WriterDojo

This week on the WriterDojo, our hosts, authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia, throw open the mailbag for Supporter Spectacular XIV! Our Patreon supporters and members of our Facebook group sent in the questions, and the guys are taking them on. Curious about the world of Grimnoir? Wondering about writing about certain lycanthropic individuals? What does it take to write a villain readers will actually fear? Plus plenty more on the craft, the business, and the practical realities of writing. Thanks to our Patreon supporters and Facebook group members for the great questions!

If you would like to join our supporters, you can support this podcast with a small monthly donation to help sustain future episodes at Patreon.com/WriterDojo (note: this is the new support link!)

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This week’s episode is sponsored by Steve's latest offering *A Devil's Bargain: And Other Stories* available now on Amazon: https://link.amazon/B06TrlUAN (affiliate link)

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“Word Mercenaries” (the WriterDojo theme) is by Craig Nybo https://craignybo.com

This week on the WriterDojo our hosts, authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia, tackle feedback. Every writer gets it eventually. Not every writer knows what to do with it. Where do you find feedback worth listening to? What makes a note helpful, and what makes it useless or even harmful? How do you tell the difference when it’s your own work on the table? And once the critiques roll in, how do you decide which ones to act on? Plus as always, plenty more on the craft, the business, and the practical realities of writing.

If you would like to join our supporters, you can support this podcast with a small monthly donation to help sustain future episodes at Patreon.com/WriterDojo (note: this is the new support link!)

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This week’s episode is sponsored by *Sharp Steel & Dark Magic* an anthology that includes stories from Steve and Larry! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HQBLCZ3G

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“Word Mercenaries” (the WriterDojo theme) is by Craig Nybo https://craignybo.com

This week on the WriterDojo, our hosts, authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia, talk Kickstarters with D.J. (Dave) Butler. All three have run campaigns of their own, and each has picked up hard-won tips and tricks along the way. What separates a campaign that funds from one that fizzles? What do they wish they’d known before their first launch? And with AI tools everywhere, how much AI is acceptable in a crowdfunded project, and when is it too much? Plus plenty more on the craft, the business, and the practical realities of writing.

If you would like to join our supporters, you can support this podcast with a small monthly donation to help sustain future episodes at Patreon.com/WriterDojo (note: this is the new support link!)

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This week’s episode is sponsored by our boy Rick Cutler’s Colt Ostergaard: A Man With A Gun available at: https://amzn.to/3QGPaCz (affiliate link)

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“Word Mercenaries” (the WriterDojo theme) is by Craig Nybo https://craignybo.com

To support the Witchy War Kickstarter, go here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hapaxpress/the-witchy-war

This week on the WriterDojo, our hosts, authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia, welcome back longtime friend of the show D.J. (Dave) Butler to talk about the current realities of the publishing world. Dave always wanted to just be a writer, but he’s ended up as editor, legal counsel, and advisor to several publishers. After years of working writer conventions and getting involved in just about every aspect of publishing, he knows trad pub, startups, indy, and everything in between like few others. What do trad publishers look for, and what can they do for you? What does it take to build your own imprint? How do you keep a publisher happy? How do you keep investors happy? This is part one of Dave’s latest interview- tune in next week for part 2!

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This week's episode is sponsored by Jade Michael Scott's *Dreadful Tendencies* available on Amazon now https://amzn.to/3VXRhUL

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"Word Mercenaries" (the WriterDojo theme) is by Craig Nybo https://craignybo.com

This week on the WriterDojo our hosts, authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia, are doing a bit of housekeeping. We get a lot of questions from our beautiful Patreon Supporters and the WriterDojo Facebook group, (plus a few things that made them ask what the @#$% they were looking at) so this week we're working through some of them.

What do you do when you write short? How do you add to a story without padding it? What is the real purpose of sci-fi and fantasy? Does Lord of the Rings not feel authentic anymore, and if so why? And what happens when a con sticks you on a panel about something you know nothing about? All this plus plenty more on the craft, the business, and the practical realities of writing. Thanks to our Patreon supporters for the great questions!

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This week's episode is sponsored by- Hapax Press' (friend of the show D.J. Butler) *Witchy War* Kickstarter! www.kickstarter.com/projects/hapaxpress/the-witchy-war

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"Word Mercenaries" (the WriterDojo theme) is by Craig Nybo https://craignybo.com

This week on the WriterDojo our hosts, authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia, tear into a tweet that went viral: someone's list of dos and don'ts for a creative writing class. Some of it holds up. Most of it doesn't. (And yes, the Bad Twitter Voice makes its triumphant return!) Real talk on what actually helps a writer in a classroom versus what just sounds good in 280 characters, plus the usual detours into craft and the business side of things. ----------------------------------

This week's episode is sponsored by- the WriterDojo! To help support us, go to: Patreon.com/WriterDojo -----------------------------------

"Word Mercenaries" (the WriterDojo theme) is by Craig Nybo https://craignybo.com

This week on the WriterDojo our hosts, authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia, talk about Genre Blending with author Julie Frost. (This episode was recorded live at a panel at the Writers Cantina 2026.) How do you pull it off, when should you attempt it, and how much does staying in one lane actually matter? Different format this week, Q&A with a live audience and all, but the same goal as always: real craft training plus tips that help you actually get paid.

If you would like to join our supporters, you can support this podcast with a small monthly donation to help sustain future episodes at Patreon.com/WriterDojo (note: this is the all new, all different support link!)

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This week's episode is sponsored by Julie Frost's Smuggling Spaces: https://amzn.to/4AsFHkg (affiliate link) -----------------------------------

"Word Mercenaries" (the WriterDojo theme) is by Craig Nybo https://craignybo.com

Part two! This week on the WriterDojo, our hosts, authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia, wrap up their run through Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules of Writing. More rules, more opinions, and more disagreement about which ones actually hold up in practice. The guys close out the list with the same mix of agreement, pushback, and hard-won caveats from part one. Plus plenty more on the craft and business of writing. Thanks for hanging out with us on WriterDojo!

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This week's episode is sponsored by the Gun Runner graphic novel on Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hdmediaatl/gun-runner-the-graphic-novel-vol-1

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"Word Mercenaries" (the WriterDojo theme) is by Craig Nybo https://craignybo.com

This week on the WriterDojo, our hosts, authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia, kick off a two-part dive into Elmore Leonard's famous 10 Rules of Writing (spoiler alert: they don't agree on all of them.) Which rules are absolute, which are situational, and which deserve a firm "nah"? The guys go rule by rule, sharing where they agree, where they push back, and where the truth lives somewhere in the caveats. Plus plenty more discussion on the craft, the business, and the practical realities of writing. Part two next week!

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This week's episode is sponsored by the Gun Runner graphic novel on Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hdmediaatl/gun-runner-the-graphic-novel-vol-1

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"Word Mercenaries" (the WriterDojo theme) is by Craig Nybo https://craignybo.com

This week on the WriterDojo, our hosts, authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia, tackle Professionalism—what publishers are really looking for before they even open your pitch. Inspired by a post from Producer Jack in the WriterDojo Facebook group about a submission gone wrong, the guys break down researching your target publisher, following submission guidelines, avoiding mass mailings, personalizing your query, and treating the whole process like the business relationship it is. Plus plenty more on the craft and business of getting your manuscript in front of the right eyes.

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This week's episode is sponsored by the Gun Runner graphic novel on Kickstarter:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hdmediaatl/gun-runner-the-graphic-novel-vol-1

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"Word Mercenaries" (the WriterDojo theme) is by Craig Nybo https://craignybo.com