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A note from Jane

I hate giving high-fives.

First, I rarely recognize when I’m being signaled to give one. So it’s embarrassing when I’m standing there with a blank expression, wondering what the person wants.

Then, when I finally recognize I’m being asked for a high-five, it ends up a slippery-soft hand touch, one without the commitment and momentum of a slap. That leads to an exhortation that we have to do it again because the execution was so poor the first time.

Which brings me to the high coercion factor: Why are you making me give you a high-five for this thing I don’t care about? What are we really celebrating here?

The villainy dates back to middle school, specifically school sports and gym class, where I was inevitably picked last, on the losing team, or sitting on the bleachers. Any high-fives offered to me were ironic. Thanks but no thanks.

My curmudgeonly attitude would remain underground if it weren’t for the fact I regularly attend a gym with trainers who, as part of their job, encourage with high-fives and fist bumps.

If I’m moving through the gym strategically, I’ll initiate a modest fist bump before the high-five has a chance to come out.

No High-Fives Jane

P.S. Most popular post this month: Showing or Telling? How to Decide on a Line Level, Scene Level, and Story Level​ P.P.S. In the last issue, I recommended the newsletter How I Make Money Writing. The creator shared with me this special 50% discount link if you want a paid subscription.

​Bob Eckstein​

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Jane’s Electric Speed List

I am not paid to mention any of these resources; there are no affiliate links.

Get your legal and financial affairs in order

A friend and reader recently shared with me this (paid) class she’s taking on how to get your sh*t together. She writes, “So many people are not prepared and the instructor gives great, simple organizational tools and tons of information and resources.” The class covers estate planning, beneficiary designations, medical decisions and designations, money and insurance, legacy planning, and more.

Do you love speech-to-text? Want more privacy?

​Flowstay is for Mac users who want a free, private alternative for speech to text. Your voice isn’t sent to the cloud for processing.

Now is a good time to put more effort into your website security

I’ve run websites for about 20 years, and my own site has only been compromised once (knock on wood), and it was a subdomain rather than my main site. But last week, I discovered someone had compromised my husband’s Wordpress-based site, and there were virtually no clues anything was wrong. The site looked normal, behaved normal. But if you tried to visit the site from a Google search result, you were redirected to purchase luxury watches.

My best guess is that outdated plugins created a vulnerable backdoor. Once the site was compromised, I could not delete existing plugins or add new plugins from inside the Wordpress admin.

The situation is resolved now, but with AI being used to uncover security weaknesses, it’s more important than ever to monitor your website’s vitals, keep everything up to date, or use a platform or hosting company that offers such support. As for myself, I use Wordfence Premium, which isn’t a panacea, but it wasn’t installed on Mark’s site, and now it is. It’s also helpful to connect Google Search Console (free), because it will send email alerts if your site vitals go sideways.

Public service announcement: Stop Sloppypasta

I’m sure some of you heard about the recent scandal surrounding the Commonwealth Short Story Prize, where three of the five regional winning stories are believed to be AI assisted. What surprised me more was the response from Granta, the publisher of those stories. In their statement, they decided to quote Claude’s take on whether the works were AI assisted. There is a name for that, not yet widely known, that I hope is adopted. Sloppypasta.​

Next online class: Showing & Telling

• Taught by: Tiffany Yates Martin
• Ideal for: Beginning to intermediate novelists
• Jane says: “Show, don’t tell” is one of the most misunderstood (and misguided) pieces of writing advice. This class will offer clarity on this key aspect of craft.
• When: Wednesday, May 27, at 1 p.m. EDT; all registrants receive the recording whether attending live or not

Your turn: portable outdoor chairs

In the last issue, I asked if you have a favorite portable outdoor chair for summertime. Here’s a sampling of what you said.

• My favorite chair is one I use for ultra lightweight hiking, the Helinox Chair Zero L. The L means that even though the chair is small, it’s still a slightly larger size than the original for my big butt 😅. It sets up in seconds, as it has aluminum poles connected with stretchy nylon holding them together. Perfect for bringing to quick or crowded events. —Aubrey Haskett
• My cousin got this Costco Rio Swinging Hammock Camping chair and it’s so comfortable that we bought one. She’s part of a traveling festival so it works well. You can recline and sway. It’s easy to set up, and my kid who needs to move around a lot could swing himself around. It’s easier to set up than it looks, and feels really relaxing. —Heather Button
• I love Rockers outdoor chairs! Very comfortable, and they rock (literally, and figuratively!). —Lindsey Brooksbank
• My favorite portable outdoor chair is one that isn’t broken. We were gifted one in a Buy Nothing group, complete with a carrying cover that disguises the tear that prevents the right arm with cup holder from attaching to the frame. I’ve since reposted it, including a sewing awl and sturdy thread. You never know! Some people are handy. That’s hopefully what the first gifter was thinking. 😉 —Susan Turner

Next question: Do you have favorite, over-the-ear headphones for using only at your desktop computer? Preferably lightweight and not expensive? I have continual trouble with headphones that give me a headache. Hit reply and let me know.

Do you have a tools or resources question you would like me to ask all readers? Offer up your suggestion, and I might feature it.

Free resources featuring Jane

What I Learned From an Hour with Jane Friedman: conversation with Natasha Tynes

On the business of writing: Q&A centered on the second edition of my book, The Business of Being a Writer

Do You Need an Editor? with Katie Bannon and Jane Friedman, a free Zoom session on June 26 that will cover when an editor is most helpful, how to choose the right one, and what it may cost

Upcoming online classes

• ​Showing & Telling with Tiffany Yates Martin, May 27
• ​Building Better Memoir Scenes with Lisa Cooper Ellison, June 24
• ​What It Takes to Sell Your Memoir (or Hybrid Memoir) with Jane Friedman, June 25
• ​Moving Beyond Three-Act Structure with Steven James, July 1
• ​Building a Strong Author-Publisher Relationship with Anne Trubek, July 8
• ​Today’s Key Book Publishing Paths with Jane Friedman, July 9
• ​Pitch, Publish and Get Paid with Allison K Williams, July 15
• ​Writing From Your Why with Leslye Penelope, July 29
• ​Writer’s Survival Guide to Contracts, Legal Issues & Other Business Basics with Jane Friedman, Aug. 6

Meet Jane at an event

• ​US Book Show (NYC), June 3, 2026
• ​Stockholm Writers Festival (Sweden), June 13, 2026
• ​Midwest Writers Workshop (Muncie, IN), July 16–18, 2026
• ​Willamette Writers Conference (Portland, OR), July 31–Aug. 2, 2026
• ​Romance Writers of Australia (Darwin, Australia), Aug. 21–23, 2026

“At electric speed, all forms are pushed to the limits of their potential.”
—Marshall McLuhan

Created by Jane Friedman I report on the publishing industry and help authors understand the business of writing. My newsletter that helps pay the bills is The Bottom Line, which recently reported on the sales slump in the children’s middle-grade market.

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