Rachel E. Tell (is querying)
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racheletell.bsky.social
Rachel E. Tell (is querying)
@racheletell.bsky.social
25 followers 89 following 62 posts
✨ goes by Rae, hi!
☕ 50% coffee 30% emotional turmoil 20% punctuation
🖋️ querying The Refinement: Mercury
📚 YA | fantasy | psych. horror | romance
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racheletell.bsky.social
Rachel E. Tell (is querying) @racheletell.bsky.social · 3d
LOOK I found a future reader in the wild! SQUEE!!! This seriously made my whole week. (Quote posted with permission.)

#YAauthor #AmQuerying #QueryTrenches #AuthorJourney #writersofbluesky
A gold-framed screenshot of a social media post. The top post reads: “Meanwhile I’m over here pitching a manuscript that’s basically Mob Psycho 100 meets NXIVM documentary, with a little bit of Return to Oz and Jacob’s-Ladder-but-make-it-Disney-Princess thrown in for the vibes.” Below it is a highlighted comment from another user that says: “WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT DESCRIPTION 👀👀👀 How does Jacob’s Ladder + Disney Princess even work?!?! What do I have to do to read this?!?!?!?!?! 😳😳😳” The background is a soft, dark image with a girl's face surrounded by curly hair woven with flowers and gold glitter accents.
Reposted by Rachel E. Tell (is querying)
thisone0verhere.bsky.social
Being an adult is basically exactly like Ratatouille except you're both the clueless human AND the rat who's trying so so hard to make him do things and also it's way less funny and you don't live in Paris
November 26, 2025 at 3:21 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
Ad: Are you in X demographic? (millennial, parent, neurodivergent, burned-out gifted kid, Suzuki kid, querying author, etc.)

Me: Why yes I am!

Ad: Do you love adventure?!

Me: No. *scrolls* Ooh, pictures of cats!
November 25, 2025 at 1:34 AM
Reposted by Rachel E. Tell (is querying)
wippit.bsky.social
with that, they absolutely deserve to shine. I just ask that you allow the wips to shine in #wippit and refrain from posting query ready or published books. We have lots of events for those projects, you can check @thewriterscalendar.bsky.social for dates, I'll do my best to keep them up to date.
November 24, 2025 at 2:11 AM
Reposted by Rachel E. Tell (is querying)
thewriterscalendar.bsky.social
Calendar Directional: (links to each one)
October 31, 2025 at 4:57 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
LOOK I found a future reader in the wild! SQUEE!!! This seriously made my whole week. (Quote posted with permission.)

#YAauthor #AmQuerying #QueryTrenches #AuthorJourney #writersofbluesky
A gold-framed screenshot of a social media post. The top post reads: “Meanwhile I’m over here pitching a manuscript that’s basically Mob Psycho 100 meets NXIVM documentary, with a little bit of Return to Oz and Jacob’s-Ladder-but-make-it-Disney-Princess thrown in for the vibes.” Below it is a highlighted comment from another user that says: “WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT DESCRIPTION 👀👀👀 How does Jacob’s Ladder + Disney Princess even work?!?! What do I have to do to read this?!?!?!?!?! 😳😳😳” The background is a soft, dark image with a girl's face surrounded by curly hair woven with flowers and gold glitter accents.
November 23, 2025 at 6:22 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
Just queried an agent who lists ONE as one of her favorite creators. (Pun impossible to avoid.) Genuinely thrilled she’s an agent who doesn’t send rejections. If I got a form response I’d cry and cry.
November 23, 2025 at 3:38 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
20 queries sent, 6 rejections collected, and the last 3 didn’t even make me cry!!

Good job, me.

#YAauthor #AmQuerying #QueryTrenches #AuthorJourney #writersofbluesky
a woman wearing glasses is waving her hand while sitting on a couch .
ALT: a woman wearing glasses is waving her hand while sitting on a couch .
media.tenor.com
November 22, 2025 at 2:53 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
What animals do you want to befriend before you die? My list:

Elephant
Fuzzy cow
Armadillo
Donkey
Corvid (crow or raven, NOT bluejay)
Seal

#AnimalsOfBluesky #AnimalLovers #WildlifeWednesday #CozyWeb #SoftQuestions
November 20, 2025 at 4:10 AM
racheletell.bsky.social
You fool! You fell victim to one of the classic blunders! Never spend an hour researching an agency when every agent is closed to queries!

#selfown #amquerying #querytrenches
a man with a bald head is laughing with his eyes closed and his mouth open .
Alt: Vizzini from the Princess Bride with a bald head is laughing with his eyes closed and his mouth open, then suddenly falls over dead.
media.tenor.com
November 15, 2025 at 2:43 AM
racheletell.bsky.social
Queried one of my top choice agents, eek!

I'm just excited to be in the pile honestly. Knowing she'll read my ideas is neat even if chances are low regardless. Plus I keep refining (ha, title pun) my query materials as I go.

#YAauthor #AmQuerying #QueryTrenches #AuthorJourney #writersofbluesky
November 14, 2025 at 5:59 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
Spent way too much time in Canva last night, but it was a good distraction from the query trenches. New cover art for The Refinement: Mercury, plus mock-ups and trope notes for my other 3 WIPs.

Which one's your favorite?
Which WIP should I focus on first?

#YABooks #amquerying
A dark academia-themed promo slide for The Refinement: Mercury by Rachel E. Tell. The left side features a mock book cover with a soft-focus photo of a girl's face surrounded by flowers and golden sparkles, framed in shadow. Above her, the title reads "The Refinement: Mercury." Below is the tagline: Till the well runs dry. The background is black with honey-gold accents. On the right, handwritten white text lists: “90k word upper YA dark fantasy cult horror” “neurodivergent rep” “stands alone, trilogy-ready” “slow burn grumpy mentor/student to friends to lovers” “an egregious amount of Jungian theory.” At the top, a label reads: Status: Querying. A glitchy, surreal horror-themed slide for Distortions by Rachel E. Tell. The book cover features a warped double image of a woman's face in neon green, blue, and purple, with data-like distortion effects. The bold title "DISTORTIONS" appears at the bottom in all-caps with a cyan and magenta 3D effect. Background is dark maroon with smoke textures. On the right, white handwritten text lists: “YA paranormal psychological horror” “stand-alone novel” “multiple POV” “‘stranger comes to town’ trope” “inspired by Silent Hill and The Haunting of Hill House.” At the top, a label reads: Status: Drafting. A romantasy-themed slide for The Ariad by Rachel E. Tell. The mock book cover shows a silhouetted figure in front of desert rock formations under a star-filled purple sky, framed by ornate white scrollwork. The title reads “The Ariad” in white fantasy font. The background of the slide is muted pink with a galaxy motif. On the right, handwritten white text lists: “new adult post-apocalyptic romantasy” “stand-alone novel” “blacksmith fmc / fish out of water” “ragtag band of heroes” “mmc gets stabbed for fun, might not be human at all.” At the top, a label reads: Status: Drafting. A gritty, thriller-style slide for Broken Link by Rachel E. Tell. The book cover is black with three torn-paper photo fragments showing intense eyes against a broken mirror backdrop. A white illustration of a broken chain winds diagonally across the center. The title “Broken Link” is in bold red font. The background resembles dark riveted metal. On the right, handwritten white text lists: “YA genre-bendy superhero thriller” “mind-linked dual POV romance” “teen agents solving a cold case murder” “physically strong fmc who knows if you’re lying” “kidnapper/murderer getting brought to justice.” At the top, a label reads: Status: Full Re-write.
November 14, 2025 at 2:10 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
Hey friends, found out about this fake Captcha recently. If you happen to stumble on a website where you see this, do NOT follow the steps. Get out of there and run a malware scan instead.

#scamalert #fakecaptcha
A FAKE reCAPTCHA with the header "Complete these Verification Steps". DO NOT follow the website's steps. They are listed as "To better prove you are not a robot, please: 1. Press & hold the Windows Key + R, 2. In the verification window, press Ctrl+V, 3. Press Enter on your keyboard to finish. You will observe and agree: I am not a robot - reCAPTCHA Verification ID" And a Verify button. Do not actually perform any of those steps.
November 14, 2025 at 1:04 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
By the way, I crochet sometimes. I've been doing it since I was 6 and my Grandma taught me how to chain, so I sat there and chained half a skein. Here's a dump of my favorite makes! Ones that I got decent pictures of anyway.

#crochet #CrochetAddict #CrochetCommunity #writerslife
A crochet blanket with a gradient from purple to blue to green to yellow and back and a chevron bobble and gap texture. A zoomed-in image of a shawl in a feather pattern in a gradient of colors from dark purple to red to orange. A blanket with diamond textures that alternate between bobbles and gaps, in warm colors (burgundy, red, copper, and neutrals like taupe, mocha, beige, and cream). A woman with short hair and glasses wearing a sweater in warm colors (burgundy, red, copper, and neutrals like taupe, mocha, beige, and cream).
November 12, 2025 at 1:15 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
I got my first form rejection!

I know it's taboo to respond so I won't, but I wish I could reach out to thank her. It probably sounds silly, but this is a huge milestone for me (and it means that initial wait for the first one is over).

#querytrenches #amquerying #1down99togo
November 11, 2025 at 11:00 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
Something just clicked. Trying to get a book published is a lot like being a parent, isn't it? You start with one problem that seems insurmountable, you get past it by just staying in the game. Your reward is getting to deal with a whole new problem that seems insurmountable! 🧵
November 11, 2025 at 2:54 AM
racheletell.bsky.social
I keep worrying about my novel now that my first queries are out in the void. Especially that my MC will be seen as cliché or boring, because it's YA. 🧵

#AmQuerying #QueryTrenches #AuthorJourney
November 10, 2025 at 4:17 AM
racheletell.bsky.social
Me: I'm doing so well today, I submitted more queries without even crying!

Also me: Why does my head hurt-- oh I've been clenching my jaw for over an hour again, huh?

The good news is that my husband and son are now napping on the couch and it's adorable.

#amquerying #momlife
November 8, 2025 at 8:58 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
See if you can find my son's toes in this picture lol. Seriously, Starbuddy is such a pretty boy, I can't get over it. And Nick is helping me with QueryTracker. "Helping."

#caturday #SeniorCat #RescueCat #AdoptDontShop #CatsofBluesky
A 2 year old rescue cat, silver with some tabby striping, looking out of a window in the sun, with a small boy's feet barely visible behind him. A white senior cat with yellow-green eyes and some tabby markings sitting on a desk in front of a keyboard and mouse, partially blocking the computer monitor.
November 8, 2025 at 4:20 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
Query no. 1: Submitted. Heartrate: 122.

Being an author with anxiety is a trip, y'all. When I signed up for Publisher's Marketplace last night, THAT gave me anxiety. Like logging into the website. Literally nothing was happening.

#AmQuerying #QueryTrenches #AuthorJourney
November 7, 2025 at 11:30 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
It's official.
I've finished the last polish on my manuscript (give or take a random "Oh I should go change--").
I've got my website, query letter, 2 versions of a synopsis.
I signed up for PM and QT and started researching agencies that rep YA Fiction or YA Fantasy.
November 7, 2025 at 9:45 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
Help me procrastinate my final edit by telling me what your favorite writing/editing music is.

#EditingMood #WritingFlow #WritersOfBluesky #AmEditing
November 4, 2025 at 10:56 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
I saw advice about using MS Word's Read Aloud for manuscript polish, but I didn't realize it'd be good for more than just spotting typos.

My book sounds good. Like a real book I'd enjoy reading. Low Self-Esteem Brain doesn't know how to process this.

#AmEditing #WritingTips #AuthorThoughts
November 2, 2025 at 10:00 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
I wrote a 500-word synopsis.

This is normally where I'd say, "Oh no😱!" but honestly, it helped me remember just how much I believe in this book and in Willa herself.

Once I trim another 1k words, I'll be ready for the trenches.

#amwriting #amediting #WritingCommunity #yabooks
October 30, 2025 at 7:34 PM
racheletell.bsky.social
I was today years old when I found out that Substack is another social media platform.

I can't keep up, y'all, I still haven't come to grips with the fact that TikTok is NOT in fact the Army of Oz.
a woman is screaming in front of a mirror while looking at her reflection .
ALT: a woman is screaming in front of a mirror while looking at her reflection .
media.tenor.com
October 29, 2025 at 1:16 AM
racheletell.bsky.social
It's tough to trim down the "maybe" and "kind of" junk words when your main character is habitually uncertain about everything. 😒

#amwriting #amediting #WritingCommunity #yabooks
October 28, 2025 at 3:37 PM