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Writing with Friends episodes
- BJ Williams’ Ask Me Anything
It’s time for an Ask Me Anything! We’ll be chatting with BJ and getting a little more personal about his own writing practice and what BJ’s thinking about and working on these days!
Picks of the Week:
H: The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street by Helene Hanff
BJ: Qualityland by Marc-Uwe Kling
Mentioned in the Episode:
Mage Knight: The Board Game
The Mad Titan’s Shadow expansion for Marvel Champions
Unreliable Wizard Board Game
If you have any other questions for BJ, let us know by writing to us at [email protected]. And we’ll also do an Ask Me Anything episode for Hillary later this season, so send your questions our way for that one too!
10 min - How should I structure a scene?
Welcome to a tool deep dive episode, where we highlight the features and the challenges of a tool we think you’ll find helpful as a writer. And the tool we’ll be talking about today is scene cards. Do you ever sit down to write a scene and feel a bit at a loss of how to structure a scene? What should a scene actually include? What makes a scene work or not work? Scene cards can help!
Picks of the Week:
H: Crying in Hmart by Michelle Zauner
BJ: Love in Color: Mythical Tales from Around the World, Retold by Bolu Babalola
Mentioned in the Episode:
Story Genius by Lisa Cron (Lisa Cron is the creator of this tool!)
Blog post on Scene Cards from Life Gone Write by Jessica Grace Kelley
If you try out scene cards, let us know how you liked this tool by writing to us at [email protected].
9 min - Should I save up my good ideas?
We’ll be talking about why you should use your good ideas now instead of saving them for later. We propose in this episode that good ideas are not a finite resource and there may never be a perfect time to explore them.
Picks of the Week:
BJ: The Maze Runner Files by James Dashner
H: The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
If you use your good ideas now instead of saving them for later, let us know about your favorite example by writing to us at [email protected]!
8 min - Fireside Chat: How should I use the revision spreadsheet?
We’ll be gathering around our metaphorical fireplace for a fireside chat– an honest conversation about how we’re applying a craft topic or tool to our own writing practices, and how you might incorporate this topic or tool into your writing life as well. The tool we’ll be talking about today is the revision spreadsheet!
Picks of the Week:
H: The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell
BJ: Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T Kiyosaki
Mentioned in the Episode:
Revision Spreadsheet Template
S1E10 Tool Deep Dive: The Revision Spreadsheet
S2E13 Navigating the Midpoint Beat
S3E5 The Stasis=Death Beat
If you try out one of the options from this strategy menu in your own writing practice, or if you have your own suggestions about what to include on a revision spreadsheet, let us know by writing to us at [email protected]!
9 min - Is Goodreads a useful tool for writers?
Show Notes:
Welcome to a tool deep dive episode, where we highlight the features and the challenges of a tool we think you’ll find helpful as a writer. And the tool we’ll be talking about today is Goodreads!
Picks of the Week:
H: Acedia & Me by Kathleen Norris
BJ: Golden Son by Pierce Brown
Mentioned in the Episode:
The Goodreads Author Program
7 min - Should I work on multiple projects at once?
Ever find yourself in the middle of one writing project and itching to start another, then second guessing if that’s even a good idea? We’re tackling the pros and cons of this dilemma to help you figure out what the right strategy is for your writing life!
Picks of the Week
H: Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
BJ: The Puzzle Master by Danielle Trussoni
Mentioned in the Episode:
Brandon Sanderson on his workflow
Anthony Trollope writing routine
8 min - MINI: Why let your manuscript rest?
We're kicking off Season 4 with some mini-episodes. We'll keep things casual and spend a few minutes chatting about a writing topic that's been on my mind lately. Hopefully I'll leave you with some helpful takeaways for your own writing journey.
On this episode, we'll tackle why and when you should let your manuscript rest, and what you can do in the meantime!
7 min - MINI: Why rewrite? And how much is too much?
We're kicking off Season 4 with some mini-episodes. We'll keep things casual and spend 3-5 minutes chatting about a writing topic that's been on my mind lately and hopefully I'll leave you with some helpful takeaways for your own writing journey.
On this episode, we'll tackle two questions: Why rewrite? And how much rewriting is too much?
Mentioned in the episode: Michaela Coel's profile by E. Alex Jung in Vulture
5 min - A Post NaNoWriMo Pep Talk
We're diving into the thrilling world of NaNoWriMo. But first, congratulations to everyone who completed NaNoWriMo for November 2023! That’s an amazing accomplishment and we want to go over ideas of what to do post NaNoWriMo.
P.S. This is our final episode of Season 3. We look forward to being back in your podcast feeds in 2024. Happy New Year!
Picks of the Week:
BJ: The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi
H: The Likeness by Tana French
Mentioned in the Episode:
NaNoWriMo Forums
NaNoWriMo The "Now What?" Months
9 min - Mailbag Episode: Finding a Writing Routine That Works
We'll be talking about writing routines! For many of us, the hardest part of writing is actually sitting down to write! So how can we ease the path into a fruitful and satisfying writing session? Routines can help!
Picks of the Week:
BJ: The Forgetting Moon by Brian Lee Durfee
H: I Love School by Philemon Sturges
Mentioned in the Episode:
- NaNoWriMo
Wired for Story by Lisa Cron (scene matrix technique)9 min
About Writing with Friends
From the publisher's feed
We’re BJ and Hillary— college friends turned writing pals. This podcast is our quest for the best writing tips and tools for our own projects, and yours too! Let’s get started.