Podcast Episodes
Back to SearchEpisode 30 - Plotting and the power struggle.
Plotting our story is so important that we return to it here. How can we know what works and doesn't work in a story? We'll talk about plotting tec…
3 years, 10 months ago
Episode 29 - The pattern of a novel.
Successful novels almost always follow a pattern, and we'll talk about the pattern in this episode. Also, what put you in mind of writing fiction? …
3 years, 11 months ago
Episode 28 - The enchanter quality, and weather and rudeness.
Vladimir Nabokov said a writer should have the enchanter quality. Here are examples from H.P. Lovecraft. And how does Nora Roberts work? Also, sho…
3 years, 11 months ago
Episode 27 - The importance of genres and formulas. And thoughts about titles.
Formulas became formulas because they work. Our genre will offer guidelines (formulas) for our plots. And: titles are fun to think about but it's s…
3 years, 11 months ago
Episode 26 - Navel gazing and how to avoid it. And more on showing
Interior monologue and how to avoid it. And more techniques regarding the critical skill of showing rather than telling. And visits to John Steinbe…
3 years, 11 months ago
Episode 25: The magic of writing. Cause and effect. And thinking.
We writers may never know to whom our words will have a profound meaning. Plus, the importance of cause and effect. And the perils of interior mono…
4 years ago
Episode 24 - Showing others our work. And strong sentence-by-sentence writing techniques.
Should we show friends and family our manuscripts as we compose them? Good reasons for and against exist. The key to vivid writing: be specific, de…
4 years ago
Episode 23: Editing our own manuscript
What should we look for when editing our own manuscript? How do famous authors do it? What should we look for as we edit? This episode discusses t…
4 years ago
Episode 22: A summary of earlier episodes, and techniques for musical writing.
Topics of earlier episodes are boiled down to sixteen points, and we'll talk about them briefly. Also, here are some things we can do to make our se…
4 years ago
Episode 21: Creativity and how to get it.
How can we shake loose from our brains plots for our novels? Here's my favorite way. Plus, benefits and perils of writing with a partner. More on …
4 years ago