SJ Longthorne

Five jobs I had before Narrative Design: - Dishwasher/Waitress (x3) for various restaurants and cafes - Store Assistant at Comet (RIP) - Editorial Assistant for a shady vanity publisher - Marketing Assistant for a fintech startup - Email Marketing Coordinator for a games studio

Oh completely forgot to include the time I managed to kid myself that I'd make a good travel agent (I was awful) because I hoped I'd get a free holiday to the Maldives out of it (I didn't). Lasted six months. F.

Pro tip: If you're looking to get published, don't go to Austin Macauley. The names on the contracts are made up, for starters, and they don't actually read your work (at least, this was the case when I was there). Avoid.

Haha when you said shady vanity press I wondered whether you meant them. They're seriously the worst.

OMG you know of them too???

I co-run a bookshop part time (as well as the interactive fiction writing) and we get a number of local authors who have been taken in by vanity presses. I've looked up the horror stories and AM is one of the worst in the business.