Writing Excuses

What are the things that matter to your characters? What things matter to your readers? After we get the obligatory ambiguity out of the way, we settle into talking about the "stakes" and the escalation thereof.

As authors, we want our readers to feel that something is at risk, and that action on the part of the protagonist is important. It might only be important to the protagonist, but whether the world is at stake, or just one person's reputation, the reader needs to believe that this matters.

In many outlining techniques (three-act structure, seven-point story structure, Hollywood formula) the writer is told to "raise the stakes" at certain points. So, not only must we put things at risk, we must find ways to either increase the amount of risk, or increase the character response to the risk already present.

We talk about the sorts of things that can be treated as "stakes" in the stories we tell, and how we can go about raising those stakes.

Week two is over. You might be asking yourself if it's worth it. Is it worth it?

Hey! Dan Wells and his brother Rob are here to tell you why this is worth it.

And then, in the spirit of distracting you, they tell you about their pop-culture podcast, Do I Dare To Eat a Peach?

Spoiler alert! We're going to talk in depth about The Emperor's Soul, which just came out, and if you haven't yet read it but want to, we'd rather not spoil it for you. The e-book is available here.

So... ready?

Brandon talks to us about the origin of the magic system, and why he decided it fit well for setting in the same world as Elantris. He also talks to us about the way in which he arrived at the ending, and how the ending grew very naturally from the early stages of defining the character.

We have fun comparing Howard's interpretation of a story point with what Brandon actually intended, and Mary talks about the structural changes made between the draft she read and the final version, a change that perfectly fulfills the definition of killing a darling. And on the subject of darlings, Dan asks about the fight sequence, and whether that really needed to be part of the story. Then we talk about some darlings Brandon opted to NOT kill.

Audiobook Freebie (limited time only): Legion by Brandon Sanderson, narrated by Oliver Wyman

You're doing NaNoWriMo, right? Well, Brandon and Mary took time out from World Fantasy to record this special message for you. Is it a pep-talk? Sage advice? Or is it just a pronunciation pointer? You decide! But don't take long. You need to be writing.

Two minutes and forty-eight seconds long, because it's NaNoWriMo, we're ALL in a hurry, and hopefully this minimizes the distractions.

It's microcasting time! This week we take a crack at the following listener questions:

* What percentage of a rough draft makes it into print?

* What are the pitfalls of jumping from novels to short fiction, and vice versa?

* Do you need to start with short fiction first?

* (This answer involves this link to Jim C. Hines.)

* Should a novice writer fix glaring story problems during a draft, or wait until after?

* Can a self-published author get picked up by a traditional publisher?

* How do you get over the fear of writing something unoriginal?

* (We break this question into two larger questions--we can do that, we use Author Math--and reference some previous episodes.)

* (We should also point out the irony that yes, Howard is usually the one who writes these up, but on the one day we say it's going to be Howard it's actually Dan.)

* Can I pay you to help me outline my story?

* (The answer to this particular question involves what I call "a massive yet slightly late announcement" about the "Out of Excuses" Workshop and Retreat. We also just announced a scholarship for the retreat.)

Jim Zub joins us in front of a live audience at GenCon Indy to talk to us about writing for comics. He's the writer and creator of Skullkickers, writes the newly-launched Pathfinder comic book for Paizo, and has been writing, illustrating, and managing projects at Udon for the better part of a decade now. Jim is an expert's expert when it comes to this.

He starts by talking about the overall process, and how his original script fits in there. Jim and Howard then talk about brevity. Jim also points us at his five-part series on writing for comics (so yes, you have homework.) We talk about the writer-artist collaborative process, and how those collaborations change shape over time.

Jim also schools us on comics pacing, and how page-turns drive the comic forward differently than they do in prose. Finally, he talks about how to get into the business he's in.

James L Sutter  joins us before a live audience at GenCon Indy for a discussion of tie-in fiction. James is a writer and editor, and is one of the co-creators of the Pathfinder system. He is the author of Pathfinder Tales: Death's Heretic and is the editor in charge of all of Paizo's Pathfinder fiction.

James leads by telling us that if you want to write for Pathfinder, the first thing you need to do is write something for somebody else. As the editor of that division at Paizo, he's the gatekeeper, and that's the first hurdle you need to clear. He also talks to us about what he's looking for in an author.

We talk at length about the Pathfinder line, its genesis, and James's mission with Paizo regarding the tie-in fiction. He tells us about the things that turn him off in a submitted manuscript, and what sorts of work he does with his writers to help make the tie-in fiction actually, you know, tie in.

Debut author Janci Patterson joins us to talk about contemporary young adult fiction. Her first book, Chasing the Skip, hit the streets October 2nd, 2012, and while Janci writes fantasy, this tale has no fantastic elements in it. Apparently bounty-hunting is plenty exciting without adding magic.

We talk about the genre, the research Janci did, and some of the essentials of a good character drama. We also discuss how Janci starts with the pitch before outlining, let alone writing drafts, and how this process has helped her write books that are easier to sell to agents and editors.

Finally, Janci talks to us about breaking in, and why she took the path she did.

Audiobook Freebie! Legion, by Brandon Sanderson, narrated by Oliver Wyman

If you've ever had difficulty outlining something, this episode might be a perfect fit for you. We discuss the Seven-Point Story Structure, an outlining system Dan uses in which the story moves forward along seven sequential points.

Dan originally acquired this from a role-playing book, but it also sees regular use in screenwriting. Dan walks us through the system, and we hold his feet to the fire on behalf of Lou Anders, who once privately confessed to Howard that he just couldn't get this thing to work.

Here, without any flavor text, are the seven points:

* Hook

* Plot Turn I

* Pinch I

* Midpoint

* Pinch II

* Plot Turn II

* Resolution

While these are (obviously) not the only seven things that happen in your book, these are the key things that are working together to move you from hook to resolution.

After an explanation of the system, we brainstorm this on Dan's "I.E.Demon" story in order to demonstrate the tool for you. Also, for Lou.

Audiobook Pick-of-the-Week: Enchanted, by Alethea Kontis, narrated by Katherine Kellgren

Linkage: Dan Wells Seven-Point Story Structure on YouTube

Maurice Broaddus joins us to talk about "writing the other" -- writing other cultures, races, genders -- basically anybody who isn't much like you.

We talk about common pitfalls, including resorting to tropes like the "magical Negro," and the "noble savage."

More importantly, we talk about how to do this well. Maurice has plenty to offer from his own experience, including some fun anecdotes about his crazy research.