Hello, readers! Welcome back to the newsletter — we’re glad you’re here.

We’re heading into a season with holidays galore, which means lots of us will be hanging out with our extended family. This means they might ask you some tricky questions about what you’re writing, what it really means to be able to spend your “free time” writing, and when they can read it (preferably at a publication they’ve heard of). Never fear: our own Jeanette, Lead Fiction Reader, is here to offer both “snarky” and “demure” options!

We hope you have a safe and relaxed month! Read on for that holiday advice and even more from the world of OKD…

🫏 OKD Updates

Okay Donkey is looking for a Social Media Associate focused on graphic design!

We’d like someone familiar with Canva who can create graphics (primarily for Instagram) for Okay Donkey according to our social media calendar. Most outputs will be weekly graphics hyping up new publications, monthly graphics promoting our newsletter and shouting out past contributors’ new endeavors, and occasional graphics announcing award nominees. We’re also excited about any other ideas you have, graphics-related or not, outside our regular social media schedule.

You’ll work with (and be heavily supported by) the Social Media Manager and the rest of the Okay Donkey editorial team. This position pays a small honorarium of $20 per month, paid out every 3 months via PayPal.

Our (very short!) application form will be open until Friday, November 14.

Would you like to help us out with a future newsletter? The Okay Donkey editors are hosting an AMA (ask me anything)! Submit your questions by November 30 and you might see them featured in January’s newsletter.

🌟 Spinning Answers to Tough Questions This Holiday Season

by Jeanette the Writer, OKD Lead Fiction Reader

Welcome to November! A plethora of holidays now stands between you and 2026. And with those holidays comes socialization, where both well-meaning and condescending friends and relatives can leave you feeling on the spot when they ask about your “little writing hobby.” To help you through these awkward times, I’ve put together an example guide of both demure and snarky responses to common questions asked at social gatherings. Use these as appropriate and consider before the event how to put your own spin on questions you’re likely to be asked.

They say: “So, are you still doing that little writing thing?”
Demure Answer: “Writing will always be a significant part of my life, so thank you for showing an interest. I have been . . . [update of your writing activities].”
Snarky Answer: “That ‘little writing thing’ happens to be one of my deepest passions, so thank you so much for your feigned interest. I have been . . . [update them anyway because screw them].”

They say: “Would I have heard of any of the places you've been published?”
Demure Answer: “Today’s literary community is so diverse and abundant that it’s unlikely you would be familiar with every journal and website I am published with.”
Snarky Answer: “That depends. Are you familiar with the diverse and abundant literary landscape that encompasses publishing these days?”

They say: “Can’t AI just do that for you these days?”
Demure Answer: “Yes, AI can be a great tool for writers. But I still enjoy putting in the work myself to make something of quality.”
Snarky Answer: “A nonwriter like you would think that. But my joy comes from the process of creation, not the results of the work. I don’t expect a noncreative to understand.”

They say: “Do you make any money doing that?”
Demure Answer: (Laugh) “Ahh, money would be nice. But I don’t consider a monetary reward to be the true measure of success or accomplishment when it comes to my passions.”
Snarky Answer: “I seem to remember you’re passionate about [enter subject/hobby here]. Do you make money on that passion or is it just something you do for the love of it?”

They say: “Oh, you self-published? That’s . . . brave.”
Demure Answer: “Self-publishing as a landscape has changed significantly over time and is often the best choice for authors of all calibers.”
Snarky Answer: “Following your passions must always seem brave to people who have no goals or anything they’re working toward.”

They say: “How do you find the time for that with everything else going on? I wish I had that kind of free time.”
Demure Answer: “I do seem to get a lot done, but my motivation comes from my passions.”
Snarky Answer: “I guess not everyone is as adept as me at carving out time to pursue their dreams. I feel bad for those people, stuck in their daily lives with no creative output.”

I hope these examples inspire you to face these question askers with a brave (or sardonic) face, knowing that their opinion of you and your passions is a reflection on them, not you. And while you’re at it, take a second helping of pie too. The only person whose opinions and happiness matter in that moment is you.

📚 October at OKD

• “Door in the Woods,” flash fiction by Chris Scott

• “onwards and without delay,” poetry by Alexandra Nwigwe

• “You Be the Flotsam, I’ll Be the Jetsam,” flash fiction by Melissa Rudick

• “There was a meaning,” poetry by Amelia Averis

• “Spirals,” flash fiction by Natalie Wallington

🔎 Check Us Out

We love when past contributors keep us updated on their lives! If your work has ever appeared in OKD, reach out and tell us about your new book, project, album, etc. We’ll give you a shoutout on our socials and here in the newsletter.

• Eshani Surya’s debut novel Ravishing is out November 11. (OKD: “Brackish,” Jan. 2022)

• Devaki D. Devi has a short story collection out called Earth & Earth-like Planets. (OKD: “Don’t worry about returning it,” Jan. 2020)

• Ashley Cline’s poetry chapbook loading a new continent is available now. (OKD: “to eat the sleeping sky, whole,” Sept. 2020)

• OKD Fiction Editor Steve Chang is teaching a course at the Forever Workshop this month called “How to Evaluate Your Work Like an Editor.”

• OKD Fiction Reader Kyla-Yến Huỳnh Giffin is giving a virtual workshop called “Through Betrayal, From the Heart: A Collective Writing Intensive” (with Mia Arias Tsang) on November 23. Sign up by November 16.

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