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Sheila M Averbuch

@sheilamaverbuch

Children's #author of middlegrade thriller FRIEND ME (Scholastic Press). Studied history & literature at Harvard. From US & Ireland. Living in Scotland. NEW BOOK: PITCH YOUR BOOK - write the letter that hooks an agent on your novel bit.ly/SMApitchorder

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30.06.2023
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Latest posts by Sheila M Averbuch @sheilamaverbuch

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Wow, #Edinburgh News, thank you! Quite committed to getting out the Scottish vote for our garden, the only finalist from #Scotland in the Garden of the Year People's Choice Award from BBC Gardeners' World. Voting is open until 18 December. www.gardenersworld.com/news/gardens...

Photo: Jason Ingram

03.12.2025 18:09 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Those wildflower mixes are so alluring but the results are hard to achieve! My garden is open for Scotland's Gardens Scheme in April. You and husband are welcome/ encouraged to come! Friday 24- 25 April in East Lothian

22.11.2025 13:18 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Your pitch made such an impression on me because it made me care for your protagonist immediately and that is the magic skill. Delighted you have the rights back and excited to see what is next!

22.11.2025 13:17 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

@emilytomshep.bsky.social Thank you so much for sharing that Emily

22.11.2025 12:49 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

@roygill.bsky.social Roy, thank you so much for sharing that. Btw I mention you you in my recent book because of the masterful way you described The Daemon Parallel to me so long ago.

22.11.2025 12:49 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Sally, I so appreciate your vote. Thank you very much

22.11.2025 12:47 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Gardens of the Year Competition 2025 – People’s Choice Vote Vote now for your favourite garden in the Gardens of the Year 2025 People's Choice award. Voting closes at midday on 18 December

Will you vote for my garden? BBC Gardeners' World Magazine has shortlisted it for Garden of the Year 2025!The garden is listed as Sheila Averbuch, Edinburgh:

>> Please share - voting closes 18 Dec!

www.gardenersworld.com/news/gardens...

#edinburgh #eastlothian #gardenersworld #gardening #scotland

21.11.2025 14:38 πŸ‘ 5 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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The Children’s Booker Prize will be a boon to young readers everywhere The announcement has sparked great excitement in the realm of children’s literature, with the prize sure to shine a light on some of the best stories available for young and eager readers, writes Deir...

The new children's prize from @thebookerprizes.com is the best news in years for those who love reading or writing #middlegrade. Thanks to @irishexaminer.bsky.social and journalist Deirdre McArdle for this feature: www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/ar... #booksky

10.11.2025 18:36 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Judge approves $1.5 billion copyright settlement between AI company Anthropic and authors A federal judge on Thursday approved a $1.5 billion settlement between artificial intelligence company Anthropic and authors who allege nearly half a million books had been illegally pirated to train ...

"About 465,000 books are on the list of works pirated by Anthropic" apnews.com/article/anth...

26.09.2025 16:17 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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#Writers, the Hilary Mantel Prize offers an exceptional new opportunity. The late author, who twice won the #WalterScottPrize, was committed to championing emerging talent, and the winner receives a cash award plus mentoring. Submissions are open through 31 December. See https://loom.ly/NFsTZjE

22.09.2025 10:06 πŸ‘ 10 πŸ” 6 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1
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What Authors Need to Know About the $1.5 Billion Anthropic SettlementΒ  - The Authors Guild Today, Anthropic agreed to pay $1.5 billion to settle claims that it downloaded pirated books to train its AI systemsβ€”the largest U.S. copyright settlement in history. The parties in Bartz v Anthropic...

Thanks @authorsguild.org for this vital update on the #Anthropic settlement. As Authors Guild CEO Mary Rasenberger says, these are billion-dollar companies stealing from people with a median income of barely $20,000 a year. Learn more authorsguild.org/news/what-au....

06.09.2025 07:32 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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A glorious day with friends helping me welcome PITCH YOUR BOOK into the world! We had gorgeous weather here in Pencaitland and took shelter in the on-brand orange umbrella. Thanks to Louise Kelly especially for the phenomenal chocolate orange cake!

#PitchYourBook #amwriting

29.06.2025 16:29 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Rosa James Galway with an unnamed delphinium, possibly the Pacific Giant series. This rose doesn't have much fragrance, but each mesmerising head has over a hundred petals.

#floweraday

20.06.2025 17:46 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Luscious Oriental poppy I've waited years to see flower: tissue paper petals and gloriously fuzzy wuzzy buds.

#floweraday

19.06.2025 09:32 πŸ‘ 7 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Writers looking for a literary agent, if you'd like to be hand-held through the process of writing a query letter, you can now take an on-demand masterclass with me -- including a review of your query. www.sheilamaverbuch.com/downloads/pi...

#GetAnAgent #GetPublished #queryletter #amwriting

18.06.2025 21:03 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Great to see you there!

18.06.2025 10:37 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Joanne does SO MUCH to support books and authors-- thank you for this feature about PITCH YOUR BOOK!

14.06.2025 17:39 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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A crowd of 150 people and great ideas and camaraderie today at #NoTyrants protest at #Edinburgh US Consulate: including calling out racism, voting with your purchases, writing to reps, using Resist Bot and Five Calls, & above all remembering that PROTESTS WORK.

#notyrants #nokings #Scotland #resist

14.06.2025 15:24 πŸ‘ 12 πŸ” 5 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 4

I love this

11.06.2025 18:00 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Rose de Rescht having its moment of flawlessness, with linaria pupurea Canon de Went, which isn't purple but rather pink.

#floweraday

09.06.2025 19:49 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Reader reviews of PITCH YOUR BOOK are starting to come in. Thomas, a querying author, says this on Goodreads. Read the full review: www.goodreads.com/book/show/22...

#PitchYourBook #amwriting #amquerying

09.06.2025 16:58 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Double white peony, here with geranium Patricia planted for my mum, and wild Maine lupins.

#floweraday

06.06.2025 22:12 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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It's the red cabbage that I find most bewitching right now, even though the rest of the garden is taking off.

#growyourown

05.06.2025 12:51 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

I'm going to be closing to queries for the summer starting this Friday, so if you want to query me, now's the time! #amquerying @andreabrownlit.bsky.social

02.06.2025 18:32 πŸ‘ 10 πŸ” 7 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Join the celebrations for Libraries Week Libraries Week: Libraries Change Lives 2025, running this week until Sunday 8 June, celebrating the vital role libraries play in transforming lives and strengthening communities. This year's theme,…

Please share your case studies of impact, including about how libraries of all types sustain economic growth #LibrariesChangeLives dcmslibraries.blog.gov.uk/2025/06/04/j...

04.06.2025 15:41 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

I know that pain

04.06.2025 16:37 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

My top tip is don't give anyone a proper name apart from your two POV characters. Call other people by their roles, for example the brother, the bully etc.

04.06.2025 14:43 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

This!

04.06.2025 14:36 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Wendy, thanks for spreading the word! It's not your imagination, writing that query letter is really one of the hardest things we'll ever do as writers.

04.06.2025 14:35 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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It's #PITCHYOURBOOK publication day! I owe so much to the literary agents who gave me their time and expertise during our interviews, as well as everyone else who supported me and this project. Learn more: bit.ly/SMApitchorder

03.06.2025 16:47 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1