This week on Writers Behaving Badly: The hosts sin in varying degrees (and one of them blames it on their husband 👀). Brooke dusts off her shiny flirtation of a manuscript, Bad Boy Lessons and is given Lisa’s toughest roast yet. We tackle a curly question on story complexity versus depth and spill the tea on a Bookstagrammer who admitted to pirating books…Plus: Hotel hijinks, write-along confessions, and Lisa pushes the GCM…again 😉What You'll Learn:How to tell if your story is truly complex, or just unnecessarily complicatedWhy depth (not endless subplots) is what keeps readers hookedPractical ways to strengthen character voice so readers fall in love with your heroSegments Inside:✍️ Sins & WinsBrooke confesses to a zero-word week (saved only by a memoir client), Lisa manages a chaotic small number of words (and blames her husband), and Annie keeps her manuscript alive thanks to write-alongs.🔥 Roast or ToastBrooke dusts off “Bad Boy Lessons” for Lisa’s critique. Cue hair plugs, gold teeth, and a neighbour with a ficus—and a whole lot of banter.📚 Curly QuestionIs your novel too complicated—or not deep enough? We unpack Michael Hauge’s advice and revisit Pride and Prejudice to explore why simple stories endure.🍵 Tea Time A bookstagrammer recently confessed to pirating books she reviews…we spill the tea.Our next Badly Behaved Write-Along is on Tuesday 9th September @ 7:30pm. Come and join us! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit writersbehavingbadly.substack.com/subscribe

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“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.

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