@tortoisebooks.bsky.social
Spotted at the Center For Fiction. JERKS is in these places...you're in these places...PEOPLE, DO WE HAVE TO SPELL IT OUT FOR YOU?
December 10, 2025 at 8:14 PM
Spotted at the Center For Fiction. JERKS is in these places...you're in these places...PEOPLE, DO WE HAVE TO SPELL IT OUT FOR YOU?
Super big thanks to all who came out to Hopleaf for Nestor Fest...it was the best event we've had there yet! (And thanks again to Hopleaf for being such awesome hosts!)
December 7, 2025 at 12:14 AM
Super big thanks to all who came out to Hopleaf for Nestor Fest...it was the best event we've had there yet! (And thanks again to Hopleaf for being such awesome hosts!)
Reposted
Hanging with @the-boss-gomez.bsky.social at his book release party along with @tortoisebooks.bsky.social
Buy his book here tortoisebooks.com/store/rescue...
#booksky #ImmigrationStories
#books #80MinutesAroundTheWorld
Buy his book here tortoisebooks.com/store/rescue...
#booksky #ImmigrationStories
#books #80MinutesAroundTheWorld
December 6, 2025 at 11:32 PM
Hanging with @the-boss-gomez.bsky.social at his book release party along with @tortoisebooks.bsky.social
Buy his book here tortoisebooks.com/store/rescue...
#booksky #ImmigrationStories
#books #80MinutesAroundTheWorld
Buy his book here tortoisebooks.com/store/rescue...
#booksky #ImmigrationStories
#books #80MinutesAroundTheWorld
Look. You could get all your Christmas shopping done in one fell swoop tomorrow. But only if you like cool books. Just go to Nestor Fest at Hopleaf from 3-5 and catch an awesome reading from Nestor Gomez. (And Brooke Randel as well!) I'm just saying, it's an option. Just spitballing here.
NestorFest
tomorrow at 3:00 PM
fb.me
December 5, 2025 at 2:51 PM
Look. You could get all your Christmas shopping done in one fell swoop tomorrow. But only if you like cool books. Just go to Nestor Fest at Hopleaf from 3-5 and catch an awesome reading from Nestor Gomez. (And Brooke Randel as well!) I'm just saying, it's an option. Just spitballing here.
Folks, Nestor Fest is THIS SATURDAY from 3-5 at Hopleaf! (5148 N Clark.) It's the launch event for the incomparable Nestor "The Boss" Gomez and RESCUED ME/ME RESCATÓ; we'll also have readings from Stephanie Martinez and Jitesh Jaggi and our very own Brooke Randel. Be there!
December 3, 2025 at 9:23 PM
Folks, Nestor Fest is THIS SATURDAY from 3-5 at Hopleaf! (5148 N Clark.) It's the launch event for the incomparable Nestor "The Boss" Gomez and RESCUED ME/ME RESCATÓ; we'll also have readings from Stephanie Martinez and Jitesh Jaggi and our very own Brooke Randel. Be there!
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i strongly, strongly believe that good writing is downstream of clear thinking and a strong understanding of the subject matter at hand. without fail, tortured writing comes from writers who don’t know and can’t think clearly about anything.
Oh man! This paragraph is brutal. The best thing about this review is it's not trying to be mean. It's just listing how bad the writing is.
December 3, 2025 at 9:13 PM
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We saw you from across the tennis court and we really like your vibe (complimentary).
Seriously, folks...check it out!
Seriously, folks...check it out!
Jerks, all glowed up, out today (again) from @tortoisebooks.bsky.social
bookshop.org/p/books/jerk...
bookshop.org/p/books/jerk...
December 3, 2025 at 9:06 PM
We saw you from across the tennis court and we really like your vibe (complimentary).
Seriously, folks...check it out!
Seriously, folks...check it out!
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always so odd to me how many people care about stream numbers. feels like they don’t actually care about the music at all. one of my favorite albums of all time is from a band that gets like 2,000 streams a month. art is not measured by level of consumption
December 1, 2025 at 6:13 PM
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It is Small Business Saturday and we are a small business so once you read these words you are legally obligated to go to www.tortoisebooks.com and buy some books. Sorry! We don't make the rules!
Tortoise Books | Chicago Independent Publisher
Welcome to Tortoise Books, a small independent publisher based in Chicago, IL and specializing in literary fiction and memoirs. Shop the latest titles, submit a manuscript, or learn more about us.
www.tortoisebooks.com
November 29, 2025 at 9:26 PM
It is Small Business Saturday and we are a small business so once you read these words you are legally obligated to go to www.tortoisebooks.com and buy some books. Sorry! We don't make the rules!
THE JERKS HAVE ESCAPED CONTAINMENT. I REPEAT: THE JERKS HAVE ESCAPED CONTAINMENT. (Big thanks to Three Lives Bookstore for giving customers a chance to apprehend them in the wild! And to the esteemed @saralippmann.bsky.social herself for forwarding this photo.)
November 19, 2025 at 7:07 PM
THE JERKS HAVE ESCAPED CONTAINMENT. I REPEAT: THE JERKS HAVE ESCAPED CONTAINMENT. (Big thanks to Three Lives Bookstore for giving customers a chance to apprehend them in the wild! And to the esteemed @saralippmann.bsky.social herself for forwarding this photo.)
Reposted
**Puts on headphones.**
**Starts blasting Iggy and the Stooges' "Search and Destroy"**
**ELIMINATES ALL DOUBLE SPACES IN THE MANUSCRIPT WITH A RECKLESS FURY**
That's how it's done, folks. That's all there is to it.
**Starts blasting Iggy and the Stooges' "Search and Destroy"**
**ELIMINATES ALL DOUBLE SPACES IN THE MANUSCRIPT WITH A RECKLESS FURY**
That's how it's done, folks. That's all there is to it.
One of the underappreciated joys of editing a new manuscript is pressing Ctrl+h and replacing double spaces with single spaces throughout the document in one fell swoop.
November 19, 2025 at 1:55 PM
**Puts on headphones.**
**Starts blasting Iggy and the Stooges' "Search and Destroy"**
**ELIMINATES ALL DOUBLE SPACES IN THE MANUSCRIPT WITH A RECKLESS FURY**
That's how it's done, folks. That's all there is to it.
**Starts blasting Iggy and the Stooges' "Search and Destroy"**
**ELIMINATES ALL DOUBLE SPACES IN THE MANUSCRIPT WITH A RECKLESS FURY**
That's how it's done, folks. That's all there is to it.
One of the underappreciated joys of editing a new manuscript is pressing Ctrl+h and replacing double spaces with single spaces throughout the document in one fell swoop.
November 19, 2025 at 12:43 PM
One of the underappreciated joys of editing a new manuscript is pressing Ctrl+h and replacing double spaces with single spaces throughout the document in one fell swoop.
Reposted
A reminder that seven years ago almost to the day, the CIA determined that Mohammed Bin Salman ordered the killing of @washingtonpost.com journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
I hired and worked with Jamal for a year.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/nation...
I hired and worked with Jamal for a year.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/nation...
CIA concludes Saudi crown prince ordered Jamal Khashoggi’s assassination
Audio recordings, intercepted phone calls and other intelligence link Mohammed bin Salman to killing that Saudis say was conducted by rogue elements.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 18, 2025 at 6:05 PM
A reminder that seven years ago almost to the day, the CIA determined that Mohammed Bin Salman ordered the killing of @washingtonpost.com journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
I hired and worked with Jamal for a year.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/nation...
I hired and worked with Jamal for a year.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/nation...
Save the date: Saturday, December 6th is NESTOR FEST! The official launch party for Rescued Me/Me Rescató by the inimitable Nestor Gomez, plus a shopping event for all your holiday needs. (As long as your holiday needs involve buying great books.) 3:00 to 5:00 at Hopleaf...5148 N. Clark...be there!
November 18, 2025 at 6:18 PM
Save the date: Saturday, December 6th is NESTOR FEST! The official launch party for Rescued Me/Me Rescató by the inimitable Nestor Gomez, plus a shopping event for all your holiday needs. (As long as your holiday needs involve buying great books.) 3:00 to 5:00 at Hopleaf...5148 N. Clark...be there!
Stop writing a movie when you're writing a book! Solid entry in the @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social Substack canon...
rebeccamakkai.substack.com/p/youre-writ...
rebeccamakkai.substack.com/p/youre-writ...
You're Writing a Book. So Stop Writing a Movie.
What film teaches us wrong about writing fiction
rebeccamakkai.substack.com
November 17, 2025 at 7:54 PM
Stop writing a movie when you're writing a book! Solid entry in the @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social Substack canon...
rebeccamakkai.substack.com/p/youre-writ...
rebeccamakkai.substack.com/p/youre-writ...
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Some inspiring words on cinema in the streaming era from the Pope.
Yes, THAT Pope.
Yes, THAT Pope.
November 15, 2025 at 8:04 PM
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...and we got trade ARCs for the new Joe Peterson book today! Never a dull moment in the indie biz.
November 14, 2025 at 11:59 PM
...and we got trade ARCs for the new Joe Peterson book today! Never a dull moment in the indie biz.
Reposted
FIVE @storystudiochicago.bsky.social Novel in a Year classes are open for applications right now, but move quickly—those apps are due 11/14!
Here are your options🧵
Here are your options🧵
November 13, 2025 at 5:05 PM
FIVE @storystudiochicago.bsky.social Novel in a Year classes are open for applications right now, but move quickly—those apps are due 11/14!
Here are your options🧵
Here are your options🧵
So thrilled we have a cover for @saralippmann.bsky.social and HIDDEN RIVER! It's an incredible Philadelphia novel about Cass, whose best friend invites her to her wedding--even though her father had groomed Cass from a young age. Writers including DAVID GATES are singing its praises...check it out!
November 13, 2025 at 6:55 PM
So thrilled we have a cover for @saralippmann.bsky.social and HIDDEN RIVER! It's an incredible Philadelphia novel about Cass, whose best friend invites her to her wedding--even though her father had groomed Cass from a young age. Writers including DAVID GATES are singing its praises...check it out!
Now we would never ever ever wish anyone a Happy Marine Corps Birthday...buuuut we will happily announce that we signed an agreement today to publish @nkweidman.bsky.social and his awesome Marine Corps recruiting memoir, THIRTY-SIX FIGHTING HOLES, and it's scheduled to come out one year from today!
November 10, 2025 at 6:58 PM
Now we would never ever ever wish anyone a Happy Marine Corps Birthday...buuuut we will happily announce that we signed an agreement today to publish @nkweidman.bsky.social and his awesome Marine Corps recruiting memoir, THIRTY-SIX FIGHTING HOLES, and it's scheduled to come out one year from today!
Reposted
October 29, 2025 at 7:23 PM
37,000 books total...woohoo! (Actually 37,043, but who's counting? Oh yeah, we're counting.)
#indie
#publishing
#indie
#publishing
November 5, 2025 at 1:00 PM
37,000 books total...woohoo! (Actually 37,043, but who's counting? Oh yeah, we're counting.)
#indie
#publishing
#indie
#publishing
RESCUED ME/ME RESCATƠ by Nestor "The Boss" Gomez is nearing launch! We got our signed preorder copies Tuesday, got them signed Wednesday, and are packing them up to ship tomorrow...never a slow day in indie publishing. (Super grateful to Andrés Colmenares for the lovely cover work!)
October 24, 2025 at 5:40 PM
RESCUED ME/ME RESCATƠ by Nestor "The Boss" Gomez is nearing launch! We got our signed preorder copies Tuesday, got them signed Wednesday, and are packing them up to ship tomorrow...never a slow day in indie publishing. (Super grateful to Andrés Colmenares for the lovely cover work!)
"...a story of substance and style, power and passion" by "one of the city’s most interesting and increasingly powerful writers." Super grateful to Rick Kogan for this writeup of Bill Hillmann and his new book WHITE FLIGHT!
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/10/21/b...
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/10/21/b...
‘White Flight’ is a new novel from the boxer, storyteller and professor Bill Hillmann
In Bill Hillmann’s new novel “White Flight” (Tortoise Books), you will encounter a story of substance and style, power and passion.
www.chicagotribune.com
October 22, 2025 at 3:54 PM
"...a story of substance and style, power and passion" by "one of the city’s most interesting and increasingly powerful writers." Super grateful to Rick Kogan for this writeup of Bill Hillmann and his new book WHITE FLIGHT!
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/10/21/b...
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/10/21/b...