.”

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Apr 10

I got used to being bald a long time ago. A lot of guys today are fighting it, sometimes to the point of obsession. Read more in my new Substack post: daveswan.substack.com/publish/post... #baldness #hairloss #finasteride

Dave Swan is querying@davesswan· Apr 9

In celebration of Local News Day, I'm sharing this memory of my somewhat younger self there in the middle, trying to snag a quote from a newly-named University of Michigan president. I was then in my first real radio job with WPAG-AM/FM in Ann Arbor, now WTKA. #news #LocalNewsDay #radio #journalism