Prose and Cons

As two of the resident horror writers of the group, Alex and James get together to discuss all parts of the genre: what makes it tick, how to structure it and how masters of the genre do what they do. And you better believe we reference Stephen King!

STEPHEN KING REFERENCE COUNTER: 6 TODAY, 96 TOTAL

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This is Prose & Cons - a podcast for emerging writers, by emerging writers. Because sometimes we feel like pros, and sometimes we feel like cons.

Brought to you by Precipice Fiction. Six Writers. Six Worlds. Alexandria Burnham, Paddy Boylan, Alex Eldridge, Matan Elul, Phoenix Raig and James Healy.

The New Mythic: A Sci-Fi & Fantasy Collection - Available now in ebook or paperback: mybook.to/TheNewMythic

• Website: precipicefiction.com
• YouTube: youtube.com/@PrecipiceFiction
• Instagram: instagram.com/precipicefiction/
• Twitter: twitter.com/PrecipiceFic
• Facebook: facebook.com/PrecipiceFiction

“The Spider hears everything through all its jangling threads.” Sarah dropped her rolled, diluted tobacco ration to the ground and pressed it into the soil with the ball of her foot, as though the ever-watching Omni-Mayor were right there under her shoe.

“That’s no reason to give up hope,” I said, not even believing my own words.

“Who said anything about giving up?”

——

If you haven’t guessed from this little flash-dash-micro fiction that Phoenix is very proud of, today we’re talking Dystopian literature, film, and so on.

James leads Matan and Phoenix through all the emotionally charged twists and turns of this heavy genre. 

• Why do people enjoy Dystopian literature?
• Why should people write in this genre?
• What makes this genre what it is?

They’ll talk about all this and more on this episode of Prose & Cons.

STEPHEN KING REFERENCE COUNTER: 0 TODAY, 90 TOTAL

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Contact us at: precipicefiction.com/contact/

=============================================

This is Prose & Cons - a podcast for emerging writers, by emerging writers. Because sometimes we feel like pros, and sometimes we feel like cons.

Brought to you by Precipice Fiction. Six Writers. Six Worlds. Alexandria Burnham, Paddy Boylan, Alex Eldridge, Matan Elul, Phoenix Raig and James Healy.

The New Mythic: A Sci-Fi & Fantasy Collection - Available now in ebook or paperback: mybook.to/TheNewMythic

• Website: precipicefiction.com
• YouTube: youtube.com/@PrecipiceFiction
• Instagram: instagram.com/precipicefiction/
• Twitter: twitter.com/PrecipiceFic
• Facebook: facebook.com/PrecipiceFiction

Some lovely new discussions are on the horizon as the team has been quite busy off in the writing world. In the time being, Phoenix has selected one of his favourite episodes; if you're in the early drafting stages or the developmental stage of your manuscript, this is definitely worth a listen.

Why can't we just give our character a magic wand and be done with it? Nothing says we can't, but will it be good? Or will it completely ruin the story? In this episode, Ally, Matan, Phoenix, Paddy, and James look at all the ways to rip, tear, break, and shatter a story. We get into all sorts of stuff, such as:

- Shock factor done well vs. done not so well.

- How to create meaning and avoid making things feel meaningless.

- James's tenuous relationship with vomit zombies.

A special shout-out to "Cardinal West" on YouTube for his amazing analysis of Zuko's story from Avatar the Last Airbender.

Patrick Rothfuss, if you're listening, small trigger warning for you on this one. You're great, but a little bit of blood was drawn.

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Contact us at: precipicefiction.com/contact/

=============================================

This is Prose & Cons - a podcast for emerging writers, by emerging writers. Because sometimes we feel like pros, and sometimes we feel like cons.

Brought to you by Precipice Fiction. Six Writers. Six Worlds. Alexandria Burnham, Paddy Boylan, Alex Eldridge, Matan Elul, Phoenix Raig and James Healy.

The New Mythic: A Sci-Fi & Fantasy Collection - Available now in ebook or paperback: mybook.to/TheNewMythic

• Website: precipicefiction.com
• YouTube: youtube.com/@PrecipiceFiction
• Instagram: instagram.com/precipicefiction/
• Twitter: twitter.com/PrecipiceFic
• Facebook: facebook.com/PrecipiceFiction

We're back with another Absolute Prose classic episode: Ally's sensational "All Storytelling is Wrestling" ep! WrestleMania 39 was on the horizon, and the producers here at Precipice Fiction Inc. felt it was time to unleash Ally's true form on the world. A writer behind the keyboard, a slayer in the analysis of storytelling tools used in the WWE, Ally leads a willing, yet maybe slightly nervous, team into the unknown world of wrestling in this special extended episode—Ally had a lot to say, Phoenix took notes.

We went over:

• The storytelling structure of a fight.
• How far back does Ally's obsession go? (far ...)
• Is WWE wrestling real? (No it is not, but the storytelling devices are as real as real gets).

Send us a message!

Contact us at: precipicefiction.com/contact/

=============================================

This is Prose & Cons - a podcast for emerging writers, by emerging writers. Because sometimes we feel like pros, and sometimes we feel like cons.

Brought to you by Precipice Fiction. Six Writers. Six Worlds. Alexandria Burnham, Paddy Boylan, Alex Eldridge, Matan Elul, Phoenix Raig and James Healy.

The New Mythic: A Sci-Fi & Fantasy Collection - Available now in ebook or paperback: mybook.to/TheNewMythic

• Website: precipicefiction.com
• YouTube: youtube.com/@PrecipiceFiction
• Instagram: instagram.com/precipicefiction/
• Twitter: twitter.com/PrecipiceFic
• Facebook: facebook.com/PrecipiceFiction

James, Matan and Alex sit down to answer the the question what are their favourite techniques - both to read and to write.

Send us a message!

Contact us at: precipicefiction.com/contact/

=============================================

This is Prose & Cons - a podcast for emerging writers, by emerging writers. Because sometimes we feel like pros, and sometimes we feel like cons.

Brought to you by Precipice Fiction. Six Writers. Six Worlds. Alexandria Burnham, Paddy Boylan, Alex Eldridge, Matan Elul, Phoenix Raig and James Healy.

The New Mythic: A Sci-Fi & Fantasy Collection - Available now in ebook or paperback: mybook.to/TheNewMythic

• Website: precipicefiction.com
• YouTube: youtube.com/@PrecipiceFiction
• Instagram: instagram.com/precipicefiction/
• Twitter: twitter.com/PrecipiceFic
• Facebook: facebook.com/PrecipiceFiction

Hot take time! Get ready for your exclusive guided tour through Ally’s career as a writer, what got her started, what she’s up to, and what’s coming next. For anyone pursuing a career in film or finding an identity as a multi-media writer, you’re sure to find some excellent nuggets in this one.

STEPHEN KING REFERENCE COUNTER: 0 TODAY, 90 TOTAL

Send us a message!

Contact us at: precipicefiction.com/contact/

=============================================

This is Prose & Cons - a podcast for emerging writers, by emerging writers. Because sometimes we feel like pros, and sometimes we feel like cons.

Brought to you by Precipice Fiction. Six Writers. Six Worlds. Alexandria Burnham, Paddy Boylan, Alex Eldridge, Matan Elul, Phoenix Raig and James Healy.

The New Mythic: A Sci-Fi & Fantasy Collection - Available now in ebook or paperback: mybook.to/TheNewMythic

• Website: precipicefiction.com
• YouTube: youtube.com/@PrecipiceFiction
• Instagram: instagram.com/precipicefiction/
• Twitter: twitter.com/PrecipiceFic
• Facebook: facebook.com/PrecipiceFiction

Have you ever read a book that completely rocked the axis on which you read and consider literature? Well, here's four of them! Today, Alex, Paddy, James and Matan recount four books that have changed them as readers and writers. Please be aware there are significant spoilers for the following books:

Never Let Me Go - Kasuo Ishagura
The Girl With All The Gifts - M. R. Carey
Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand
Wolf Hall (the trilogy) - Hilary Mantel

So if you haven't read these books, do yourself a favour and go out and read them before listening to this episode.

Send us a message!

Contact us at: precipicefiction.com/contact/

=============================================

This is Prose & Cons - a podcast for emerging writers, by emerging writers. Because sometimes we feel like pros, and sometimes we feel like cons.

Brought to you by Precipice Fiction. Six Writers. Six Worlds. Alexandria Burnham, Paddy Boylan, Alex Eldridge, Matan Elul, Phoenix Raig and James Healy.

The New Mythic: A Sci-Fi & Fantasy Collection - Available now in ebook or paperback: mybook.to/TheNewMythic

• Website: precipicefiction.com
• YouTube: youtube.com/@PrecipiceFiction
• Instagram: instagram.com/precipicefiction/
• Twitter: twitter.com/PrecipiceFic
• Facebook: facebook.com/PrecipiceFiction

Counterintuitive as it may seem, sometimes our protagonists need to fall flat on their face and fail. After all, what's an epic journey without setbacks? In today's episode, Matan, Ally and James examine character failure and why it's often so necessary for an effective story. Join us as we explore the why's and how's of failures, what makes a story's failure effective (and what can make it ineffective), and round it all out with the mighty Game of Fails!

STEPHEN KING REFERENCE COUNTER: 0 TODAY, 90 TOTAL

Send us a message!

Contact us at: precipicefiction.com/contact/

=============================================

This is Prose & Cons - a podcast for emerging writers, by emerging writers. Because sometimes we feel like pros, and sometimes we feel like cons.

Brought to you by Precipice Fiction. Six Writers. Six Worlds. Alexandria Burnham, Paddy Boylan, Alex Eldridge, Matan Elul, Phoenix Raig and James Healy.

The New Mythic: A Sci-Fi & Fantasy Collection - Available now in ebook or paperback: mybook.to/TheNewMythic

• Website: precipicefiction.com
• YouTube: youtube.com/@PrecipiceFiction
• Instagram: instagram.com/precipicefiction/
• Twitter: twitter.com/PrecipiceFic
• Facebook: facebook.com/PrecipiceFiction

Follow the white rabbit.
To where is it hippity hoppiting?
Through the mono-myth we go,
Where all threads are spun.

Sorry, I don’t know what came over me just then. Anyway, welcome to Prose & Cons! On today’s episode, Paddy takes James, Alex, and Ally through the Hero’s Journey (name used in a gender-neutral context), the map over which it’s said that all stories are written.

Whether you’re entirely unfamiliar with it or have heard of it but don’t know the exact breakdown, they’ve got you covered, going through, step by step, and looking at how it applies to some popular titles such as Star Wars, Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings, and, primarily, The Matrix.

Some highlights:

• A strong recommendation to watch Hazbin Hotel.
• Paddy’s impressive Keanu Reeves impression.
• An introduction to the Heroin’s Journey

If you have any questions, or maybe have interest in hearing a breakdown of the 17-point hero’s journey, let us know by following the link below.

STEPHEN KING REFERENCE COUNTER: 0 TODAY, 90 TOTAL

Send us a message!

Contact us at: precipicefiction.com/contact/

=============================================

This is Prose & Cons - a podcast for emerging writers, by emerging writers. Because sometimes we feel like pros, and sometimes we feel like cons.

Brought to you by Precipice Fiction. Six Writers. Six Worlds. Alexandria Burnham, Paddy Boylan, Alex Eldridge, Matan Elul, Phoenix Raig and James Healy.

The New Mythic: A Sci-Fi & Fantasy Collection - Available now in ebook or paperback: mybook.to/TheNewMythic

• Website: precipicefiction.com
• YouTube: youtube.com/@PrecipiceFiction
• Instagram: instagram.com/precipicefiction/
• Twitter: twitter.com/PrecipiceFic
• Facebook: facebook.com/PrecipiceFiction

Part two of our vaunted Mailbag episode!

This part definitely occurred on a different day and we're certainly not all delerious from three hours of podcasting. So enjoy this entirely hinged and sane second part of our mailbag episode!

STEPHEN KING REFERENCE COUNTER: 1 TODAY, 90 TOTAL

Send us a message!

Contact us at: precipicefiction.com/contact/

=============================================

This is Prose & Cons - a podcast for emerging writers, by emerging writers. Because sometimes we feel like pros, and sometimes we feel like cons.

Brought to you by Precipice Fiction. Six Writers. Six Worlds. Alexandria Burnham, Paddy Boylan, Alex Eldridge, Matan Elul, Phoenix Raig and James Healy.

The New Mythic: A Sci-Fi & Fantasy Collection - Available now in ebook or paperback: mybook.to/TheNewMythic

• Website: precipicefiction.com
• YouTube: youtube.com/@PrecipiceFiction
• Instagram: instagram.com/precipicefiction/
• Twitter: twitter.com/PrecipiceFic
• Facebook: facebook.com/PrecipiceFiction