In this episode, we talk about the books and movies that inspired us as youths to start writing our own stories. Then we take a more serious turn and talk about some shenanigans that Amazon has gotten up to. In case they are serious enough to you that you wish to move away from the Kindle, we try to discuss alternative E-Readers and sites to get your ebooks and audiobooks. We hope you enjoy!

Who's here: Bryan, Laura, Leah, and Dodie

If you have any questions, ideas, thoughts, or complaints, send them our way at:

[email protected]

When listening to writing advice, you end up hearing a lot about messages and meanings being woven into the story. We take our own crack at talking about them, their importance, and if they are needed in all stories. We also talk about our views on wanting the publishing industry to institute a rating system to warn readers of objectionable scenes contained in books. Should there be one? How should it look? Should you include trigger warnings, or would a more general rating system like what is found in movies, tv, and video games enough?

Check out our thoughts and share your own!

Who's here: Bryan, Laura, Leah, and Mark

If you have any questions, ideas, thoughts, or complaints, send them our way at:

[email protected]

Worldbuilding! Often times, especially for sci-fi fantasy writers, it's the funnest part to write. Unfortunately, it can easily become burdensome to the reader if dropped on them like a complete collection of the Encyclopedia Britannica! We talk about our experiences of incorporating world building into our own projects and even give some (hopefully) helpful hints for your own project!

Who's here: Leah, Bryan, Laura, and Mark

If you have any questions, ideas, thoughts, or complaints, send them our way at:

[email protected]

There's actually a lot of different perspectives that stories can be told through! First person, third person, did you know second person perspective even existed? We try to go through each one, explain what they are and our thoughts on them! Then we branch off and talk about the usefulness of multiple points of view along with how to make each person the reader is experiencing the story through seem fresh and unique.

Who's here: Leah, Wendy, Dodie, Bryan, Laura, and Mark

If you have any questions, ideas, thoughts, or complaints, send them our way at:

[email protected]

Justin and Miranda return in this episode as we talk about what we look for in first chapters and on back covers. What do we look for in those first crucial impressions that make us want to invest in a new book? How long do we give the book to deliver these things before we toss it on the DNF pile?

Who's here: Leah, Wendy, Dodie, Bryan, Laura, Miranda, and Justin

If you have any questions, ideas, thoughts, or complaints, send them our way at:

[email protected]

Miranda is back after what seems like forever! We talk about what she has been up to then dive into some pointers on how to tell if you should call your story done.

Who's here: Leah, Dodie, Bryan, Laura, and Miranda

If you have any questions, ideas, thoughts, or complaints, send them our way at:

[email protected]

Figuring out if you are trying to stretch an idea farther that it can carry your story or if your book is more full of disconnected ideas than an encyclopedia can be challenging! We try to tackle this problem and give you some examples of when we encountered these problems in our own writing!

Who’s here: Leah, Bryan, Laura, and Mark.

If you have any questions, ideas, thoughts, or complaints, send them our way at:

[email protected]

Being new at something is often not fun. The list of things you don’t know vastly outweighs what you do know, and fixing that can feel completely overwhelming. Today we talk about the importance of encouraging each other as we grow and learn as writers.

Who’s here: Leah, Dodie, Wendy, Bryan, Laura, and Mark.

If you have any questions, ideas, thoughts, or complaints, send them our way at:

[email protected]

Endings! The big finale! What everything in your story has been building up to! We go into what to watch out for when trying to wrap up your manuscript in a satisfying way. Then we talk about character deaths and how they, like endings, have to be handled carefully if you want them to land right with your readers. We hope you enjoy!

Who’s here: Leah, Wendy, Bryan, Laura, and Mark.

If you have any questions, ideas, thoughts, or complaints, send them our way at:

[email protected]

This week, we talk trimming up our writing by identifying and eliminating fluff and filler words that may have sneaked into our manuscripts as we talk about what goes into a good back cover blurb for your book.

Who’s here: Leah, Wendy, Bryan, Laura, and Dodie.

If you have any questions, ideas, thoughts, or complaints, send them our way at:

[email protected]