Writing Excuses
Episodes
12.2: How to Nail Character Voice in First Person
08 Jan 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Your Hosts: Brandon, Mary, Mary Anne, and Wesley This week we talk about character voice, and how to get it right in First Person. This POV is a stron...
12.1: Variations on First Person
01 Jan 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Your Hosts: Brandon, Mary, Dan, and Howard We're beginning a new season, and during 2017 we will be focusing our topics on structure. We are also...
11.52: Elemental Ensemble Q&A, With Claudia Gray
24 Dec 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Claudia Gray joined us aboard Oasis of the Seas to answer our attendees questions about the Elemental Ensemble. Here are the questions: Can you fit an...
11.51: Ensemble as a Sub-Genre, with Lynne M. Thomas
18 Dec 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Lynne M. Thomas joins us to continue our discussion of the Elemental Ensemble, which is one of our favorite elemental tools. It's not just for hei...
11.50: Hand-Selling Your Book to Potential Readers, with Michael R. Underwood
11 Dec 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Michael R. Underwood has talked to us about hand-selling books before, but that was about pitching to agents and editors. This time around he's ta...
11.49: Elemental Ensemble, with Michael Damien Thomas
04 Dec 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Damien Thomas, co-publisher and co-editor-in-chief of Uncanny Magazine, joined us for a discussion of the elemental genre that contains most o...
11.Bonus-04: Fantasy Food, with Elizabeth Bear and Scott Lynch
29 Nov 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Elizabeth Bear and Scott Lynch joined Howard and Dan at GenCon Indy to talk about fantasy food, and how we engage our readers' appetites with our...
11.48: Elemental Issue Q&A, with DongWon Song
27 Nov 2016
Contributed by Lukas
DongWon Song, literary agent with HMLA, joins us for a Q&A on the elemental genre of "Issue." Here are the questions, which were submitted...
11.47: Issue as a Subgenre, with Steven Barnes
20 Nov 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Steven Barnes joins us to tackle Elemental Issue, round two, in which we look at how to address it as a sub-element. He describes the thesis/antithesi...
11.46: Colonialism, with Steven Barnes, Tempest Bradford, DongWon Song, and Shveta Thakrar
13 Nov 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Our listeners have been asking for an in-depth, "crunchy" episode on colonialism, and related issues like cultural appropriation, for a couple...
11.45: Elemental Issue, with Desiree Burch
06 Nov 2016
Contributed by Lukas
For November, our elemental genre is "Issue," and we were joined by actor, writer, and comedian Desiree Burch. The Elemental Issue is similar...
11.Bonus-03: Some Books Have Maps in the Front, with Maurice Broaddus, Mur Lafferty, and James Sutter
03 Nov 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Three days late for the beginning of NaNoWriMo 2016, here's a bonus episode about maps. Because nothing says "keep writing" like "hey...
11.Bonus-02: Horrifying the Children, with Darren Shan
01 Nov 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Happy Halloween! Darren Shan talks horror with us in this bonus episode, made possible by our Patreon supporters.Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https...
11.44: Project in Depth, GHOST TALKERS, by Mary Robinette Kowal
30 Oct 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Spoiler Alert! If you haven't yet read Ghost Talkers, by Mary Robinette Kowal, this episode will spoil great swathes of book for you. Also, you p...
11.43: Elemental Drama Q&A, with Tananarive Due
23 Oct 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Our third Elemental Drama episode is a Q&A, featuring Tananarive Due. The questions are from the attendees at the Writing Excuses Workshop and Ret...
11.42: Elemental Drama as a Sub-Genre
16 Oct 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Focusing on elemental drama can be tricky. Remember, elemental drama is basically "character change." A great many stories use character c...
11.Bonus-01: Characterization and Differentiation, with Robin Hobb
13 Oct 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Robin Hobb joined us at GenCon Indy for a discussion of characterization and differentiation. And by "discussion," what we really mean is "...
11.41: The Editor’s Wish List, with Navah Wolfe
09 Oct 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Navah Wolfe, an editor at Saga Press, joined us to talk about the manuscripts she would really like to see. Ordinarily we don't encourage people t...
11.40: Elemental Drama
02 Oct 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The word "drama" gets thrown around a lot. What do we mean when we use "drama" as an elemental genre? For us, Elemental Drama focuses...
11.39: Elemental Relationship Q&A, with Greg van Eekhout
25 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Greg van Eekhout joined us at Phoenix Comic Con for a live-audience Q&A session about Elemental Relationship writing. Here are the questions: What...
11.38: The Elemental Relationship as a Sub-Genre
18 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
We find the elemental relationship in all kinds of stories that are not fundamentally about relationships. The intimate interaction between characters...
11.37: Casting Your Book, with Gama Martinez
11 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Live from Phoenix Comic Con, Gama Martinez joins us for a discussion of casting your book. This is the process by which you create a cast of character...
11.36: The Elemental Relationship
04 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
In elemental relationship stories the primary page-turning driver is the relationship between two or three characters ¹. In this episode we discuss w...
11.35: Elemental Humor Q&A with Victoria Schwab
28 Aug 2016
Contributed by Lukas
For our third Elemental Humor episode Victoria Schwab joins us as we field questions taken from our audience at Phoenix Comic-Con. Here are the questi...
11.34: Humor as a Sub-Genre
21 Aug 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Humor is present as an element, at least to some degree, in a substantial amount of the media we consume. In this episode we discuss some stylistic to...
11.33: Crossover Fiction, with Victoria Schwab
14 Aug 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Victoria Schwab, who also writes as V.E. Schwab, joined us in Phoenix to talk about crossover fiction—in this context the term means books that targ...
11.32: The Element of Humor
07 Aug 2016
Contributed by Lukas
"Talking about humor is the least funny thing you can do." —Howard Tayler You have been warned! and with that out of the way... What is the ...
11.31: Futurism, with Trina Marie Phillips
31 Jul 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Trina Marie Phillips joined us at Phoenix Comic Con to talk about her work as a futurist. Futurism, for those unfamiliar with our use of the term here...
11.30: Elemental Thriller Q&A
24 Jul 2016
Contributed by Lukas
We fielded the following questions about the "Thriller" elemental genre from listeners on Facebook and Twitter: How do I build tension consist...
11.29: Elemental Thriller as a Subgenre
17 Jul 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Thrillers are, by their very nature, page-turners. In this episode we look at the thriller element as part of a story whose principal driver is one o...
11.28: Impostor Syndrome, with Alyssa Wong
10 Jul 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Alyssa Wong, Campbell Award nominee and Nebula Award winner, joins us to talk about impostor syndrome. This is the frame of mind that many successful ...
11.27: The Elemental Thriller
03 Jul 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Let's get this out of the way up front: in the syntax of elemental genres, the phrase "the element of thriller" is clunky. But we'll s...
11.26: Elemental Mystery Q&A
26 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we field some questions about elemental mystery. Here they are! How do you balance between two mysteries in the same story? What types...
11.25: Elemental Mystery is Everywhere
19 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Per our Elemental Genre theme, this week we further explore elemental mystery. Elemental mystery can be found in any work in which our curiosity is ...
11.24: Stakes!
12 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
We talk a lot about "raising the stakes" in our writing. When we say "stakes," we're referring to the things that keep our charact...
11.23: The Element of Mystery
05 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Mystery may well be the most common element in use, at least in some form or another, across the many bookshelf genres comprising "fiction." W...
11.22: Examining Unconscious Biases, with Shannon Hale
29 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Shannon Hale joins us at LTUE for a live-audience session in which we explore gender biases, and extrapolate from there to our many other unconscious ...
11.21: Q&A on Elemental Horror, with Steve Diamond
22 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Steve Diamond joins us for our third and final Elemental Horror episode as we field your questions about this particular building block. Here are the ...
11.20: Horror as a Subgenre
15 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Steve Diamond joins us again to talk horror, this time about using elemental horror as part of our stories' elemental ensemble. We discuss how the...
11.19: Fashion for Writers, with Rebecca McKinney
08 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
How do we go about describing the clothing our characters are wearing? How do we use that to add depth to our story? What are the common mistakes that...
11.18: Elemental Horror
01 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Steve Diamond joins us to kick off our month on the elemental genre of horror. We explore the emotional components that readers seek from horror, and ...
11.17: Elemental Adventure Q&A
24 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
You may still have questions about how to apply elemental adventure in your work. Hopefully your questions are similar to the ones we collected below...
11.16: Adventure as a Subgenre
17 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Let's be adventurous. Let's move beyond simply being cooks, and strive to become chefs. In this episode we explore using the element of adve...
11.15: The Environment, with L.E. Modessit, Jr.
10 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
L.E. Modesitt, Jr. joined us at LTUE for a world building discussion centered around the way the environment informs the story. We talk about lead in ...
11.14: The Element of Adventure
03 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Our exploration of elemental genres continues with the sense of "I want to do that."Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https://gusto.com/WX* Chec...
11.13: Elemental Idea Q&A
27 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
This is a Q&A about ideas that does NOT include the question "Where do you get your ideas?"Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https://gusto.c...
11.12: Idea as Subgenre, With Nancy Fulda
20 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Nancy Fulda is back for our second episode on the Idea elemental genre. We cover some tools for exploring an idea, and then drill down a bit on how to...
11.11: Self Publishing in 2016, with Michaelbrent Collings
13 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Recorded live at LTUE, Michaelbrent Collings guest-starred for a discussion about self publishing. The landscape continues to change, and Collings is ...
11.10: Idea, as Genre, with Nancy Fulda
06 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Nancy Fulda joins us to talk about the Elemental Genre of Idea, and how to write stories driven by a sense of fascination.Our Sponsors:* Check out Gus...
11.09: Q&A on the Element of Wonder
28 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Gama Ray Martinez joins us at LTUE to field questions on the Element of Wonder, which were submitted by members of our audience. Here are the question...
11.08: Wonder as a Subgenre
21 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
If the Element of Wonder is the driving force behind "sense of wonder" science fiction and fantasy, then that same element can be used to give...
11.07: The Convention Survival Kit, with Gail Carriger
14 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Gail Carriger joins us to talk about her Convention Survival Kit, which is full of things most of us wish we'd known to pack with us years ago.Our...
11.06: The Element of Wonder
07 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
We've introduced the concept of Elemental Genre already. It's time to start digging in to the elements themselves, beginning with the Element ...
11.05: Writing and World Building for Role Playing Games
31 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Michelle Lyons McFarland, Monica Valentinelli, and Shanna Germain join Howard and Dan at GenCon, and talk about the craft of world building for role p...
11.04: Newton’s Laws of Writing
24 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Let's map Newton's Laws of Motion onto writing. Because a wordcount at rest tends to remain at rest...Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https://...
11.03: Layering The Elemental Genres
17 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Elemental Genre becomes particularly useful when you start blending the elements for sub-plots, character arcs, or even mash-ups.Our Sponsors:* Check ...
11.2: How To Get The Most Out Of A Conference, with Kathy Chung
10 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
What's the difference between a conference and a convention? How do we, as writers, get the most out of them?Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https...
Writing Excuses 11.1: Introduction to Elemental Genre
03 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The word "genre" has a lot of weight to it. Arguments about whether a particular work is, or is not, part of a given genre are long, and tedio...
Writing Excuses 10.52: Moving On, with Ellen Kushner
27 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Ellen Kushner joins us for the last episode of Season 10. Per the title, folks, it's time to be done. What does "done" mean? How do you g...
Writing Excuses 10.51: Q&A on Showing Your Work, with Daniel José Older
20 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Daniel José Older joins us for a Q&A on showing your work around. Here are the questions, which were submitted by attendees at the Out of Excuses...
Writing Excuses 10.50: How to Hand-Sell Your Manuscript to Agents and Editors, with Michael Underwood and Marco Palmieri
13 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Marco Palmieri and Michael Underwood took the stage with Howard and Dan at GenCon Indy 2015 to discuss hand-selling manuscripts. Marco Palmieri is a s...
Writing Excuses 10.49: What Do I Do With This Thing Now?
06 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
We're at the end of our Season Ten Master Class, and if you've been diligent about the homework, you may very well have a finished manuscript ...
Writing Excuses 10.48: Project in Depth, The Devil’s Only Friend
29 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Spoiler Alert! We'll be discussing the latest John Cleaver book from Dan Wells with author, podcaster, and unrepentant bacon-lover Dan Wells! If y...
Writing Excuses 10.47: Q&A on Revision
22 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
And now for your questions about revision. Or rather, questions from the WXR attendees, who were aboard the Independence of the Seas with us (the answ...
Writing Excuses 10.46: How Do I Make This Pretty?
15 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
The microphones again find us aboard the Independence of the Seas*, to talk about how terribly ugly this manuscript is, and what we can do to make i...
Writing Excuses 10.45: Q&A at the GenCon Writing Symposium, with Kameron Hurley, James L. Sutter, and Michael Underwood
08 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Dan and Howard are joined by Kameron Hurley, James L. Sutter, and Michael Underwood for an anything-goes Q&A at the GenCon Indy Writing Symposium....
Writing Excuses 10.44: How Do I Fix What is Broken?
01 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
November is "Revision" month here in the Writing Excuses Season 10 Master Class, so while many of you may be tempted by NaNoWriMo, there's...
Writing Excuses 10.43: Q&A on Endings, with Delia Sherman
25 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Delia Sherman joined us aboard the Independence of the Seas for our question-and-answer installment on endings. The questions came from the attendee...
Writing Excuses 10.42: How In The World Do I Tie All This Together?
18 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Nalo Hopkinson joins us again, at sea, for our second Master Class installment on endings. We cover some of the reasons why an ending might not be wor...
Writing Excuses 10.41: Your Character’s Moral Pendulum
11 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Brad Beaulieu and Jaym Gates join us from the GenCon Indy Writing Symposium to talk about good versus evil, and how your character might swing betwe...
Writing Excuses 10.40: What’s the Difference Between Ending and Stopping?
04 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Nalo Hopkinson joins us for this episode, which we recorded before a live audience of Out Of Excuses Workshop & Retreat attendees. October's m...
Writing Excuses 10.39: Q&A on Plot Twists with Kevin J. Anderson
27 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Kevin J. Anderson joined us at Sasquan/WorldCon 73 to take questions about plot twists. Here are the questions that came in from our live audience: Ge...
Writing Excuses 10.38: How Does Context Shape Dialog?
20 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Our second installment for the Master Class's month of context covers the way dialog between characters may change meaning depending upon the cont...
Writing Excuses 10.37: Being a Good Panelist and a Great Moderator, with Susan J. Morris and Marc Tassin
13 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
This month's wildcard episode comes to you from the 2015 GenCon Indy Writers' Symposium, where Dan and Howard had the opportunity to interview...
Writing Excuses 10.36: How Does Context Shape Plot Twists?
06 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
We've talked about plot twists before. This episode covers the way in which the type of plot twist is dependent on, or signaled by, the context of...
Writing Excuses 10.35: Breaking In, With Charlie N. Holmberg
30 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Charlie N. Holmberg, who was recently signed by Amazon's 47 North imprint, joined us in front of a live audience it Sasquan (the 73rd World Scienc...
Writing Excuses 10.34: Q&A on Pacing
23 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
We wrap up this month's discussion of pacing with a Q&A. Here are the questions we pulled out of the virtual hat (read: Twitter) for answeri...
Writing Excuses 10.33: Combat, with Marie Brennan
16 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Marie Brennan joins us again, this time for a discussion about writing combat. She's studied fencing, combat choreography, and is *this close* to ...
Writing Excuses 10.32: How Do I Control the Speed of the Story?
09 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Words take time to read, but that's not the same amount of time that the words communicate...Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https://gusto.com/WX*...
Writing Excuses 10.31: How Do I Control the Reader’s Sense of Progress?
02 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Are we making progress? How do we communicate that to the reader?Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https://gusto.com/WX* Check out MasterClass: https://...
Writing Excuses 10.30: Q&A on Middles, with Marie Brennan
26 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Marie Brennan joins us again, this time to help us field your questions about middles. Here are the questions we collected from the various social med...
Writing Excuses 10.29: Why Should My Characters Fail Spectacularly?
19 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Character failure is a big part of making the middle of a story work. We talk about why, and offer tips about how to make this work well for you.Our S...
Writing Excuses 10.28: Polytheism in Fiction, with Marie Brennan
12 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Marie Brennan joins us for a discussion of polytheism (and really any belief system) in our fiction.Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https://gusto.com/...
Writing Excuses 10.27: Why Can’t I Just Jump to the Ending?
05 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Lots of people struggle with the middles of their books. One way to look at the middle is that it's the point where you're no longer working o...
Writing Excuses 10.26: Q&A on Scenes and Description
28 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
How do you "show, don't tell" a character's thoughts? We answer this question, and more!Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https://gusto....
Writing Excuses 10.25: What Makes a Scene?
21 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
We talk about how we define and structure scenes in our writing, and we make reference to Scene/Sequel format, the MICE quotient, and pacing.Our Spons...
Writing Excuses 10.24: Hooking Younger Readers
14 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Media Specialist Kiley Snyder joins us to talk about hooking young readers.Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https://gusto.com/WX* Check out MasterClass...
Writing Excuses 10.23: Can You Tell Me How To Show?
07 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Instead of saying "show, don't tell," we say "here's how to show."Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https://gusto.com/WX* Check ...
Writing Excuses 10.22: Project-in-Depth—Of Noble Family
31 May 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Spoilers ahead! We dig into Of Noble Family, by Mary Robinette Kowal, focusing on language, culture, and the extensive research Mary did.Our Sponsors:...
Writing Excuses 10.21: Q&A on World Building
24 May 2015
Contributed by Lukas
We answer questions about consistency, alternate histories, and the Great Spoke Plague of '77Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https://gusto.com/WX*...
Writing Excuses 10.20: How Do I Write a Story, Not an Encyclopedia?
17 May 2015
Contributed by Lukas
You've done piles of world building. How do you convey this world to reader without infodumping? We talk about the different skill levels involved...
Writing Excuses 10.19: Intrigue
10 May 2015
Contributed by Lukas
What's the difference between intrigue, suspense, and mystery? We talk about this, and then drill down on intrigue.Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto:...
Writing Excuses 10.18: Build an Entire World? Are You Crazy?
03 May 2015
Contributed by Lukas
This one's for all you folks who like to do some world building on-the-fly.Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https://gusto.com/WX* Check out MasterC...
Writing Excuses 10.17: Q&A on Beginnings
26 Apr 2015
Contributed by Lukas
We've talked beginnings all month. Now we take your questions about them.Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https://gusto.com/WX* Check out MasterCla...
Writing Excuses 10.16: What Do I Do With All This Blank Space?
19 Apr 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Let's get that first page written in a way that will bring the reader to all the rest of the pages.Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https://gusto.c...
Writing Excuses 10.15: Worldbuilding Wilderness with Wes Chu
12 Apr 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Wes Chu, author and adventurer, recently climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, and has some things to say about all the wilderness trekking that our characters ...
Writing Excuses 10.14: How Much of the Beginning Needs to Come First?
05 Apr 2015
Contributed by Lukas
How do you know which bits of your story have to come first?Our Sponsors:* Check out Gusto: https://gusto.com/WX* Check out MasterClass: https://maste...
Writing Excuses 10.13: Where is My Story Going?
30 Mar 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Any discussion of story structure must necessarily take a look at that big, long bit between the beginning and the end, that piece where almost every...
Writing Excuses 10.12: Story structure Q&A, with Special Guest Wesley Chu
23 Mar 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Wes Chu joins us again for a Q&A about this month's topic: story structure! Here are the questions: Do you make a conscious decision about how...
Writing Excuses 10.11: Project In Depth: “Parallel Perspectives”
15 Mar 2015
Contributed by Lukas
If you haven't yet read "Parallel Perspectives," from Schlock Mercenary: Massively Parallel, we have a PDF for you to download and read be...