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Mary Schriever's avatar

Drawing obvious inspiration from the photo above, how about ‘A Hole in the Sky’? I think it reflects the dissonance between the church/cult teachings and the reality the characters come to see.

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Victoria Waddle's avatar

I like that one. The title has been chosen—we went for something people would recognize immediately as connected to a polygamous cult.

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Erin Michaela Sweeney's avatar

Hi there,

When I went searching for Publications/Posts/People using "book bans," I found:

Book Riot's Literary Activism (https://literaryactivism.substack.com);

Frank Strong's Anger & Clarity highly detailed post on Texas School Board elections (https://franklinstrong.substack.com/p/what-a-difference-2-years-makes-recapping?utm_source=%2Fsearch%2Fbanning%2520books&utm_medium=reader2);

April White's post at April White Books on designing I Read Banned Books T-shirts and other ally shirts, totes, stickers (https://aprilwhitebooks.substack.com/p/allies?utm_source=%2Fsearch%2Fbook%2520bans&utm_medium=reader2); and

Marietta's in the Middle all about keeping stakeholders informed on the Georgia city's School Board policy, decisions, and direction (https://mariettainthemiddle.substack.com).

With other/different searches, I'm sure you'll find many more allies on Substack to collaborate with, Victoria!

P.S. Happy Mother's Day

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Amanda Karch's avatar

oooh your novel sounds right up my alley, would love to read it!!!

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Amanda Karch's avatar

also reading Cultish right now!

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Victoria Waddle's avatar

Lots to think about with that one. Lululemon fascinates me!

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Richard Donnelly's avatar

A warning to those submitting to lit mags. Don't expect success with the top twenty of thirty. These "prestige" journals are closely tied to academia, they don't publish outsiders, and any review of contributors verifies this. You're much better off with second and third-tier, who will publish you. In addition, this is the place to find no-fee submissions, always a plus.

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Mary Camarillo's avatar

Also thought of you when I read this review in today’s LA Times. https://edition.pagesuite.com/popovers/dynamic_article_popover.aspx?guid=78616ba5-e49a-471a-8604-de5e38f0527d&v=sdk

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Victoria Waddle's avatar

I read that review! The book is on pre-order. I added it to my audible wish list yesterday. ❤️

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Mary Camarillo's avatar

I’ve been thinking about “Community” a lot lately and wonder if that might make a good title.

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Victoria Waddle's avatar

That’s an idea I hadn’t thought of. in the novel, they call the cult “The Community.”

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Kelly Turner's avatar

When you called your book “my cult novel” that set off a little spark for me. It depends on the POV, but I’d be tempted to challenge myself to make a list of 20 possibilities, starting with The Community: My cult novel.

So excited for this novel to come out!

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