FAQs
Questions, answered
How do I join?
Two ways in. Any member can invite you — they each have 5 codes to give, so ask someone who has one spare and you're straight through. Otherwise write us two lines: what you're reading right now, and a Thumb Story of up to 160 characters to a single word we hand you at random. It's the same form the club writes in, it takes a minute, and it tells us far more than a paragraph about why you'd like to join. We're growing slowly and on purpose, so a yes may take an issue or two.
What does it cost?
Nothing. Joining is free, and so is everything you can do here — writing, reading, submitting, and being published in the Magazine.
Do I have to write every month?
No. Some months the word lands and some months it doesn't; nothing is owed either way. A prompt will be there again next month.
Can I use AI to write?
No. This place only works if a person was actually there. Fix your commas with whatever you like — just don't hand us something you didn't write. You confirm the writing is yours every time you submit.
What happens to my writing?
It stays yours. Submitting lets the club read it in the Workshop and lets the editors consider it for the Magazine — nothing else. You can withdraw a piece while its issue is still open, and nothing is published under any name without your consent.
Can I write under a pen name?
Yes, and you choose per piece. Pen names are a first-class way to sign work, not a workaround — and nothing is published under any name without your consent.
How does a piece get into the Magazine?
Two ways in: the editors read the month's submissions and curate a selection, and members elect one People's Choice. Both happen with the writing read blind.
Can I write on my phone?
You can read everything and write Thumb Stories from a phone — 160 characters. Prose and poetry want a bigger desk, so those open read-only on mobile and edit on a computer.
Do I have to be 18?
Yes. Writing here can run adult in register, so membership is 18 and over.
What language should I write in?
English, for now. More languages are on the roadmap — we're small, and to read each other properly we have to start in one.
How do I get in touch?
Write to hello@unsolicitedmusings.org and a person will read it — questions, problems, a piece you want taken down, or anything the rest of this page didn't answer. That includes anything about your own data: a copy of it, a correction, or deleting it.