Just because you're basing characters on real people doesn't make them believable or interesting. It's far more important for your story to work than it is for it to be true.

And even when people are portrayed realistically, they still might read as stereotypes.

In today's episode of Writer Unleashed, we'll go over 5 techniques to transform real people into fascinating characters who stay with the reader long after the story ends.

We'll explore: 

• How to imagine your way into what you don't know about a person 
• Why focusing on what you find most intriguing about a person  can be the main ingredient, and even help shape your story
• The composite technique to character creation 
• How to find the right details to firmly embed this person in the mind of your reader
• The actor's technique to getting into the soul of your character

Grab your FREE 13 Questions to Deepen Character here.

Also listen to:

Episode 26: Writing About Someone You Know - Is Your Story Worth It?

Want to connect with more like-minded writers and with me?  Join us on our private Facebook Group where I answer your most burning writing questions. It's totally free to join. 

Are you a memoir writer? Or a fiction writer? A novelist? Or short story writer?

Lots of people have a story to tell. But some are still flying blind after years, even decades of trying to nail down their story and elevate it to a publishable caliber.

If that sounds like you,  you may be focusing on the content of your story rather than its form. 

And form drives content.

On today's episode of Writer Unleashed, we'll explore: 

• The difference between writing a novel, memoir, or short  story
• The similarities between the forms
• What makes each form distinct,  and
• How to find the ideal form for your story

Want to connect with more like-minded writers and with me?  Join us on our private Facebook Group where I answer your most burning writing questions. It's totally free to join. 

In the theater of our mind, our story is a multi-dimensional, techno-color, high-def world teeming with life. But inevitably, in our early attempts to transfer that vision onto the page, that world disintegrates.

It’s where a lot of writers get lost. 

Or stop writing altogether.

In today's episode of Writer Unleashed, we'll explore how writers like Ann Patchett and Ta-Nehisi Coates get past this very struggle.

We'll explore:

• Why there's no such thing as failure (unless you stop writing)
• The 3 stages of artistic development
• The Mozart myth
• What mastery is and how to move steadily towards it
  
  Take my FREE 6-day audio class on how to break through the most common writing mindset barriers
  
  Want to connect with more like-minded writers and with me?  Join us on our private Facebook Group where I answer your most burning writing questions. It's totally free to join. 
  
  

Not sure how to structure your story? Start Here. This free 3-Act Worksheet gives you a clear framework so you know exactly what your beginning, middle, and end need to do — so you can stop guessing and start writing. Grab it free here.

It’s a scientific fact: body language speaks volumes about what’s truly in our hearts and minds. And the same is true of your characters. 

Facial expressions, mannerisms, gestures, eye movements — non-visual cues, no matter how subtle, divulge what a person may be feeling in any given moment. 

It’s one of the best ways to show, don’t tell. 

In today’s episode of Writer unleashed, we’ll explore:

• How we decode non-verbal cues of people we encounter every day
• How to avoid labeling character emotion and reveal what they’re really feeling
• What gestures, eye and body movements, micro expressions  reveal about characters in ways that even they’re  not aware of, but the reader intuits
• How to bring subtlety to the dynamics between characters
• A fun, 2-part exercise to drive it all home

Want to connect with more like-minded writers? Join us on our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group where I answer your most burning writing questions. Joining is FREE.

Grab more  FREE writing resources here.

We're all tired of being introduced to characters like the young man in his twenties with jet black hair,  emerald green eyes, and a chiseled jaw.

Even if a character looks like that, there are ways to make him more surprising and unforgettable.

In today's episode of Writer Unleashed, we'll break down 3 techniques to write descriptions that bring characters to life.

Want to connect with more like-minded writers? Join us on our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. Joining is free.

How do you create characters readers care about? So that the reader can't help but keep reading? 

In today's episode of Writer Unleashed, I'll explore  5 common character mistakes and how to avoid them to create characters readers care about.  

We'll explore how to:

1. Avoid the stock character
2. Choose one compelling protagonist
3. Complicate your character's desire
4. Raise the stakes
5. Create interesting change

Also listen to:

Episode 37: Three Questions to Ask Before You Plot Your Story

Want to connect with more like-minded writers? Join us on our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. Joining is free.

What questions should you ask before you plot your story? Whether you outline every chapter, or write from the hip, on today’s episode of Writer Unleashed, I’ll break down 3 questions you should explore before you outline your plot.

We'll explore:

• What story is
• Horizontal plots and vertical plots and how they intersect
• Character Viewpoint - who your story is about
• Desire and Resistance and how this impacts your plot

Also listen to:

Episode 31: What Most Writers Get Wrong About Point of View

Want to connect with more like-minded writers? Join us on our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. Joining is free.

Whether you're a football fan, or not, the Superbowl ads are often storytelling works of art.

On today's episode of Writer Unleashed, we'll unwrap 3 storytelling techniques you can swipe from your favorite Superbowl ads and apply to your story right away.

We'll explore:

• The reverse engineering approach to story structure. 
• How to dramatize conflict early on.
• How to use a shot summary to refine and shape your story. 

Want to connect with more like-minded writers? Join us on our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. Joining is free.

 What does it take to become a successful writer? 

On today's episode of Writer Unleashed, author and media consultant Simona David and  I unpack the journey and the process.  

We explore: 

• My exploratory approach to early drafts
• What it means to write what you know
• What revision can tell us about what our story’s trying to become
• How to work with and through uncertainty
• How to draw readers in emotionally
• The actor’s technique to character development
• How to write believable dialogue
• My take on what it means to be a successful writer

...and much, much more.

Simona David,  a journalist who freelances for various publications, including Chronogram and Upstater magazines, is the author of Self-Publishing and Book Marketing, A Research Guide. 

Visit Simona here: https://simonadavid.com/

Want the Free Character Questionnaire mentioned in this episode? Head on over to nancipanuccio.com  to grab yours now.

Want to connect with more like-minded writers? Join us on our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. Joining is free.

Not sure how to structure your story? Start Here. This free 3-Act Worksheet gives you a clear framework so you know exactly what your beginning, middle, and end need to do — so you can stop guessing and start writing. Grab it free here.

How much backstory is too much?

Backstory is one of the trickiest things to get effectively onto the page. Too much of it and your reader loses track, forgets, or even stops caring about what’s happening in your story's present. 

In today's episode of Writer Unleashed, we'll explore the 3 most common missteps writers make about backstory, plus 3 tips to help you write backstory without putting your story on snooze.

We'll explore:

• What backstory is and why it's useful
•  3 common mistakes new writers make when writing backstory
• Why less backstory is always more
• How to strategically weave backstory into your story's key moments
• How to use backstory to reveal and foreshadow

Want to connect with more like-minded writers? Join us on our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. Joining is free.