He’s here to save the world! Or slowly devolve in a downward spiral of madness and obsession. Y’know, whichever works. Welcome to our Archetype mini series, in which we deconstruct character archetypes and talk about how to write them (and, of course, how NOT to write them), starting with the inescapable Hero. Join us this episode for arguments about whether or not Star Wars actually counts as sci-fi, whether antiheroes even exist, and why morally gray fiction very well might be ruining the world. It’s a good time.

He’s suave, he’s hot, he’s here to steal your heart…and maybe your grandmother’s jewels while he’s at it. Join us this episode as we discuss all things Gentleman Thief, that villain we all love to love. We talk ethics, we talk worldbuilding and business cards, we talk heists (of course), and we spend an inordinate amount of time playing “is he actually a gentlemen thief?” with various fictional characters. The answers might surprise you.

Sometimes true love is written in the stars. Other times the stars are just petty and cruel. Join us this episode as we talk all things Star-Crossed Lovers, argue repeatedly about Romeo and Juliet, and discuss the real questions, like “can you write star-crossed lovers into an early 2000s style rom-com?” and “is Ansel Elgort the new Leonardo DiCaprio?”

Get in, losers, we’ve got a totally fetch season finale for you. Cady Heron isn’t like regular Nines, she’s a cool Nine. Join us this week as we talk Mean Girls, Marvel, and how to write an interesting Enneagram Nine character who’s still a Nine by the end of the story. Grool!

This week we stray from strict tropes into the land of retellings and adaptations, discussing when you should, when you shouldn’t, and what makes us ridiculously annoyed at stories. We also spend an inordinate amount of time arguing about whether Marvel is fantasy or sci-fi, which doesn’t really have anything to do with retellings, but seemed like a good idea at the time.

“Fight me.” –Lizzie Bennet, probably. No matter the challenge, Eights will rise to it. Join us this episode as we talk about megalomaniacal dictators and strong independent women and every Eight in between. This week, we’re asking the important questions, like, How do you write every Enneagram type in one story? and, What if Lizzie Bennet had been cruelly experimented on and ended up in the movie Sky High?

Sir, that’s my emotional support dead woman in a refrigerator! If you’ve ever considered killing off a character in your writing, listen to this episode. We discuss in depth when it’s okay to kill off characters and when it’s just a lazy plot trick or cheap emotional manipulation, with a side of when it might be sexist, just for kicks. From Batman’s parents to Sean Bean, this episode has everything you ever needed to know about writing satisfying character deaths.

Spoilers for Harry Potter, True Blood, Fullmetal Alchemist, Lord of the Rings, The Avengers, The Umbrella Academy, and Game of Thrones.

To live is an awfully big adventure, and Sevens are all about that adventurous life. Join us as we discuss the many iterations of Peter Pan and more than you ever wanted to know about writing Enneagram Sevens. It’s a wild and fun time. Much like Enneagram Sevens.

I hate you. I love you. I hate that I love you. Join us this episode as we talk all things Enemies to Lovers and offer some very unhelpful advice on how to write this trope. Did you know that the key to writing good books is, in fact, to write good books? You will after listening to this episode!

Me? An Enneagram Six? Shut. Up. From loyal faith in preexisting systems to skepticism of literally anything outside their comfort zones, Sixes show up in fiction in a variety of ways. Join us this episode as we talk about Mia Thermopolis, Princess of Genovia, and the many ways you can shove a Six character out of their comfort zone and into a plot. We also talk about Chris Pine a lot, because come on. It’s Chris Pine.