Nicole Sune Sbitani (she/her) is a diplomat by day and speculative fiction author by night. The views expressed in her newsletter or on her website are her own and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Department of State or the United States.
New fantasy story out now
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Hello! I'm excited to share I have a new story out called "Get Your Fix" in 100-Foot Crow. This story's an ode to service workers and the million small, daily interactions that impact us in unseen ways. You can read it for free on the 100-Foot Crow website. I love 100-Foot Crow because all they publish are speculative fiction drabbles. In other words, they publish science fiction and fantasy stories that are exactly 100 words - no more, no less. One of the reasons I love reading and writing microfiction like drabbles is because I can always make time for them no matter how busy I am. These short pieces come with their own set of challenges, too, like: how can you tell a complete story with so few words? How can you use the reader's assumptions to fill in what's left unsaid and fill out a very short story? How do you land a satisfying ending that doesn't feel like a cheap twist, when you have so little time to build up to it? If you're interested in the craft of drabbles and very short fiction, I recommend perusing the 100-Foot Crow blog and joining the subset of the #WritingCommunity on Bluesky that regularly writes microfiction. My favorite resource is the hashtag #vss365, which stands for "very short story, 365 days a year" and provides a daily microfiction prompt. If you try it out, please tag my Bluesky account so I can enjoy reading your work, too! Thanks for reading! Nicole Disclaimer: The views expressed in my newsletter or on my website are my own and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Department of State or the United States. |
Nicole Sune Sbitani
Nicole Sune Sbitani (she/her) is a diplomat by day and speculative fiction author by night. The views expressed in her newsletter or on her website are her own and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Department of State or the United States.
Hello! I finished my second draft of my novel manuscript, and it feels amazing! For Fics & Dip readers who are not writers: most books go through many, many drafts. This is not the first novel manuscript I've ever written, but it is the first I've seriously revised. I learned so much about myself and my editing process along the way, and I'm so proud of how much better the second draft is compared to the first draft. When I mention to people I'm writing a novel, they often immediately asked,...
Hello! If you're a mom like me, you've probably heard a million variations on the parenting advice: "let them be bored!" I see this sentiment all the time as a reaction to today's over scheduled, high-pressure environment where parents feel they need to fill every bit of their children's lives with sports, social activities, clubs, family obligations, seasonal traditions, etc. It seems especially relevant during summer breaks in the United States, at least, where some feel guilty if they...
Hello! Some days, I really wish there was a shortcut for learning writing craft. I finished listening to Brandon Sanderson's 2025 lecture series that I mentioned before, and he talks about writing 12 (!) books over about 10 years (!!) before he got his first offer of publication... for a measly $5,000 advance (that was negotiated up to a whopping $10,000). There are few careers that pay worse than writing for the majority of authors, which is one of the reasons why most novelists have day...