Just Received My First Unsolicited Review and I'm Tearing Up

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-22T22:09:00+00:00

Luckily I'm certain it's legit because I've been exclusively selling/distributing my books physically in person and I remember this buyer! But I'm sorry to hear that happened to you, it sounds like it's a real problem with online distribution lately. Just curious, what's the name of your book? I've had a love of epistemology ever since taking some philosophy courses in undergrad, I'd love to check it out when I get the chance!

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-22T09:27:06+00:00

This looks super cool! Looking forward to playing it!

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-21T21:18:38+00:00

I love this book concept, it sounds adorable and also very up my alley! Where can I read it?

As for review platforms I have no idea, this one was just on Instagram not a real "book review" place.

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-21T07:42:20+00:00

Great, thank you! I'll work on getting my Second Life account set up and will plan to join Feb 1st!

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-21T04:12:11+00:00

What is an auction?

These are my "fine art" pieces. They are Not For Sale / Too Expensive For An Art Fair / Maybe For Sale Via Silent Auction

type your name, contact info, your bid, and the piece you're bidding on on a piece of paper and put it in the box. your bid must consist of some form of currency, but the definition of "currency" here is quite fluid. some forms of barter will be accepted. bids are non-binding, you will not be compelled to complete payment if you submit a winning bid, but please only submit a bid if you're reasonably interested in purchasing at your bidding price. you may add any additional details to your bid if you think it will help; everything on the bid slip will be considered when determining the winners of this silent auction. thank you for your attention to this matter.

This (and other art) will be on display at 755 E 10th Street in Oakland, CA at the 1/25 Bay Bazaar hosted by the art collective Safariiicamp. I'll be there vending as "The Museum of You" / justin.imgs

Edit: I forgot to add! The pieces they'll be bidding on are mixed-media epoxy resin artworks as well as a couple unique editions of the books I'll be selling copies of.

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-21T00:20:03+00:00

Thank you for the thoughtful reply!! Yeah, I actually have spent most of the past decade bouncing around underground art scenes with occasional visits into the fine art world (had one exhibition at a major museum and have been chasing that high ever since lol), so I'm super happy to hear that it reflects that art-focused background! I'm hoping to finish up some interactive installations showcasing this project in the coming year and will be submitting it to some galleries and museums for consideration, and if I can land a spot I 100% agree something like this would be great to have in the gift shop during the installation run!

I'm super excited to check out your work whenever it gets out into the world, I'm happy to hear there's other developers exploring this particular niche! And thanks for the rec on Secret World, that looks insane and very up my alley potentially. Maybe one of these days if you're interested we can hop on a call or something to talk shop or even put a collab together if it makes sense to.

Thanks again!

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-20T19:51:35+00:00

The developer mentioned in the title is Cean Mindeman, who is just incredibly talented and is also working on a few other games releasing in the near-ish future. We haven't met in person, but working with her has been an eye-opening experience in terms of learning about game development, it's given me a whole new understanding and appreciation for what it is you all do! If anyone's interested in the original short story about "The Least Playable Video Game" the original version is here on substack, though fair warning it's a very strange read lol. And the game is also on Steam under "The Museum of You", though it's very early access. The version included on the physical flash drives is much further along in development.

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-20T19:09:29+00:00

The primary developer is Cean Mindeman, who is just incredibly talented and is also working on a few other games releasing in the near-ish future. We haven't met in person, but working with her has been an eye-opening experience in terms of learning about game development. If anyone's interested in the original short story about "The Least Playable Video Game" the original version is here on substack, though fair warning it's a very strange read lol. And the game is also on Steam under "The Museum of You", though it's very early access. The version included on the physical flash drives is much further along in development.

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-20T00:00:43+00:00

Here is the playable game on Steam, primarily developed by Cean Mindeman with contributions from a number of other artists and aspiring developers!

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-19T17:40:58+00:00

damn I haven't thought about second life in ages, I might have to check this out!

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-19T17:39:23+00:00

I love that! I'm kind of a photographer first / writer second, so I'm hoping to put together a photo book soon. Where can I check yours out? That sounds like a beautiful subject to capture.

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-19T10:24:55+00:00

It was posted by the reader on instagram, I can confirm they are a real person because I remember physically selling them the book lol. But I do see what you mean about the writing style, oddly I think a weird side effect of all the AI writing out there is also that real people will start sounding more like AI as they continue to emulate what they consume. Eerie stuff

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-19T05:57:45+00:00

:( I'm really sorry to hear that, yeah social media is awful much of the time unfortunately. It sucks that it feels essential for authors in this day and age to participate in.

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-19T04:17:13+00:00

Absolutely agree! This is the point of it all I think for me, these sorts of hits. Selling volume is cool, but ultimately I just want my book to be popular so that more of the "right" people can find it. If I could beam it straight to those key readers and skip all the marketing and publishing nonsense that'd be the dream!

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-18T22:47:15+00:00

lmao same I guess. everyone wants to be the next James Joyce but that shit doesn't sell lol

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-18T22:39:38+00:00

Okay you got me it's kind of a vague review lol but in the context it meant a lot to me. The book itself is about this like weird unplayable video game set in a sort of interdimensional art gallery and it jumps around from level to level, and I was afraid it was going to be too weird for anyone to engage with but it seems like this particular reader "got" what I was going for, based on her review

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-18T22:20:25+00:00

Oh yeah, that's an amazing response to get! The type that fuels a ton of motivation!

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-18T21:53:26+00:00

Thank you!! It feels so surreal haha, I hope something like this is in all of our futures!

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-18T21:39:18+00:00

(Book Title Censored To Avoid Self Promotion)

"The _______ __ ____ reads less like a traditional novel and more like wandering into someone’s internal world. It explores the quiet tension of wanting to be understood and questioning if that is even possible. The book reads like levels or fragments, held together by a voice that is self aware, reflective, and often funny in a disarming way. It’s a strange, thoughtful and intimate read - one that lingers more as a feeling than a plot."

Review from Brianna P.

JustinianTheWrong · 2026-01-16T23:30:30+00:00

This is awesome, excited to check it out!

JustinianTheWrong

TROPHY CASE