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

20:14

Writing Excuses 10.10: Q&A with the I Ching

Writing Excuses ·

2015/03/08

Wesley Chu joins us for a literal shake-up of our structure for one episode. We had loads of fun with this one. The I Ching is a collection of poems which you consult with numbered sticks. You ask a question, shake a random stick from the cup, and the corresponding poem holds your answer. In writing The Man in the High Castle, Phillip K. Dick used the I Ching to make plot decisions at crucial points. We decided to turn that, and our format, on its head, so we used the I Ching to ask us

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20:35

Writing Excuses 10.9: Where is My Story Coming From?

Writing Excuses ·

2015/03/02

This month's syllabus topic is story structure, and we'll be starting with the part we start with. And that part usually isn't the beginning -- that's where the story starts for the reader. We're going to talk about where the story starts for you. It's the answer to questions like "where is my story coming from?", "What kind of a story is this?", or "What questions does it seek to raise, and subsequently answer for the readers?" Structurally, it may

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23:44

Writing Excuses 10.8: Q&A on Character

Writing Excuses ·

2015/02/22

It's time for a Q&A on characters! The questions for this episode were provided by the attendees at the 2014 Out of Excuses Workshop and Retreat: How do you have a character grow in power and/or expertise without needing to ridiculously overpower the villains? How do you give a flawed character a growth arc without changing what originally made that character likable? When you have a 1st person POV, how do you convey the emotional complexity of the non-POV characters? How do you create an

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17:23

Writing Excuses 10.7: Who Are All These People?

Writing Excuses ·

2015/02/16

Our character-focused month continues with an exploration of the challenges involved in building a cast for your story. Whether you're building a large or small cast, you need to know why you're putting these people in the book, whether they're main characters, secondary characters, or spear-carriers, and what purpose each of them actually serves in your story.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries:

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17:42

Writing Excuses 10.6: The Worldbuilding Revolves...

Writing Excuses ·

2015/02/09

In which Max Gladstone introduces us to the concept of the Magical 1%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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19:30

Writing Excuses 10.5: What Do You Mean My Main...

Writing Excuses ·

2015/02/02

Does your draft have a boring main character? You're not alone! Also, the problem can be solved.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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16:24

Writing Excuses 10.4: Q&A on Ideas

Writing Excuses ·

2015/01/25

At the Out of Excuses Workshop and Retreat we premiered the Season 10 concept, and we invited our attendees to give us the questions we need this month. (They'll also be the ones providing our questions for February, but we'll cast our net wide for questions in March.) Ideas are hard! Is it ever acceptable for inexperienced writers to write derivative works? How do you keep from being discouraged when something similar to your idea comes out? How do you know when your idea is a novel, vs

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1:45

2015 Hugo Award Eligibility – SHADOWS BENEATH

Writing Excuses ·

2015/01/21

Don't forget to nominate for the 2015 Hugo Ballot, and if you like Writing Excuses, please consider nominating Shadows Beneath for Best Related Work.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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19:43

Writing Excuses 10.3: Lovecraftian Horror

Writing Excuses ·

2015/01/20

Cherie Priest joins us for a discussion of Lovecraftian horror.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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18:09

Writing Excuses 10.2: I Have an Idea; What Do I Do Now?

Writing Excuses ·

2015/01/12

Writing Excuses Season 10, the podcasted master-class, continues with this exploration of that critical second step: what do do once you've got an idea that has story-legs. (Note: When we say "two weeks ago" over and over, that's just bad math. You haven't missed an episode.) We talk about our various approaches to this, many of which center around finding the person or people who are most affected by the thing our idea conjures into their world, but that's really only the

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19:59

Writing Excuses 10.1: Seriously, Where Do You Get...

Writing Excuses ·

2015/01/05

Brandon, Howard, Mary, and Dan offer useful answers to that age-old 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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18:40

Writing Excuses 9.44: Getting in the Writer’s Mindset...

Writing Excuses ·

2014/10/27

We were thrilled to have Peter Beagle join us for an episode, recorded live at Westercon 67. We talked about the writer's mindset, and how to get into it. Peter schooled Brandon before the episode even began, and then proceeded to school all the rest of us. Peter is an absolute delight to listen to. We hope you enjoy this episode as much as we did. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy &

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17:57

Writing Excuses 9.43: Writing Mysteries

Writing Excuses ·

2014/10/20

Live from Westercon 67 and Fantasy Con, Mette Ivie Harrison and J.R. Johannson join us to talk about writing for the mystery genre. We begin by talking about the key differences between thrillers and mysteries, and then move into how this understanding can drive our story structures. We discuss how characters with arcs and iconic characters drive different types of stories, and how each of us go about building these kinds of things.Support this podcast at —

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27:26

Writing Excuses 9.42: The Convention-Author...

Writing Excuses ·

2014/10/12

Deirdre Saoirse Moen, who organizes fan-run literary cons and schedules programs for them, joins us to talk about programming from the convention's point of view.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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8:23

Registration is open for the 2015 Out of Excuses...

Writing Excuses ·

2014/10/09

Registration is now open for the 2015 Out of Excuses Writing Workshop and Retreat. For the last two years the event has had a very limited size, and as a result has sold out very quickly. For 2015 we have moved to a new venue, removed the attendance limit, and increased the amount of instructor interaction—all without raising the price. The 2015 Out of Excuses Writing Workshop and Retreat will be held from September 20th through the 27th on the Independence of the Seas. It's a cruise ship

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16:01

Writing Excuses 9.41: Fan Writing, with Christopher...

Writing Excuses ·

2014/10/05

Christopher J. Garcia, publisher and editor of The Drink Tank, joins us for a discussion of fan writing.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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22:15

Writing Excuses 9.40: Understanding Royalties, with...

Writing Excuses ·

2014/09/28

Paul Stevens, an editor at Tor, joined us in front of a live audience at Westercon 67 to talk about royalties.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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21:03

Writing Excuses 9.39: Publicity for Books

Writing Excuses ·

2014/09/22

Patty Garcia, Director of Publicity at Tor, joins us to discuss publicizing booksSupport 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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22:22

Writing Excuses 9.38: Q&A at Westercon

Writing Excuses ·

2014/09/15

Peter Orullian joins us in front of a live audience at Westercon 67 for a Q&A. The questions include: As a writer, how do you handle reviewing other people's books? How do you compartmentalize your writing to prevent that obsession from displacing everything else? (Here are the signs we talked about) How do you create frightening, unique creatures? What are the basics about networking at a convention? Is there a yield for the average story idea? What rules do you follow and what rules do you

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21:14

9.37: Training A Critique Group, with Kathleen Dalton...

Writing Excuses ·

2014/09/08

Kathleen Dalton Woodbury, the forum moderator at the Hatrack River writers group joined us at Westercon 67 to talk about critique groups. We cover how critiques should be offered, as well as importance of receiving critiques graciously and without defense, and we reflect on lots of the good and bad writing groups and critique groups we've been a part of. This is hard to get right, but once you do get it right your critique group can become the team that helps you turn your work into something

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