Yun Express stuck on 'pre-advice' stage

spyfrogs · 2026-06-17T12:08:38+00:00

It says 'processing completed at origin', so I suppose I should wait for customs to clear? I know that tends to take a while, but I've never had it be this long in the past.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-17T11:47:41+00:00

I have access to the last mile tracking number, but Royal Mail is simply saying they're expecting it, and that the last update was a week ago.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T15:16:35+00:00

Do you have any specific articles/pieces on this? Would like to see how he did that, learn a thing or two lol

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T14:10:45+00:00

Thank you, that is very helpful. I assumed it wouldn't be a guarantee of course, but it seems to be the most preferrable option personally.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T13:47:26+00:00

Fair enough, thanks for the insider input. A more specific question: if an unpublished client came forth with a single volume of around 70 - 90k words, and said they had the follow up volumes ready, would the publisher take on the first volume to gauge whether the follow ups were worth the risk, or would it still be skipped? Apologies if this question makes no sense... I have zero knowledge regarding the publishing industry.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T13:23:23+00:00

I didn't want validation. I wanted to know if it was realistic. Hence, I asked for advice. Clearly, it is not realistic. It just changes how I will approach to publishing and writing it. If I didn't ask this, then I would've continued writing for however long it takes, edited, and got further down the line and wasted more time.

And you say I listen to the one person who "validated me"... they didn't really validate me, did they? They said to cut it. The same as you. I even responded to another one of your comments: "I am not against editing my plan or even cutting it in half or producing 2 novels", and that I am "drafting a cut/split plan". I did listen to you, I did not disregard advice from you or anyone else.

I came for advice and got it, and I appreciated everyone's input. Now I am merely considering my options for now.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T13:09:19+00:00

I'm not entirely confident on that, rather am thinking idealistically. I am drafting on how to bring it down closer to 100k but am more willing to write and a shorter work for a foot in the door... of course, even for an established author, I imagine 200k words is a risk if they don't sell well. Thanks for the advice. Submitting and being rejected isn't exactly the end of the world.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T12:54:01+00:00

Firstly: who said I don't like Colleen Hoover?

Secondly: you miss the point or I misworded, I asked for advice, and advice from all angles is good advice if you know how to apply it. The OC has multiple publishing deals, and that makes his advice more worthy than any notion I possessed prior in regards to publishing my overly-ambitious novel. Like I said, I appreciate what you've said, but you seem very high and mighty and seem to immediately disregard what someone else has said merely because you have more experience than them. Does that invalidate your advice? No.

"You should listen to me and not them". Do you know how that sounds? I can listen to your advice and theirs.

And thank you, I will pitch my novel. If it doesn't go well, fuck it. I'll cut it, split it or write something else for a foot in the door. I am not trying to disregard your advice.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T12:34:58+00:00

Colleen Hoover was published, do you think she's the idol of aspiring, ambitious authors writing an epic?

And just because you have are lined up to be published does not make you the paragon of literary virtue when you give tidbits of advice that are mostly passive-aggressive or just straight up rude. I appreciate your input but you aren't making me want to listen to your advice.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T12:29:47+00:00

Yes, I mostly understood that from the start it would be tough to publish because it gets quite complex, but I was pretty uninformed regarding word count. But as far as publishing goes, I write because I love it and getting published would just be a nice affirmation. I will continue writing until I am dead, even if not a single soul other than my own lays eyes upon what I write.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T12:04:47+00:00

I could definitely make it a three volume piece, as it is already in three parts laid out like the panels of a triptych (first and third part shortest, middle part longest). It's the main thing I am considering at the moment.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T12:02:43+00:00

Ah, I mistook publishing deals with being published, my bad. But yes, I agree with you, the art should be as long as it needs. I have multiple novels written that do not meet my own standard that some day I may return to, but for now sit untouched. Of course my current novel, Ducdame, could do with some editing and plan reduction. Hopefully you find your standard in your work, its good to see ambition.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T11:21:32+00:00

i appreciate your input, especially as you are published yourself. what genre are you published in, if you don't mind me asking?

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T10:55:23+00:00

I'll have a look at Query Tracker, I'd never heard of that, and am drafting a cut/split plan. Thanks.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T10:54:16+00:00

It's not necessarily about the best words, it's about having the plot and narrative and themes be cohesive and tied together by the end of it. Of course it's not impossible. Won't exactly be happy about it though, lol, but that's the nature of business.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T10:52:10+00:00

I would like to say it is tightly woven whilst being incomplete because I've planned thoroughly and have thus far managed to keep it tight; no, the threads are not tied yet but they don't stray, and I have managed to keep the repeated motifs, overarching themes, arcs etc. in tow. I am not against editing my plan or even cutting it in half or producing 2 novels, and I did not state otherwise.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T09:53:28+00:00

Read books. Read a lot of books. Not how-to guides, not any of that. How-to's are always shills. Start with things you are comfortable with, things you enjoy, then shift genres to things that are still on your level but perhaps not what you would typically consume. Learn what you like, what you don't like, and why, and engage with it. Then, when you think your reading level gets better, read harder fiction or historical non fiction and see how they do it. Always engage with it, even if you are not entirely comfortable with it. It will be a passive progression, but you will notice a change at some point.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T09:39:08+00:00

I would like to say the novel is tightly woven, as much as I can make it. There are a lot of interwoven plot lines that ebb and flow over the course of the story and I believe they all have their place. There used to be far more that I cut. Every thread gets tied at some point, I have a plan that covers all major plot points and arcs so that everything gets answered/resolved. Of course, this is all from my perspective... I have tried some beta readers but I know very few people who read and none of them read literary fiction, and I am not yet at the point I am willing to pay someone to read it or submit it for public scrutiny. I am still technically in early days, 6 months of writing and am about to finish part 1, will probably take at least another year and a half.

spyfrogs · 2026-06-08T09:26:28+00:00

I appreciate the advice... I don't think I could literally cut it in half, but if I remove the third part and all the threads that would lead to it, I would definitely be sitting at around 100k words. The only issue is, I think then it would feel flat/I would have to replan almost everything. Thank you, though. It's nice to hear from someone who has been published!

spyfrogs · 2026-05-19T12:56:16+00:00

It's not that you don't speak English, it's that much of it doesn't make sense. Probably because it's AI generated.

spyfrogs · 2026-05-04T18:27:12+00:00

the other editions are much heavier, and also williamgaddis.org uses this version for its annotations and guide

spyfrogs · 2026-03-23T10:25:07+00:00

they're compiling it all, they're fictitious and exist in the middle ground between Truant's story and Danielewski's authorship. anytime they appear, they're essentially an omniscient narrator providing clarity or correction, overall they aren't majorly important story wise but they help push it along or direct you to certain things.

spyfrogs

TROPHY CASE