An unusual request

(Not asking for money this time. Promise.)

Hey. So. Listen.

I know I’m not supposed to be working on writing stuff right now—completely wiped out, two months off, home and family, so on and et cetera—but I’m applying to the Odyssey Writers’ Workshop (the virtual workshop, not the full in-person extravaganza) and the deadline for early decision applications is coming up quick.

Would any of you subscribers out there be willing to serve as a reference for my application?

I don’t have any formal references to provide: haven’t done any actual training or schooling since 2010, and nobody from that far back could speak to the current state of my work.

However—everybody who’s been following me on here for the past year should count as “persons familiar with [my] writing,” which meets the criteria for a reference.

While none of you are my MFA professor (which is probably more in line with what they’re looking for) the piratical approach might just be cheeky enough to work.

If you’re interested, send a message with your business-time email address (and possibly a phone number?) to phasmatopia@substack.com.

Thanks very much in advance.