Keystroke Medium

Need to sell more books but you're not sure how? Never fear; Kindlepreneur's Dave Chesson is here! Armed with some of the latest tips and tools for authors, Dave shares the success strategies he sees working for authors today.

We talking up a French press. What is this magical device you say? Watch the show!

Josh, Scott, and Chuck answer questions from the live chat and KSM's Facebook Group. Anything (within reason) is on the table!

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Writing Roundtable – March 2020

Josh, Scott, and Chuck answer questions from the live chat and KSM's Facebook Group. Anything (within reason) is on the table!

Hosts: Josh Hayes, Scott Moon, C. Steven Manley

[00:00] Opening remarks—Dragon Award Nominations are open!

[06:40] Weekly update, Lockdown Edition

Chuck: Into the first few chapters of Dark Disciples (Jack Dark #2) and Brace Cordova #3. Family D&D Desperation.

Scott: Explains 30,000 words into Thirteen Mercenaries. First book Brothers in Arms is done. Arpen Wars is in progress. Alien invasion book is being tinkered with. Got a second Bookbub deal! GRRM fan vs. ASoIaF fan (fan of the author vs. fan of the work)

Josh: Continued work on Enemy of Valor (Valor #3). Released on audio Hale’s War (Terra Nova Chronicles Book 4)

[21:55] Main Event: Writing Roundtable!

-What is your favorite post-apocalyptic story?

Ariel by Stephen R. Boyett

Shaun of the Dead

Mad Max

Mad Max: Fury Road

The Mist

-Chuck disagrees with the ending of The Mist.

Se7en

Book of Eli

-Josh asks to do a breakdown of this movie

Waterworld

-Josh segues into the Alter of Nintendo

Judge Dredd (Stallone)

Judge Dredd (Urban)

The Postman

-Great plot twists vs. Too many plot twists?

The Usual Suspects

The Sixth Sense

The Village

-The build-up to a large twist (as in The Usual Suspects)

-Complications vs. twists

-Too many twists is confusing

Counter-Example: Lost’s Last Season

Event Horizon

-HP Lovecraft in Space

-Scott’s Movie Theater Trauma

Monster Squad

The Last Starfighter

Enemy Mine

[46:00] Sponsor: R. Haskell’s Cover Your Book: An Author's Guide to Working with a Designer to Maximize your Sales

[50:00] Main Event: Writing Roundtable Continued!

-Underrated Movies

Tron

The Fifth Element

Gattaca

Predestination

Equilibrium

Pandorum

Dark City

The Butterfly Effect

Frailty

12 Monkeys

[1:02:00] Closing remarks

Coffee and Concepts

Writer’s Journey

Storytelling

 

Become a Medium today! https://keystrokemedium.com/mediums/

Don't forget to Like and Subscribe and get involved with the mayhem and shenanigans in the live chat! http://www.youtube.com/c/keystrokemedium

If you have any thoughts or ideas for show topics or if you have authors you'd like to see on the show, let us know. Visit our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/KeystrokeMedium

For all the latest and greatest KSM Gear, check out our store at: https://keystrokemedium.com/ksm-store/

Also, subscribe to Sci Fi Explorations for the best discounted and free books we come across through our contacts: http://www.scifiexplorations.com

Keystroke Medium Anthologies

     Kingdoms of Iron and Stone - https://amzn.to/2GjbE6I 

     Horizons Beyond - https://amzn.to/2SrJ6uX

     Farthest Reach – https://amzn.to/2UZINeo

The Writing Dream – and How to Make it to Happily Ever After – Keystroke Medium’s first non-fiction book. https://amzn.to/2UZINeo

If you enjoy this podcast, please leave us a review and rate the show on iTunes, Podbean, Stitcher, or wherever else you found us!

Have you ever wondered if there was a way to deliver your books directly to your readers? Do you have a short story or five sitting around without a way to get them to your fans? BookFunnel might be the delivery system you're looking for.

BookFunnel is an easy to use platform that enables you to email your ebook straight to your fans. And tonight we're talking to the creator of BookFunnel along with some indie authors friends about how you can amplify your reach with direct access...

How do you craft that dedicated writing time... WITH COFFEE!

On tonight's episode of KSM Live! CC Ekeke joins Josh, Scott, and Chuck, to share their thoughts on the most recent entry into the Star Wars saga. The good, the bad, and the ugly.

Come join in the fun and share your own thoughts!

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Breaking Down Story - The Rise of Skywalker

On tonight's episode of KSM Live! CC Ekeke joins Josh, Scott, and Chuck, to share their thoughts on the most recent entry into the Star Wars saga. The good, the bad, and the ugly.

Hosts: Josh Hayes, Scott Moon, C. Steven Manley, CC Ekeke

SPOILERS AHEAD!

[00:00] Opening remarks—Dragon Award Nominations are open!

[04:42] Weekly update, Quarantine Edition

Chuck: Dark Devices (Jack Dark #1) is done and to the editor. Book 2 is underway. Brace Cordova #3 is underway. Dinosaur saxophone.

Scott: Reaper #10 is released. Arpen Wars is being worked on. Thirteen Mercenaries is in development as well. Blanket forts, walking outside? Rollerblading in the basement.

CC: Book 5 in Pantheon Saga series in development for a late spring release. DDP Yoga workouts! TP sparing.

Josh: Continued work on Enemy of Valor (Valor #3). Got a contract for the short story he’s been hinting at over and over. Contract of Valor?

[15:54] Sponsor: TS Hottle’s No Marigold’s in the Promised Land: A Compact Universe Novel

[17:48] Main Event: Breaking Down Story - The Rise of Skywalker!

Things We Liked:

Josh: Beautifully shot, cinematography, CGI, backdrops was immersive in 4K.

CC: Well produced visual medium; in line with the rest of the sequel trilogy.

Chuck: A lot of ‘fan’ moments to enjoy. Ex. When Chewbacca learns of Leia’s death.

Scott: Felt much more connected to the characters because of the time with the series.

Things We Did Not Like:

Josh:

-The story was set up to fail before the movie was even shot (see controversy around The Last Jedi).

-TLJ threw away so many promises given in The Force Awakens

-TRoS had to fix things that TLJ had done and the elements placed in TRoS could’ve been set up earlier.

-Lack of Payoff from previous movies/trilogies (Ex. Palpatine’s return) and even in the same movie (Ex. Chewbacca’s ship blows up).

Chuck:

-Trying to pack two movies into one movies to course correct from TLJ.

-Full of plotholes!

Scott:

-Magically creating thousands of space ships for an instant space fleet!

-Palpatine as Bond Villain.

CC:

-Emotionless story for the reader.

-Faults began with TFA, but were exacerbated by TLJ’s change of direction. It was too much for TRoS to fix.

-Zero stakes in the film. (Ex. C3PO wipe).

-Stupid ideas against established lore.

-Force Skyping was cool, but Force FedEx power?

-Committed the sin: Undoing the work of the previous trilogy (all heroes became failures)

-It’s the Rise of Palpatine, not Skywalker!

-If you need supplementary material to explain a movie premise, the movie failed to convey that to the viewer.

-Space horses riding on a ship?

-Mirroring RotJ with TRoS, ramping up stakes.

-Rise of the MacGuffin!

-If you think about the movie, it falls apart.

-Segue into Prequel Trilogy Rant (Love Story! Midichlorians!).

- JJ Abrams had to do everything he could to bring the fans back that TLJ alienated.

-Terrible motivations (Bad Day With Kylo?)

-Rey is a Mary Sue who never needs anyone’s help.

-Rey learns Force Healing from books! Jedi Nerd. No wait, she downloaded Jedi Knowledge from the Kyle Skype server.

What do you want to see in the next Star Wars Trilogy.

Chuck:

-Go back to the Old Republic and establish the rules of the universe. A Fallen Jedi story.

Josh:

-No more Rebel vs. Empire story. More small scale story like Rogue One and don’t undo the rules. Character driven story.

-Thrawn Trilogy!

CC:

-Too much returning to the well. Move forward. Show the New Jedi Order. Show more personal stories and characters.

-Dave Feloni/Jon Favreau need to be in charge of the Star Wars franchise. They make you care about the characters. Token diversity is not enough to make you care.

-Diversity was in SW in the EU before the sequel trilogy

Scott:

-Micro-level stories.

-A Jedi Academy in the flavor of Clone Wars.

Hot Take:

-Solo was the movie we didn’t need.

-The Empire was Mace Windu’s fault!

[1:09:30] Closing remarks

Coffee and Concepts

Writer’s Journey

Storytelling

 

Become a Medium today! https://keystrokemedium.com/mediums/

Don't forget to Like and Subscribe and get involved with the mayhem and shenanigans in the live chat! http://www.youtube.com/c/keystrokemedium

If you have any thoughts or ideas for show topics or if you have authors you'd like to see on the show, let us know. Visit our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/KeystrokeMedium

For all the latest and greatest KSM Gear, check out our store at: https://keystrokemedium.com/ksm-store/

Also, subscribe to Sci Fi Explorations for the best discounted and free books we come across through our contacts: http://www.scifiexplorations.com

Keystroke Medium Anthologies

     Kingdoms of Iron and Stone - https://amzn.to/2GjbE6I 

     Horizons Beyond - https://amzn.to/2SrJ6uX

     Farthest Reach – https://amzn.to/2UZINeo

The Writing Dream – and How to Make it to Happily Ever After – Keystroke Medium’s first non-fiction book. https://amzn.to/2UZINeo

If you enjoy this podcast, please leave us a review and rate the show on iTunes, Podbean, Stitcher, or wherever else you found us!

Need to increase your productivity as you work from home?

Wellness guru Roland Denzel joins us to talk about the steps you can take today to stay focused and productive. We're going to ask him about setting up your home office, creating a more effective routine, work/life balance, and deep work.

We get Guy Anthony Demarco on the show to talk java and shoot the breeze.

Different stories require different characters. On tonight's episode of KSM Live Josh, Scott and Chuck discuss creating characters based on the needs of your story.

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How to Cast Your Story

Different stories require different characters. On tonight's episode of KSM Live Josh, Scott and Chuck discuss creating characters based on the needs of your story.

Hosts: Josh Hayes, Scott Moon, C. Steven Manley, Ralph Kern

[00:00] Opening remarks—Dragon Award Nominations are open!

[02:53] Weekly update

Ralph: Big launch of A Rain of Fire (The Great War Book 1), Books 2 and 3 on preorder.

Chuck: Perpetually near the end of Jack Dark #1… report is 3,000 words away.

Josh: Marathon sprinting on Valor #3. Got a nice thank you note on a short story.

Scott: Reaper #10 is done! Alien invasion novel is underway and working on a 3-book series for Aethon. First book is done and working the second story. Concept: WWI in space.

Devil’s Ass Water!

[20:00] Sponsor: Blake Peel’s Ranger’s Oath (Fall of Radiance #1)

[22:50] Main Event: How to Cast Your Story!

-Chuck likes duos (ex. Holmes and Watson), and favorite to write is cocky Han Solo rogue

-Ralph likes the antihero type character—does what the hero does but without restraint and yet restrained in some way, and favorite to write is a terminator-type on a mission from present day to post-apocalyptic.

Example: Vic Mackey in The Shield

-Josh’s favorite to write is the eccentric/quirky character (Mack the schizophrenic malfunctioning assassin robot from Terra Nova series) 

Example: Marvin the Paranoid Android from Douglas Adam’s Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series 

-Scott likes the guardian archetype and duos, and loves writing the side characters the most as well as non-human/dog-type characters.

-Sometimes you need an annoying character to reflect the other characters, show them in a favorable light by comparison, or change their emotional weight.

Example: Jezal dan Luthar in Joe Abercrombie’s The Blade Itself (The First Law #1) 

Example: The West Wing

-Story as a color wheel, where the primary color is the MC, and the other characters are the spectrum to complement and contrast.

Example: Sand dan Glokta in Joe Abercrombie’s The Blade Itself (The First Law #1) 

-Lead and the comic relief.

Example: Standish in Richard Fox’s Ember War series 

-Animals can be important to a story.

Example: Treecats in David Weber’s Honorverse series 

Example: Chewbacca in Star Wars

-Not every story needs every type of character.

-It may depend on the story you want to tell or the genre you’re writing in (archetypes).

-Shoehorning characters into a story just to have the character may not work for the story or the reader.

-Having to drop characters that you thought you wanted, but just did not work for the story itself.

Example: Finn’s storyline in The Last Jedi

[1:07:30] Closing remarks

Coffee and Concepts

Writer’s Journey

Storytelling

 

Become a Medium today! https://keystrokemedium.com/mediums/

Don't forget to Like and Subscribe and get involved with the mayhem and shenanigans in the live chat! http://www.youtube.com/c/keystrokemedium

If you have any thoughts or ideas for show topics or if you have authors you'd like to see on the show, let us know. Visit our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/KeystrokeMedium

For all the latest and greatest KSM Gear, check out our store at: https://keystrokemedium.com/ksm-store/

Also, subscribe to Sci Fi Explorations for the best discounted and free books we come across through our contacts: http://www.scifiexplorations.com

Keystroke Medium Anthologies

     Kingdoms of Iron and Stone - https://amzn.to/2GjbE6I 

     Horizons Beyond - https://amzn.to/2SrJ6uX

     Farthest Reach – https://amzn.to/2UZINeo

The Writing Dream – and How to Make it to Happily Ever After – Keystroke Medium’s first non-fiction book. https://amzn.to/2UZINeo

If you enjoy this podcast, please leave us a review and rate the show on iTunes, Podbean, Stitcher, or wherever else you found us!

Writing a good book, that's your first mountain.

Then comes another.

Getting your book in front of readers.

But how do you do that?

One way is to build your own author platform. Bestselling thriller writer Nick Thacker joins us to discuss the eight levels of author platform mastery, everything from selling your first book to going global. We break the process down into steps on this episode of The Writer's Journey.

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Become a Medium today! https://keystrokemedium.com/mediums/

Don't forget to Subscribe and get involved with the mayhem and shenanigans in the live chat! http://www.youtube.com/c/keystrokemedium

If you have any thoughts or ideas for show topics or if you have authors you'd like to see on the show, let us know. Visit our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/KeystrokeMedium

For all the latest and greatest KSM Gear, check out our store at: https://keystrokemedium.com/ksm-store/

Also, subscribe to Sci Fi Explorations for the best discounted and free books we come across through our contacts: http://www.scifiexplorations.com

Keystroke Medium Anthologies

     Kingdoms of Iron and Stone - https://amzn.to/2GjbE6I 

     Horizons Beyond - https://amzn.to/2SrJ6uX

    Farthest Reach – https://amzn.to/2UZINeo

The Writing Dream – and How to Make it to Happily Ever After – Keystroke Medium’s first non-fiction book. https://amzn.to/2UZINeo

If you enjoy this podcast, please leave us a review and rate the show on iTunes, Podbean, Stitcher, or where ever else you found us!