Throughout their writing careers, James and Ashley have each picked up some excellent writing tricks, plus developed a few of their own. In the coming months, they'll each share a few of their most effective writing techniques, starting with James' shortcut to compelling characters.

British science-fiction author Karen Traviss writes remarkably nuanced characters. She also writes remarkably quickly, once tapping out 37,000 words in two days. In this episode, James delves into one of Traviss's novels to understand what makes her characters so compelling. He then shares the four questions he now always asks himself about his characters before writing.

Plus, we talk about the latest novel from one of our very first guests.

You can find a summary of James' tips here.

You can find Karen Traviss' wildly entertaining and informative FAQ page here.

Books and authors discussed in this episode

• Gears of War: Aspho Fields by Karen Traviss;
• The Corrections by Jonathon Franzen;
• The Walking Dead (series) by Robert Kirkman;
• Red River Road by Anna Downes;
• The Consultant by Im Seong Sun, translated by An Seon Jae

Upcoming events

• Ashley is teaching Crafting Narrative Drive as part of the Newcastle Writers Festival on Friday 5 April, 10am-4pm
• See Ashley in conversation with Mirandi Riwoe at Newcastle Writers Festival, Saturday 6 April
• Ashley is teaching Writing Crime Fiction, a six-week online course with Faber starting 15 May 2024
• Ashley is teaching Pathways to Publication for Writing NSW on Saturday 15 June, 10am-4pm

Learn more about James' award-winning novel Denizen and get your copy here or from your local bookshop.

Learn more about Ashley's psychological thriller Dark Mode and get your copy here or from your local bookshop.

Get in touch!

• ashleykalagianblunt.com
• jamesmckenziewatson.com
• Instagram: @akalagianblunt + @jamesmcwatson