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PODCAST

Story Nerd

Melanie Hill, Valerie Francis

For novelists, memoirists and screenwriters who want to write stories their readers will love. Each week literary editors, Valerie Francis and Melanie Hill, use films to explain how to craft a story that hooks the reader on page one and holds their attention all the way to the end. The goal is simple: to learn from writers who have come before us...what worked well and what didn"t work so well. If you"re a writer who loves to write, this podcast is for you! "The only thing that matters, and that

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All Episodes

00:28:39

Our Best Advice: villain's monologue + turning points

Story Nerd ·

2025/09/24

We've come to the end of another season and that means it's time for our best advice about the villain's monologue (what it is, and why it's essential you have one in your story) and turning points (those unexpected events that create opportunities for you to reveal character). -V.Get The Fundamentals of Storytelling today! Go to storynerd.ca/courses and use coupon code CANADA50, now through July 7, for 50% off.For access to writing templates and worksheets, and more than 70 hours of training (all

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00:38:52

Black Bag: IYKYK

Story Nerd ·

2025/09/17

I think BLACK BAG misses the mark but it's one of Melanie's favourites. So what happens when we disagree on whether, from a craft perspective, a story is working or not? Well, you'll have to tune in to this week's episode to find out. One thing I'll say is that this might be a film that is meant for super fans of the spy genre (i.e., Melanie) because it seems to assume a level of knowledge about the world of espionage that the average viewer (i.e., me) simply doesn't have. Enjoy! -V.Get The

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00:25:05

Primal Fear: masterful writing

Story Nerd ·

2025/09/10

Primal Fear is a superb film. The novel, by William Diehl, is even better. This is a story to add to your short list of go-to stories to study for absolutely any aspect of the craft. Enjoy! - V.Get The Fundamentals of Storytelling today! Go to storynerd.ca/courses and use coupon code CANADA50, now through July 7, for 50% off.For access to writing templates and worksheets, and more than 70 hours of training (all for free), subscribe to Valerie's Inner Circle.To learn to read like a writer, visit

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00:42:02

Legally Blonde (archive)

Story Nerd ·

2025/09/03

This week we're throwing it back to season 2. Valerie is studying The Hero's Gift Expressed and Melanie is studying Forces of Antagonism. Legally Blonde is a beautiful example of both! Get The Fundamentals of Storytelling today! Go to storynerd.ca/courses and use coupon code CANADA50, now through July 7, for 50% off.For access to writing templates and worksheets, and more than 70 hours of training (all for free), subscribe to Valerie's Inner Circle.To learn to read like a writer, visit Melanie's

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00:41:06

No Way Out: conflict triangles (archive)

Story Nerd ·

2025/08/27

In this week's episode, Melanie introduces the concept of conflict triangles and honestly, if you use them in your work, your story will improve immediately. In terms of cast design, while usually the plot supports the development of the characters in this case, the characters support the development of the plot. If you don't know which option best serves your story, you'd better tune in.Get The Fundamentals of Storytelling today! Go to storynerd.ca/courses and use coupon code CANADA50, now through

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00:44:33

Moonstruck: writing female characters (archive)

Story Nerd ·

2025/08/20

In this episode, Melanie is studying female characters and how women are presented in modern stories (her work in this episode is reeeeally interesting!), and I investigate something I learned from Steven Pressfield, which is that we shouldn't introduce anything new after Act 2.Get The Fundamentals of Storytelling today! Go to storynerd.ca/courses and use coupon code CANADA50, now through July 7, for 50% off.For access to writing templates and worksheets, and more than 70 hours of training (all for

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00:38:27

The Bourne Identity: build tension, raise stakes...

Story Nerd ·

2025/08/13

Whatever kind of story you're writing, if you want a reader to stick with you all the way to the end, you've got to build tension! Believe it or not, The Bourne Identity is a terrific example to study - even for a love story or coming of age story.Get The Fundamentals of Storytelling today! Go to storynerd.ca/courses and use coupon code CANADA50, now through July 7, for 50% off.For access to writing templates and worksheets, and more than 70 hours of training (all for free), subscribe to Valerie's

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00:51:37

Knives Out: mastering the whodunit (archive)

Story Nerd ·

2025/08/06

Puzzled about what it takes to write a great mystery? Then grab your notebook because this episode is chock-full of tips. No red herrings in this show, we promise! Get The Fundamentals of Storytelling today! Go to storynerd.ca/courses and use coupon code CANADA50, now through July 7, for 50% off.For access to writing templates and worksheets, and more than 70 hours of training (all for free), subscribe to Valerie's Inner Circle.To learn to read like a writer, visit Melanie's website.

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00:39:05

Foe: offers lots of writing lessons

Story Nerd ·

2025/07/30

Ummm … I don’t know what to say to introduce this week’s episode. Perhaps I should start with a simple question, ‘What makes a story un-watchable/un-readable?’ Part of the answer is chickens. If you’d like to know the rest of the answer, then buckle-up and dive in. -M“Foe makes all the same mistakes that most novelists make.” - Valerie FrancisRelated Story Nerd EpisodesSeason 13 - Four Story QuestionsSeason 5 - Story FormSeason 7 - World BuildingGet The Fundamentals of Storytelling today! Go to

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00:30:36

The Miracle Club: when the hero is also the villain

Story Nerd ·

2025/07/23

THE MIRACLE CLUB is a multiple protagonist, miniplot, story. That means that each protagonist is also an antagonist. Sounds cool, right? But how the heck do you pull it off? Well one of the ways is to give each POV character her own villain's monologue. This film misses on one character and you just have to hear what happens to the story because of it! Melanie continues her study of turning points and this week, she shows us how they impact a story's pacing. Don't miss out! -V.“The villain drives

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00:28:06

She Said: constant characters

Story Nerd ·

2025/07/16

Valerie’s focus on the villain’s monologue in She Said was always going to be risky because we’d have to hear Harvey Weinstein's justification but justification requires the villain owning his stuff! What’s interesting is not what’s said but who says it. There’s also differences between the turning points in this movie and the others we’ve watched, and it has a big impact on the story. -MGet The Fundamentals of Storytelling today! Go to storynerd.ca/courses and use coupon code CANADA50, now through

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00:37:51

The Mighty Ducks: weak villains

Story Nerd ·

2025/07/09

The antagonist drives the middle of a story, so what happens when the antagonist is a really weak character? Well, if you're a filmmaker and can cast Emilio Estevez, you might get away with it. If you're a novelist, you're in trouble. This week, Melanie and I take a look at The Mighty Ducks where the story is thin but the ice is thick. While this movie doesn't offer up the best example of the villain's monologue, thankfully, it's got lots to teach us about turning points. -V.Get The Fundamentals of

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00:28:42

How to Avoid a Page-One Rewrite

Story Nerd ·

2025/07/04

Melanie and I have both had to do page-one rewrites (actually, I've done TWO!!!), and they're not fun. Not fun at all. We want to keep you from suffering the same fate, so in this episode, we explain where we went wrong and what you can do to make sure you never ever have to start your novel from scratch. -V.The Fundamentals of Storytellingcoupon code: CANADA50Get The Fundamentals of Storytelling today! Go to storynerd.ca/courses and use coupon code CANADA50, now through July 7, for 50% off.For

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00:31:25

What A-List Authors Know that You Don't

Story Nerd ·

2025/07/02

Announcing THE FUNDAMENTALS OF STORYTELLING on-demand course, available now. Visit storynerd.ca/courses and use coupon code CANADA50 for 50% off, now through July 7, 2025. Get The Fundamentals of Storytelling today! Go to storynerd.ca/courses and use coupon code CANADA50, now through July 7, for 50% off.For access to writing templates and worksheets, and more than 70 hours of training (all for free), subscribe to Valerie's Inner Circle.To learn to read like a writer, visit Melanie's website.

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00:31:25

Mission Impossible: simple yet solid

Story Nerd ·

2025/07/02

Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation is a great example of good, straight forward storytelling. Yes, it’s an action movie with big stunts. Yes, you have to suspend your disbelief. Yes, it’s Tom Cruise. But there’s more craft in this movie than meets the eye. This episode, I’ll show you what I mean and Valerie will give her take on the interesting variation of the Villian’s monologue. Just in case anyone was wondering, Valerie and I do our own stunts on the podcast. -MFor access to writing templates

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00:37:39

Guardians of the Galaxy vol 3: don't look too closely

Story Nerd ·

2025/06/25

It's a brand new season and that means two brand new study topics! In Season 15, I'm studying something called the villain's monologue and Melanie is studying turning points. Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 3 is one of those films that's ok as long as you don't look too closely! There are definitely logic problems but insofar as our study topics are concerned, this movie offers up some valuable craft advice. Enjoy! -V.For access to writing templates and worksheets, and more than 70 hours of training

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00:39:33

Traditional and Indie Publishing Models

Story Nerd ·

2025/06/18

Authors often ask us for our advice about publishing models and whether traditional is better, or worse, than indie/self publishing. So this week, we're bringing you an interview with writer and podcaster, Matty Dalrymple. Matty also happens to be the Campaigns Manager for ALLi (the Alliance of Independent Authors) and she takes us through what she calls the ABCs of the traditional and indie publishing paths. This interview isn't meant to sway you in one director or another. Rather, we want to

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00:35:55

What Went Right: Juror #2

Story Nerd ·

2025/06/11

If you're writing a quiet, character-driven story — especially if it deals with questions of morality — Juror #2 is a film you must watch. The storytelling craft is rock solid, and although it's a legal drama, it's also highly nuanced with complex characters and an unbelievably intriguing plot. There's no spectacle here. It's all substance. Check out this hook: What if a juror in a murder trial realized that he is the killer? -V.For access to writing templates and worksheets, and more than 70 hours

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00:36:55

What Went Wrong: Ghosted

Story Nerd ·

2025/06/04

If you are wondering what kids mean when they say, “It’s cringe” then watch this movie. Otherwise save yourself some time. On paper everything about this movie should work, but, and it’s an enormous but, it doesn’t. It’s easy to identify why. This movie doesn’t know what it wants to be when it grows up - is it a romance, a spy or an action movie. On the upside, if you listen to this episode you will learn the difference between action stories and spy stories - I have very strong opinions about this

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00:31:24

Our Best Advice: core event + progressive complictions

Story Nerd ·

2025/05/28

We've reached the end of another season and that means it's time for me and Melanie to give your our best advice, our a-has, and our key takeaways all about the core event and progressive complications. You'll want to bookmark this episode! -V.For access to writing templates and worksheets, and more than 70 hours of training (all for free), subscribe to Valerie's Inner Circle.To learn to read like a writer, visit Melanie's website.Follow Valerie on Instagram and Threads @valerie_francisFollow

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