Writing Excuses
889 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 1 month ago - ★★★★★ - 1.2K ratingsFifteen minutes long, because you're in a hurry, and we're not that smart.
Homepage Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Episodes
19.23: Tying It All Together (A Close Reading on Worldbuilding)
June 09, 2024 08:00 - 22 minutes - 20.6 MBToday, the gang talks about their final thoughts on Martine’s “A Memory Called Empire.” We conclude with some lessons we’ve learned through analyzing her work, and we share our favorite bits! Thing of the Week: Pasión de las Pasiones Homework: Find a piece of world building that you love and come up with another way to use it in your work in progress. Close Reading Series: Texts & Timeline Next up is Character! Starting July 7, we’ll be diving into three short stories by C.L. Clark. Th...
19.22: Technology and Identity (A Close Reading on Worldbuilding)
June 02, 2024 08:00 - 26 minutes - 23.8 MBThe imago technology lies at the heart of this novel thematically and narratively. How does this technology create a world, delineate Mahit's culture from Teixcalaan, and ask enormous questions about identity and empire? Thing of the Week: “Rotten” (Documentary Series available on Netflix) Homework: Come up with three technological or magical approaches that would raise questions about what it means to be you, to be an individual. Take one of these, and then write a scene wherein two chara...
19.21: Language as a Tool (A Close Reading on Worldbuilding)
May 26, 2024 08:00 - 27 minutes - 25.3 MBWhat cultural and worldbuilding information is embedded within the smallest of word choices? Today, we dive into three specific sections from throughout Martine’s “A Memory Called Empire”: the word for empire, assimilation and naming, and learning the word for bomb. We unpack how Martine uses language to establish important principles of how the world works. Thing of the Week: The Gilded Age - Created and Written by Julian Fellowes Julian Fellows (on HBO Max) Homework: Write a scene...
19.20: How to Make Worlds Feel Big Without Overwhelming the Reader (A Close Reading on Worldbuilding: Focusing on Scale)
May 19, 2024 08:00 - 27 minutes - 25.3 MBHow do you use language and scale to focus your writing? Today, we think about scale and movement across vast spaces. What do characters’ movements tell us about empires and also—force? We talk about Martine’s incredible work establishing an empire across time, not (just) space. We read aloud some of Martine’s writing, and try to understand exactly how they work, and what they’re doing to build the novel’s world. A refresher on why Worldbuilding is essential and some working definitions of...
19.19: A Close Reading on Worldbuilding: An Overview and why A Memory Called Empire
May 12, 2024 08:00 - 28 minutes - 26.2 MBWhy is worldbuilding is essential in your writing? Today, we answer this question and dive into some working definitions of how we want to talk about it. After the break, we discuss why we chose this book Arkady Martine’s “A Memory Called Empire” and highlight what it does well. We dive into the elements that help make Martine’s worldbuilding so accessible and effective. Thing of the Week: “Fast Car” by Tracy Chapman (think about what it teaches you about POV!) Homework: Pick your fav...
19.18: How to Build Fictional Economies
May 05, 2024 17:59 - 26 minutes - 24.4 MBSometimes we know the action and themes of your story, but you don’t know how to build an economy that supports those. Well today, we explain just how to do that! What are some questions you can ask yourself about the worth of certain goods and services in the world you’re building? What would a post-scarcity world look like and ask of your characters and how would it shape their wants? We loved recording this episode, it brought up so many interesting questions for us, and we hope it does t...
19.17: Novellas- the Goldilocks of Publishing
April 28, 2024 08:00 - 28 minutes - 26.1 MBHow do you find the right size for your story? And speaking of size, what do novellas do differently than both short stories and novels? What even is the difference between a novel and a novella? How many characters do they usually have? How many subplots? How do you know if your story should take the form of a novella or a novel? We dive into all these questions (and…you guessed it… more!) in our conversation. A note on the structure of Season 19: in between our close reading series (six ...
19.16: An Interview with Max Gladstone and Amal El-Mohtar
April 21, 2024 08:00 - 47 minutes - 43.1 MBToday we get to talk to the inimitable Max Gladstone and Amal El-Mohtar. Amal and Max are on the podcast to tell us about how they wrote a book together (hint: they didn’t write it together in the form of one voice.) They talk to us about the practice of writing letters, collaboration, and the revelation of friendship. They talk about the complexity, harmony, and cadence of two-author projects. We also talk about that voice in your head that criticizes your writing, and how to work with it a...
19.15: A Close Reading on Voice: Tying It All Together
April 14, 2024 08:00 - 25 minutes - 23.2 MBAs we conclude our first deep dive of our close reading series, we want to explore how the evolution of voice helped carry readers throughout "This Is How You Lose The Time War." We also talk about the relationship between character arcs and language, learning and voice. Stay tuned for next week’s episode, where we interview Max Gladstone and Amal El-Mohtar on what it was like to write “Time War” together! Thing of the Week: Princess Weekes Homework: Write a short outline of your work ...
19.14: A Close Reading on Voice- Epistolary Storytelling Through Voice
April 07, 2024 08:00 - 25 minutes - 23.7 MBWhat's epistolary writing? Well, it's writing through letters. But it's also a lot more than that. As we continue to dive into the concept of Voice, we want to explore the importance and power of the letters that Blue and Red write to each other throughout "This Is How You Lose The Time War." If you haven't already listened to our episodes introducing this novella, we recommend you go back and start with Episode 11 (of this season, Season 19)! And if you’ve been reading along with us while ...
19.13: A Close Reading on Voice: Blue's Perspective - Confidence and Vulnerability
March 31, 2024 08:00 - 23 minutes - 21.6 MBOn our third episode diving into Voice through the novella “This Is How You Lose The Time War,” we begin to explore the different voices that make up the two main characters in the story. Last episode we dove into Red’s voice– if you haven’t already, we recommend you listen to that first! Today, we are doing a close read of Blue at the tea shop and how voice establishes character, growth, and vulnerability. How do the authors make Blue’s voice distinct from Red’s? Is it in the tone, the st...
19.12: A Close Reading on Voice - Red's Perspective - Muscular Prose
March 24, 2024 08:00 - 26 minutes - 24.4 MBToday, we are doing a very close read of Red's opening narration and how Red’s voice communicates both character and world in an effective and efficient way. We read several sections aloud and dive into what each sensory detail is doing. Also Mary Robinette talks about what she thinks is the most effective way to draw your readers attention to something. Thing of the Week: Planet Crafter Homework: Take a sentence from your work in progress and rewrite it to adjust the age of the characte...
19.11: A Close Reading on Voice- An Overview, and Why Time War
March 17, 2024 08:00 - 24 minutes - 22 MBThe book that became a New York Times Bestseller because of a tweet. Well, it won LOTS of awards when it came out, but it was rediscovered by a Twitter account with a large following. So-- let's get into it! On our first episode diving into Voice using the short novel "This Is How You Lose The Time War", we talk about why Voice is essential and some working definitions of how we want to talk about it. We also explain why we chose this book and highlight some of the things it's done well, an...
19.10: Introducing Our Close Readings Series
March 10, 2024 08:00 - 23 minutes - 21.5 MBYou’ve probably seen us posting about our Close Reading Series, and in his episode, we finally officially introduce it! For most of the remainder of 2024, we’ll be diving into five core elements of writing by focusing on five different literary texts. We’ll spend five episodes on each one, and then we’re going to… drumroll please… interview the author(s)! As you know, we’ve spent lots of time reading, writing, talking, and recording our thoughts about different elements of the craft. But ...
19.09: LIVE Recording - Rituals, Rites, and Traditions
March 03, 2024 09:00 - 17 minutes - 15.9 MBHosts Erin and DongWon are joined by Fonda Lee and Mahtab Narsimhan for a special episode about creating traditions in your fictional writing. In this episode, we'll explore some of the following: -How do you build traditions and rituals in your fictional world (choosing what becomes a tradition or ritual and what doesn’t)? -How can you use rituals or traditions to advance a novel’s plot, give characters more depth, and create conflict? -What are the pitfalls to avoid (depiction of clo...
19.08: NaNoWriMo Revision with Ali Fisher: Working with an Editor
February 25, 2024 09:00 - 29 minutes - 26.6 MBAn agent, an editor, and a writer walk into a Zoom room and record a podcast... but really... that's (part of) what this episode is! First off, a reminder that your agent, your editor, and you are all on the same team! They are all trying to make the same book (your book!) a better book. Whether you've published before or are just starting your first short story, we are so excited for you to dive into this episode. For our final episode in our three-part series on revising your NaNoWriMo ...
19.07: NaNoWriMo Revision with Ali Fisher: Intention
February 18, 2024 09:00 - 25 minutes - 23 MBFor our second episode in this three-part series on revising your NaNoWriMo novel—or any other larger project you have—we are diving into intentions with Tor editor Ali Fisher. We asked her how she helps writers figure out what their books are about, and how she helps set intentions for revisions. Ali talks with us about how its important to be kind to yourself -- and your writing-- during the revision process. She also gives us advice for how you, as a writer, can lean into what you do we...
19.06: NaNoWriMo Revision with Ali Fisher: Length
February 11, 2024 09:00 - 27 minutes - 25.1 MBAli Fisher, editor at Tor Books and member of the podcast Rude Tales of Magic, joins us for a three-part series on editing. First up: length! How do you edit your work—whether it's a book or a short story or a novella? Maybe you wrote a draft during NaNoWriMo, maybe you didn't-- either way, we want to help you figure out how to make your writing the perfect length. Homework: Find two scenes next to each other from your writing. Remove the scene break and write bridging text between the t...
19.05: LIVE Recording - Revisions with Mahtab Narsimhan
February 04, 2024 09:00 - 20 minutes - 18.4 MBSome writers love revisions and some would rather scrub the toilet than revise their writing. On this episode, we are joined by author Mahtab Narsimhan, who many will recognize as a host from past seasons! Mahtab talks with our hosts about how she thinks about revisions. How do you revise your writing? What is the difference between revising and rewriting? Mahtab describes her favorite techniques and provides tips to make it more manageable. Homework Assignment from Mahtab Narsimhan: Take...
19.04: LIVE Recording - Pacing with Guest Fonda Lee
January 28, 2024 09:00 - 19 minutes - 17.4 MBPacing is one of the most subjective and difficult aspects of storytelling to get right. What is pacing? How do you know what the right pace is for a story, and what techniques can you use to speed up or slow down your narrative? Homework Assignment from Fonda Lee: Take a page of a work-in-progress project and experiment with the pacing. Ideally, this should be a page with some dialogue or tension between characters. First, try to speed it up: cut description, be tight with dialogue, move...
19.03: Behind The Scenes with our Producer and Recording Engineer
January 21, 2024 09:00 - 22 minutes - 20.7 MBA few months ago, we were on a cruise ship in Alaska recording podcast episodes for 2024! This live recording features a Q&A with cruise attendees, who were given the opportunity to ask questions to Marshall Carr, our audio engineer, and Emma Reynolds, our producer. In this episode, we talked about the benefits of MFA programs, astrology, and how to continue learning without being overwhelmed. Homework from Emma Reynolds: What homework would you give yourself as a writer today? What hom...
19.02: Q&A Episode with WX Core Cast
January 14, 2024 09:00 - 21 minutes - 19.8 MBWe have a LIVE podcast recording from September 2023, when we were hosting one of our writing retreats on a cruise ship in Alaska! (To learn about our next WX Retreats, check out: https://writingexcuses.com/retreats/ Or apply for our scholarships by January 31 at https://writingexcuses.com/scholarships/ This episode features questions from our writers, and those who attended our 2023 WXR Cruise to Alaska! We answered questions about success, what happens after you’re a NYTimes bestseller,...
19.01: Interview with Abraham Verghese
January 07, 2024 08:00 - 27 minutes - 25.2 MBIn our first episode of 2024, we interviewed author and physician Abraham Verghese, who most recently published "The Covenant of Water." We talked with Verghese about how to convey technical information in fiction. Verghese explains how he shares medical and world-building details in the most engaging way. We also asked Verghese how to make things feel real without overwhelming your reader, and how he has mastered conveying the passing of time. We also discussed verisimilitude, translation...
18.53: Funding the Writing Life
December 31, 2023 08:00 - 26 minutes - 24 MBRent isn't paid in words alone. How do all of us, in various stages of our careers, keep ourselves afloat as we go about the writing life? We're getting in the weeds with this one - tips, tricks, and tools. We share our thoughts on diversifying your income stream outside of traditional publishing? Let’s get creative. We’re talking about school appearances, copywriting, fellowships, consulting, and teaching. We also share advice about newsletters, Patreon, monetizing yourself, and how an ag...
18.52: Writing Inside The Box
December 24, 2023 08:00 - 23 minutes - 21.5 MB"Your short story should definitely be a novel." It's something writers are often told when they write short stories. What tips and tricks can you use to keep your idea within the length of the story you're trying to tell? We dive into worldbuilding in miniature, pacing, and character development. We also think about where you can edit your writing down—whether it’s words, plot threads, or characters. Homework: Write a scene with two different endings - one that puts a button on the stor...
18.51: So You Wanna Play With Format?
December 17, 2023 09:00 - 24 minutes - 22.7 MBAre you interested in experimenting with different writing forms? Do you want to try an unusual or different way of writing? Well this week, we have an episode dedicated to non-traditional formats for writing. In this episode, we think about experimental short fiction from the point of view of publishing and writing. DongWon shares about the incredible success of their publishing of .. Why short stories might be the perfect place for new ideas. We talk about second-person narratives, epi...
18.50: The Unreliable Narrator
December 10, 2023 09:00 - 26 minutes - 24.4 MBAll unreliable narrators aren't unreliable in the same way. How do they differ and how does that change the way that we write them? Erin shares her unified theory (look at the graphic below!) of unreliable narrators. Homework: Take an event that you're familiar with, and write about it as truthfully as possible. Then write about it from the point of view of someone who knows the basics, but not the whole truth, but who tries to tell the entire story anyway. For bonus points, tell the sto...
18.49: Giving Your Story A Voice
December 03, 2023 09:00 - 24 minutes - 22.1 MBWhat does it mean if your writing is voice-y? How do you give your character a natural voice? We approach this question from the high-level perspective of craft, and the granular level of word choice and sentence structure. Erin talks about the research she did about Appalachian English for her short story Wolfy Things. And Mary Robinette Kowal tells us what it’s like to be an audiobook narrator, and how this helps her bring characters to life on the page. Just a reminder that our final e...
18.48: NaNoWriMo Week 5 - Writing Endings
November 26, 2023 09:00 - 23 minutes - 21.2 MBWelcome to the last week of National Novel Writing Month! It’s okay if you aren’t going to finish your book, and it’s also okay if you don’t have 50,000 words! You still did a thing—you created a story that didn’t exist We want to talk about endings. How do you even write the end of a book? How do you do NaNoWriMo? There’s no right way! But there are several elements that can help you figure out how to write the end of your book. Our hosts give you guidance for environment, pacing, inversi...
18.47: NaNoWriMo Week 4 - Climaxes, or OH MY GOD NO
November 19, 2023 08:00 - 22 minutes - 20.5 MBIt’s week four of NaNoWriMo! Or, National Novel Writing Month, which happens every year for the month of November. This week, we are talking about how to write climaxes, how to write resolutions, and what exactly the three-quarter mark is. How do you write a climax scene? How to keep your tension going while also finding some resolution. How do you keep track of what you promised your reader at the start of your book? Our hosts dive into these topics and share examples from their own publi...
18.46: NaNoWriMo Week 3 - Raising the Stakes
November 12, 2023 09:00 - 20 minutes - 19.1 MBWe are now three weeks into NaNoWriMo—where writers are attempting to write a novel in the month of November. For this episode, our writers talk about how to raise the stakes in your story. To make something feel more threatening, you don’t have to make it bigger or flashier, but you do have to make it more personal to your character. Often, you don’t need to add an event or plot element, but simply ramp up your character’s connection and reaction. We also talk about multi-thread plots, ...
18.45: NaNoWriMo Week 2 - Inciting Incident
November 05, 2023 09:00 - 22 minutes - 20.6 MBWelcome to the first official week of National Novel Writing Month (or, almost the end of this week)! In this episode, we dive into how to write an inciting incident. What is an inciting incident? It is often the thing that goes wrong in your story. Within the first page, writers should have something go wrong. But what should this thing be? Our writers have some advice for questions you can ask yourself in order to understand your novel’s inciting incident. Also, Dan shares a recipe for...
18.44: NaNoWriMo Week 1- Getting Started
October 29, 2023 08:00 - 19 minutes - 17.7 MBWelcome to National Novel Writing Month! For November, writers all over the world are trying to complete a novel, or write 50,000 words. In honor of NaNoWriMo, all of our November episodes are going to focus on writing a novel or big project. For our first week—starting! How do you start writing? What do you need to give your readers in at the beginning of your story? How much information is too much information? We answer all of these questions, and talk about how these factors will help ...
18.43: Worldbuilding in Miniature
October 22, 2023 08:00 - 24 minutes - 22.1 MBIf you're writing short fiction, how much of your world do you even need to figure out? Should you have it all written out? Can you just wing it? This week on the podcast, we discuss how much of a world to build for a short story (and how). We provide some guiding questions that you can use to build the world of your novel or short story. We explore different narrative structures, DND worlds without police, and the reader's experience. Homework: Take a big world-building concept and pick...
18.42: Creating Magic Outside of a System
October 15, 2023 08:00 - 27 minutes - 25.6 MBHow do you write about magic? How do you build a world with magic and spells and potions? We dive into the rules and laws behind magical worlds. We often think of magic as being with a system, but what if it's not? What opportunities and challenges do intrusive magic/emergent fantasy and fabulism create for writers and stories? Our writers and publishers talk about cultural differences across magical systems, and how you can build a fantasy world that is believable. We also talk about surre...
18.41: Deep Dive: Erin's Short Fiction Extravaganza
October 08, 2023 08:00 - 25 minutes - 23.1 MBIf you write short stories or enjoy speculative fiction, this episode is for you. Our host Erin Roberts has written short stories, interactive fiction, and has built worlds for tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGs). For the next 8 episodes, we’ll be diving into three of her short stories. This week, Erin explains how to write outside of traditional genre classifications. We talk about the importance of antagonists, tone, and the horror genre. And we discuss how to decide if your short story sh...
18.40: How To Make Money From Your Hobby (with special guest Sandra Tayler!)
October 01, 2023 08:00 - 32 minutes - 29.9 MBOr, The Business of the End of Schlock Mercenary How did Howard start making money from his hobby of drawing and writing comics? How did he self-publish? We have a special guest on this episode! Sandra Tayler—Howard’s wife, the editor and publisher for Schlock Mercenary, and a published author—talks about starting their business. We dive into uncertainty, quality of life, and “manic optimism.” We learn about how to use pre-ordering, PayPal, and Kickstarter. Howard also shares about his exp...
18.39: How To Write An Ending
September 24, 2023 08:00 - 28 minutes - 26.2 MBDeep Dive: Sergeant In Motion How do you write an ending to a book? How do you finish something you’ve been writing for over 20 years? Howard Tayler talks to us about writing the ending to his serialized webcomic and space opera, Schlock Mercenary. We dive into how to write a resolution, how to finish a book, and how to finish a series. And we dive into the art of leaning into the tropes without leaning ON them. Homework: Write a one page outline for the ending of your current work in pr...
18.38: How Do You Write A Series With Books That Stand Alone?
September 17, 2023 08:00 - 25 minutes - 23.2 MBDeep Dive: A Function of Firepower How do you write the middle of a book? How do you write an ending to a story? For this week’s episode about writing, we focus on Book 19 of Schlock Mercenary, the penultimate book in Howard Tayler’s series. We discuss ways to make a book feel self-contained, rather than just something to keep the beginning and the ending further apart. For reference, A Function of Firepower is the 19th Schlock Mercenary Book. We highly recommend you read this first, beca...
18.37: Mandatory Failure
September 10, 2023 09:00 - 26 minutes - 24.3 MBWe talk with Howard Tayler about the story structure of a story with a BIG disaster in the middle - one which we don't recover from until the next book. We also talk about the weight of world-building, how to write for your ideal reader. And Howard considers the question, what is the cost of death if immortality exists? For reference, Mandatory Failure is the 18th Schlock Mercenary Book; 1st in the 3-book finale to the 20 book mega-arc. We highly recommend you read this first, because this...
18.36: The Soggy Middle Pays the Rent (or, "Stand Alone With Series Potential")
September 03, 2023 08:00 - 26 minutes - 24.3 MBHow do you write the middle of a book? How do you end your book? How do you know what to write next? This week, our hosts —who all work as a writers and publishers (and are sometimes teachers and puppeteers and many other things)— talk through how they have written the middle of their books. The middle is where most of the story takes place. How do you keep track of your characters and plot? How do you bring it toward an end, and stick the landing? Well, we’ve got some ideas. And some adv...
18.35: How to Organize Your Writing, or Managing the Mega-Arc
August 27, 2023 08:00 - 22 minutes - 20.7 MBLet’s talk about organization! This week, we’re talking about how and what to keep track of— characters, places, names, etc. How do you organize a book? How do you outline a novel? And don’t worry, we dive into the messy question, what is worth keeping track of in your writing? We also hear about how Howard and Mary Robinette have turned their planning tools (and research!) into money. Homework: Build a tool (spreadsheet, wiki, whatever) for tracking things in the universe of your writ...
18.34: Seventeen Years of Foreshadowing
August 20, 2023 07:30 - 23 minutes - 21.8 MB18.34: 17 Years of Foreshadowing What can Normal Gossip teach us about foreshadowing and artful storytelling? Thinking about the 20 books that make up Howard Tayler’s Schlock Mercenary, our hosts discuss foreshadowing—our favorite examples, and our go-to tricks for structuring our own work. What does foreshadowing actually do for our work? Do we even need it? Well, yeah… it’s like invisible narrative scaffolding. But it’s also like a red herring. It’s so many things! Listen to us discuss ...
18.33.5: State Of The Podcast
August 16, 2023 14:00 - 17 minutes - 16.5 MBBonus Episode! Our first ever half-numbered episode! We are making some changes here on the podcast, and we wanted to talk to you about them. We hired a producer (Emma Reynolds), we have new interactive offerings on Patreon (office hours, livestreams, Q&A’s), and we are going to begin advertising! Don’t worry, you can subscribe to our Patreon to listen ad-free. Homework: Go check out our Patreon, sign up for our newsletter, and follow us on Instagram and Facebook! They are all linked b...
18.33: Deep Dive: The Schlock Mercenary Finale
August 13, 2023 07:00 - 27 minutes - 25.4 MBThe first episode in our eight-episode Deep Dive into Howard’s weekly webcomic strip, Schlock Mercenary. We grill Howard on how he taught himself to draw, why he decided to self-publish (hint: his wife, Sandra Tayler, helped him), and how he managed to write an ending. Homework: The "How it should have ended" game: write your own ending(s) to one or more of your favorite things. (For reference, watch some of How It Should Have Ended.) Thing of the Week: The Expanse (DongWon) Mentio...
18.32: The Kirsten Vangsness Expansion Pack
August 06, 2023 08:00 - 31 minutes - 28.5 MBWe have a special guest episode! Kirsten Vangsness, Criminal Minds star, joins us to talk about her experience as a writer, actor, and playwright. She taught us how she deals with imposter syndrome, and how she uses performance as a writing tool. We also talk about self-actualization, cats, and filling your metaphorical art well. Homework: From Kirsten: Record yourself, stream of consciousness, talking about one of the big questions that crops up in your work. Then write a scene that ask...
18.31: Getting Personal: Mining Your Life for Themes
July 30, 2023 08:00 - 24 minutes - 22.1 MBIn our final episode diving into how and why Dan wrote “Dark One: Forgotten,” talk about how you can take something personal and mine it for fiction. We also tackle the complicated question—Why should you be the one to tell your story? We think about the personal touches that you can add to your writing, and how people can hear when your story is personal. Homework: 2 things! 1. Have you watched Criminal Minds? If you haven’t, you should! Next week, we have a special guest—Kirsten Vang...
18.30: Planting Supernatural Seeds
July 23, 2023 07:00 - 23 minutes - 21.3 MBHow do you slowly reveal the supernatural in an obviously supernatural story? How can you prepare your audience for a reveal without disclosing it too quickly? If someone is familiar with your writing, they know the genre and what to expect from it. We talk about how we work within these confines while also making space for surprises, magic, and the supernatural. Homework: Do a reread or rewatch of something with a big reveal (like the reveal in "Dark One: Forgotten.") Think about how you...
18.29: Collaboration And Partnership
July 16, 2023 07:00 - 30 minutes - 28.2 MBWhat are the best practices for collaboration? How do you write in an established intellectual property (IP)? How do you write a new story in an established world? We dive into working with an individual or a group. We hear stories from our hosts about how they have navigated creative endeavors with different types of collaboration. Homework: Grab something on your TBR (to be read) pile and pick a random paragraph from it. Use that as the opening for a short story. Also prepare for our up...
18.28: Writing Conversational Dialogue
July 09, 2023 07:00 - 25 minutes - 23.3 MBHow do you write dialogue that sounds natural? We have some things to keep in mind when you write conversations between characters. When people converse, they do so with more than just words. Body language, tone of voice, and societal context all play a role in understanding what a person means. How do you convey that on the page or in audio? Homework: Take dialogue you've written. Delete every third line, and replace those lines with blocking. Thing of the Week: Cunk On Earth Mentione...