PODCAST

Writing Excuses

Mary Robinette Kowal, DongWon Song, Erin Roberts, Dan Wells, and Howard Tayler

Fifteen minutes long, because you're in a hurry, and we're not that smart.

fiction careers

All Episodes

26:29

11.28: Impostor Syndrome, with Alyssa Wong

Writing Excuses ·

2016/07/10

Alyssa Wong, Campbell Award nominee and Nebula Award winner, joins us to talk about impostor syndrome. This is the frame of mind that many successful writers suffer from, in which they worry that they're not really good enough at writing to be enjoying their success. Worse, this mindset can prevent us from continuing to create. Many of us suffer from this, and we have some strategies to cope with it. Credits: This episode was recorded by Jeff Cools, and mastered by Alex Jackson. Support this

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16:33

11.27: The Elemental Thriller

Writing Excuses ·

2016/07/03

Let's get this out of the way up front: in the syntax of elemental genres, the phrase "the element of thriller" is clunky. But we'll say it anyway. We discuss the difference between the drivers in thrillers, horror stories, and mysteries, and use the elemental genre tools to assist in the differentiation. We also cover the tools we use to develop and maintain the tension that is so critical in a thriller. Credits: This episode was recorded by Daniel Thompson, and mastered by Alex

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19:20

11.26: Elemental Mystery Q&A

Writing Excuses ·

2016/06/26

In this episode we field some questions about elemental mystery. Here they are! How do you balance between two mysteries in the same story? What types of mysteries can fit well as sub-plots? What do you do when beta readers figure out the mystery really early? In the MICE quotient, are mysteries all "Idea" stories? How do you write a protagonist who is smarter than you are? How do you make sure your genius protagonist is still experiencing an interesting struggle? How do you make a kidnap

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17:26

11.25: Elemental Mystery is Everywhere

Writing Excuses ·

2016/06/19

Per our Elemental Genre theme, this week we further explore elemental mystery. Elemental mystery can be found in any work in which our curiosity is what keeps us turning pages. The type of satisfaction we feel at the reveal may also reveal the elemental genre in which the element of mystery has been embedded. Credits: This episode was recorded by Daniel Thompson, and mastered by Alex Jackson. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries:

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18:45

11.24: Stakes!

Writing Excuses ·

2016/06/12

We talk a lot about "raising the stakes" in our writing. When we say "stakes," we're referring to the things that keep our characters involved in the conflict, rather than just walking away and doing something else. We dig into what this really means, and how everyone in the story must be driven by things that they have at stake. Liner Notes: in this episode we refer to the three character-development "sliders" model set forth in WX 9.13. Credits: This episode was

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19:13

11.23: The Element of Mystery

Writing Excuses ·

2016/06/05

Mystery may well be the most common element in use, at least in some form or another, across the many bookshelf genres comprising "fiction." We discuss the driving force of elemental mystery, how to evoke those feelings in the reader, and the importance of being able to write mystery effectively. Liner Notes: we mentioned Episode 7.10 in which Mary and Dan interviewed David Brin. Credits: This episode was recorded by Daniel Thompson, and mastered by Alex Jackson. Support this podcast at —

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20:33

11.22: Examining Unconscious Biases, with Shannon Hale

Writing Excuses ·

2016/05/29

Shannon Hale joins us at LTUE for a live-audience session in which we explore gender biases, and extrapolate from there to our many other unconscious biases. Our unconscious biases are not just the things that we consider to be "just the way things are," or "common sense." They're the things we don't even see, much less consider, and the obvious challenge for us as writers is to find those biases, and then to dig into them and really understand them. Our goal is to be able to

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20:44

11.21: Q&A on Elemental Horror, with Steve Diamond

Writing Excuses ·

2016/05/22

Steve Diamond joins us for our third and final Elemental Horror episode as we field your questions about this particular building block. Here are the questions we selected from your submissions: If I want to make peanut butter terrifying without being silly, how do I do that? What is your personal line between horror and "gore-nography?" How do you avoid going too far with graphic elements? Soundtracks are huge for horror movies. How do you set the mood without this tool? What's the best

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22:06

11.20: Horror as a Subgenre

Writing Excuses ·

2016/05/15

Steve Diamond joins us again to talk horror, this time about using elemental horror as part of our stories' elemental ensemble. We discuss how the sense of dread can be a page-turning motivation, and how it can complement the other "keep on reading" motivations we set out to invoke. Credits: This episode was recorded by Daniel Thompson, and mastered by Alex Jackson. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries:

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19:04

11.19: Fashion for Writers, with Rebecca McKinney

Writing Excuses ·

2016/05/08

How do we go about describing the clothing our characters are wearing? How do we use that to add depth to our story? What are the common mistakes that writers make when they start dressing their characters? Rebecca McKinney joined us on stage at LTUE to address all this. Liner Notes: We mentioned some resources for those wanting to get clothing right in their work: Reader's Digest Complete Guide to Sewing Historic Costume for the Stage, by Lucy Barton The International Costumers' Guild

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21:43

11.18: Elemental Horror

Writing Excuses ·

2016/05/01

Steve Diamond joins us to kick off our month on the elemental genre of horror. We explore the emotional components that readers seek from horror, and then drill down into the ways that we can create those reactions in our readers. Credits: This episode was recorded by Daniel Thompson, and mastered by Alex Jackson. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out:

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22:34

11.17: Elemental Adventure Q&A

Writing Excuses ·

2016/04/24

You may still have questions about how to apply elemental adventure in your work. Hopefully your questions are similar to the ones we collected below, because these are the ones we answered: What do readers like more: protagonists going through lots of different incidents and locations, or through a few that are similar to each other? What lessons can we learn from adventure games? How can we make action scenes that adventurous, but that are not fight scenes? Are there tropes we should stay away

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23:00

11.16: Adventure as a Subgenre

Writing Excuses ·

2016/04/17

Let's be adventurous. Let's move beyond simply being cooks, and strive to become chefs. In this episode we explore using the element of adventure as an ingredient in something that has far more than adventure going on in it. Why do we like adventure? What draws the reader forward? Credits: This episode was recorded by Daniel Thompson, and mastered by Alex Jackson. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries:

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17:22

11.15: The Environment, with L.E. Modessit, Jr.

Writing Excuses ·

2016/04/10

L.E. Modesitt, Jr. joined us at LTUE for a world building discussion centered around the way the environment informs the story. We talk about lead in Roman plumbing, water lilies in Las Vegas sewers, and coal power in the British Empire, and how these examples can help us more effectively use the environments in our stories. Liner Notes: We mentioned both Americapox, The Missing Plague, (a YouTube video) and the excellent book Guns, Germs, and Steel.Support this podcast at —

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20:40

11.14: The Element of Adventure

Writing Excuses ·

2016/04/03

Our exploration of elemental genres continues with the sense of "I want to do that."Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

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16:08

11.13: Elemental Idea Q&A

Writing Excuses ·

2016/03/27

This is a Q&A about ideas that does NOT include the question "Where do you get your ideas?"Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

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19:36

11.12: Idea as Subgenre, With Nancy Fulda

Writing Excuses ·

2016/03/20

Nancy Fulda is back for our second episode on the Idea elemental genre. We cover some tools for exploring an idea, and then drill down a bit on how to use that exploration, or even multiple explorations as "seasoning" elements for a larger work. Credits: This episode was recorded by Daniel Thompson, and mastered by Alex JacksonSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out:

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18:14

11.11: Self Publishing in 2016, with Michaelbrent...

Writing Excuses ·

2016/03/13

Recorded live at LTUE, Michaelbrent Collings guest-starred for a discussion about self publishing. The landscape continues to change, and Collings is fully engaged in it. He begins by stressing the importance of truly understanding the craft of writing—every professional writer needs this—and then talks turkey about Kindle Direct, Bookbub, formats and lengths, output, available resources, publicity activities, and what kinds of things new writers should commit to spending money on. Note: Writing

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20:28

11.10: Idea, as Genre, with Nancy Fulda

Writing Excuses ·

2016/03/06

Nancy Fulda joins us to talk about the Elemental Genre of Idea, and how to write stories driven by a sense of fascination.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

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17:49

11.09: Q&A on the Element of Wonder

Writing Excuses ·

2016/02/28

Gama Ray Martinez joins us at LTUE to field questions on the Element of Wonder, which were submitted by members of our audience. Here are the questions: How do you create wonder in non-genre stories, where there are no super-powers, spaceships, or spellcasters? How do you avoid making the wonder stale? Are there stages of wonder, similar to the stages of grief? Does wonder come from the style of the prose, the pacing, or from other things? How would you foreshadow wonder? Support this podcast at —

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