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Welcome back to The Writing Apothecary Podcast and another Writing Process Podcast. Today we have the lovely ML Jewell, I met Mel at Supanova in 2023 and she has become a permanent fixture in my life since. This was so insightful and exciting to interview her about her writing process and her books. 

Author Bio:

M.L Jewell, or as most people call her, Mel, is a local Brisbane Indie Author. October 2023 marked the release of her first novel, Rise of the Witches. A dark adult urban fantasy about a small town plagued with flesh-eating monsters, government-suppressed secrets and magic.

Mel enjoys crafting stories that aim to immerse readers in fantastical worlds teeming with magic, mythical beasts, and tales of love.

Mel and her husband, Alex, live in Australia along with their two children. When Mel isn’t writing or reading, she’s spending time with her family. 

Website: https://www.mljewellauthor.com.au/ 

Social media links: 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mljewell.author/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/author.mljewell/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mljewell.author

Want exclusive behind the scenes and early access to episodes join up to the mailing list over here.

If you're looking for a cheerleader for your writing, then head on over to https://dreamingfullyawake.com/work-with-me/ and let's have a chat about how we can work together to get your writing on track.

Follow the podcast on Instragram @thewritingapothecary
Follow Mandi on all socials: @mandikont

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Welcome back to The Writing Apothecary and to another return guest and my bestie Peta Hawker, she was one of the first guests on the podcast and I love any chance I get to chat to her.

Her process has changed dramatically from when we first recorded this so it's fun to revist it all.

Peta's Official Bio
My daily grind involves content writing and knowledge management for a large organisation. When I’m not attached to my work computer, I like to squeeze our three cats (much to their chagrin), engage in linguistic wrestling matches with my partner or roll around on my yoga mat. A degree in writing and publishing and a diploma in yoga teaching remind me that I chose to quantify my passions with expensive pieces of paper, but I have no regrets about either one. 

Fantasy captured my heart when I was young, and it serves as the majority of what I read and write. Let’s throw in a good dash of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, a sprinkle of Jonathan Safran Foer and a pinch of Lewis Carroll and we’ve made a meal fit for my queendom.  

Peta's Website: https://www.petahawker.com/ 
Peta's Social: @author.peta.hawker

Want exclusive behind the scenes and early access to episodes join up to the mailing list over here.

If you're looking for a cheerleader for your writing, then head on over to https://dreamingfullyawake.com/work-with-me/ and let's have a chat about how we can work together to get your writing on track.

Follow the podcast on Instragram @thewritingapothecary
Follow Mandi on all socials: @mandikont

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Come inside the curtain of Supanova Brisbane - most lovingly knowns as Brisnova - and chat to the plethora of indie authors and a few traditonally published authors there. This was recorded in November 2024. My second supanova and honestly, probably the most chilled and exhausting event I've ever done. It spanned over three days from 10-6, which as a self proclaimed ADHD introvert that was a lot of masking and talking. But so well worth it. 

This year, I could have sworn that there were so many more authors than there was last year and we all had a ball, from seeing our names on a t-shirt, to hyping each other up, to helping people move booths mid con and having dinner all together. 

It was the start of something amazing and I now call some of these amazing authors close friends.

Want exclusive behind the scenes and early access to episodes join up to the mailing list over here.

If you're looking for a cheerleader for your writing, then head on over to https://dreamingfullyawake.com/work-with-me/ and let's have a chat about how we can work together to get your writing on track.

Follow the podcast on Instragram @thewritingapothecary
Follow Mandi on all socials: @mandikont

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Welcome to Writing Apothecary and the next interview as we chat about the writing process.

Today's chat is with a return guest, Sarah L Richhelm, who appeared on our Plot interview. It was great to have her back and chat about her process and how she liked editing...

Official Bio:
Sarah is a serial cookie-in-tea dunker and Spotify playlist curator and adores writing slow-burn, high-stakes fantasy romance you can giggle kick over.

She graduated from the University of Queensland with a degree in Communications and—when she’s not travelling—resides in Brisbane, Australia with her partner, a stack of TBR books she promises she’ll read someday, and a growing array of indoor house plants. They’re still alive. She thinks.

Website: www.authorsarahlrichhelm.com
Social media links: https://www.instagram.com/sarahlrichhelm/

Want exclusive behind the scenes and early access to episodes join up to the mailing list over here.

If you're looking for a cheerleader for your writing, then head on over to https://dreamingfullyawake.com/work-with-me/ and let's have a chat about how we can work together to get your writing on track.

Follow the podcast on Instragram @thewritingapothecary
Follow Mandi on all socials: @mandikont

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Welcome to Writing Apothecary and the next interview as we chat about the writing process.

Today's chat is with fellow creative entrepreneur Monique Kostelec. We chat about her process and how she loves almost every part of the process.

Official Bio:
At 18, Monique was adamant that she would be the next Amal Clooney. As it turned out, she was more suited for the path of George. Monique is a writer, screenwriter, actress & creative entrepreneur who runs The Novel Writing Project - a writing business created to help writers have the audacity to believe in their writing dreams, write their novels, and actually enjoy the journey along the way. 

Website: https://payhip.com/thenovelwritingproject
Social media links: https://www.instagram.com/monique_kostelac/ 

Want exclusive behind the scenes and early access to episodes join up to the mailing list over here.

If you're looking for a cheerleader for your writing, then head on over to https://dreamingfullyawake.com/work-with-me/ and let's have a chat about how we can work together to get your writing on track.

Follow the podcast on Instragram @thewritingapothecary
Follow Mandi on all socials: @mandikont

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Welcome back to The Writing Apothecary Podcast - and a side quest if you must - about Writing Process and the way that every author does it differently. I can't wait for youto dig into this. The same bite sized episodic format is back. 

To kick off the first episode you get to see a BTS all about my own writing process. I've broken down the questions that I ask my guests and give you an insight about how I write and how my madness leads to my novels in their various forms. Touching on how I plot, how I edit, what works for me and how I get through my process. 

If you would love to be apart of this side quest send me an email - [email protected] and put Writing Process Podcast Guest in the title

Want exclusive behind the scenes and early access to episodes join up to the mailing list over here.

If you're looking for a cheerleader for your writing, then head on over to https://dreamingfullyawake.com/work-with-me/ and let's have a chat about how we can work together to get your writing on track.

Follow the podcast on Instragram @thewritingapothecary
Follow Mandi on all socials: @mandikont

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Welcome back to The Writing Apothecary and to our interview for the topic. Caroline and I dive deep into the all things fight scenes and how to better your writing of them.  

In today's chat here are some of the things we covered:

• What defines a fighting scene?
• The kinds of fighting scenes.
• The language of fighting scenes.
• Caroline's take on all things fighting scenes. 

About Caroline:
Caroline Logan is a writer of Young Adult Fantasy. She is currently working on her Scottish fantasy series: The Four Treasures. The Stone of Destiny, The Cauldron of Life and The Sword of Light are out now, with the final book - The Spear of Life out now.

Caroline is a high school biology teacher who lives in the Cairngorms National Park in Scotland, with her husband and dogs, Ranger and Scout. Before moving there, she lived and worked in Spain, Tenerife, Sri Lanka and other places in Scotland. She graduated from The University of Glasgow with a bachelor’s degree in Marine and Freshwater Biology. In her spare time she tries to swim, ski and paddleboard, though she is happiest with a good book and a cup of tea.

You can find her here: Website, Twitter, Instagram
You can buy her books from here: Amazon, Cranachan Publishing

Tell me what did you take away from this week's lesson? I'd love to know

Also, I would really appreciate it if you took the time to rate and review the podcast it helps people find our community and gets the podcast out into the world a little more.

Want exclusive behind the scenes and early access to episodes join up to the mailing list over here.

If you're looking for a cheerleader for your writing, then head on over to https://dreamingfullyawake.com/work-with-me/ and let's have a chat about how we can work together to get your writing on track.

Follow the podcast on Instragram @thewritingapothecary
Follow Mandi on all socials: @mandikont

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Welcome back to The Writing Apothecary and our next lesson on Fight scenes. We're looking at the emotional battlefield and how it can affect your character. 

We're covering:

• Depths of Fighting Scenes
• What is needed from the scenes
• What it takes to make the battlefield work.

Tell me what did you take away from this week's lesson? I'd love to know

Also, I would really appreciate it if you took the time to rate and review the podcast it helps people find our community and gets the podcast out into the world a little more.
Want exclusive behind the scenes and early access to episodes join up to the mailing list over here.

If you're looking for a cheerleader for your writing, then head on over to https://dreamingfullyawake.com/work-with-me/ and let's have a chat about how we can work together to get your writing on track.

Faded Fragments out now! Buy a copy on Amazon https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0CK3K5YLN or a signed copy (if you're an Aus or NZ resident) https://dreamingfullyawake.com/books/. This is novel in The Nexus Series. 

References:
Angela Knight - How to Write Fight Scenes

Want exclusive behind the scenes and early access to episodes join up to the mailing list over here.

If you're looking for a cheerleader for your writing, then head on over to https://dreamingfullyawake.com/work-with-me/ and let's have a chat about how we can work together to get your writing on track.

Follow the podcast on Instragram @thewritingapothecary
Follow Mandi on all socials: @mandikont

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Welcome back to The Writing Apothecary and our next lesson on Fight scenes. We're looking at the emotional battlefield and how it can affect your character. 

We're covering:

• Character motives
• Going back to basics
• Internal Conflict
• External Conflict
• Emotional triggers

Tell me what did you take away from this week's lesson? I'd love to know

Also, I would really appreciate it if you took the time to rate and review the podcast it helps people find our community and gets the podcast out into the world a little more.
Want exclusive behind the scenes and early access to episodes join up to the mailing list over here.

If you're looking for a cheerleader for your writing, then head on over to https://dreamingfullyawake.com/work-with-me/ and let's have a chat about how we can work together to get your writing on track.

Faded Fragments out Septmber 29th. Mandi's first debut novel in The Nexus Series. 

References:
Angela Knight - How to Write Fight Scenes

Want exclusive behind the scenes and early access to episodes join up to the mailing list over here.

If you're looking for a cheerleader for your writing, then head on over to https://dreamingfullyawake.com/work-with-me/ and let's have a chat about how we can work together to get your writing on track.

Follow the podcast on Instragram @thewritingapothecary
Follow Mandi on all socials: @mandikont

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Welcome back to a episode and a new topic. The next two months we're exploring Fight Scenes and we have a great guest to top it all off. 

Fight scenes have always been a challenge for a lot of people, myself included, and we're going to explore two side of fight scenes:

• Emotional Fight Scenes
• Action Fight Scenes

I'm so excited to get into the topics and explore what it looks like when we dive deeper into it. The guest we have is a new author and I can't wait for you to hear the chat I've had the pleasure of having.

Tell me what did you take away from this week's lesson? I'd love to know.

Also, I would really appreciate it if you took the time to rate and review the podcast it helps people find our community and gets the podcast out into the world a little more.

Want exclusive behind the scenes and early access to episodes join up to the mailing list over here.

If you're looking for a cheerleader for your writing, then head on over to https://dreamingfullyawake.com/work-with-me/ and let's have a chat about how we can work together to get your writing on track.

Want exclusive behind the scenes and early access to episodes join up to the mailing list over here.

If you're looking for a cheerleader for your writing, then head on over to https://dreamingfullyawake.com/work-with-me/ and let's have a chat about how we can work together to get your writing on track.

Follow the podcast on Instragram @thewritingapothecary
Follow Mandi on all socials: @mandikont