Creative Writing Career

Latest Episodes:

Writing Spinoffs of Syndicate Wars and Other Series with Jonathan Yanez and Gentry Race Aug 15, 2017

Show notes

Want to know about jumping into someone else's written world and collaborating on spinoffs? These two guys are doing just that with the series Justin started with Kyle Noe and George Mahaffey - the Seppukarian Universe (the first in the universe was the Syndicate Wars series).

They also talk about what they hope to get out of it, what their stories might be about, and more.

And of course Justin BLABS on and on about himself.

Enjoy!

Horizontal Networking vs Vertical and Attack Strategies Against Computer Thieves Aug 07, 2017

Show notes

Justin and Kevin discuss Horizontal vs. Vertical networking strategies, how you succeed as an author, reviews, how Justin is an action star, and more!

Jason Anspach and Nick Cole on Military Scifi Series Galaxy's Edge Jul 30, 2017

Show notes

This week, Jason Anspach and Nick Cole discuss writing their hot Military Scifi series, Galaxy's Edge with Justin and Kevin.

JASON ANSPACH writes pulse-pounding science fiction and then, for a change of pace, quirky, communist-punching, detective throwbacks set in the 1950s.

Together with his wife, their seven children, and a border collie named Charlotte, Jason resides in a hundred year old Craftsman home in a blue collar city nestled in the Pacific Northwest. The house is very drafty, but a family that large has a way of keeping you warm.

Galaxy's Edge: www.GalacticOutlaws.com

facebook.com/authorjasonanspach
twitter.com/jonspach

NICK COLE is a former soldier and working actor living in Southern California. When he is not auditioning for commercials, going out for sitcoms or being shot, kicked, stabbed or beaten by the students of various film schools for their projects, he can be found writing books. Nick's Book The Old Man and the Wasteland was an Amazon Bestseller and #1 in Science Fiction. In 2016 Nick's book CTRL ALT Revolt won the Dragon Award for Best Apocalyptic novel.

GET A FREE BOOK: http://bit.ly/TheRedKing

Nick's website: http://www.nickcolebooks.com/

Want some great fiction? Check out the books on Amazon.

Justin Goes on a Rant and Kevin Talks Audiobooks Jul 24, 2017

Show notes

Justin and Kevin go off about the concept that anyone's success is anyone's other than their own, just because they have help along the way. Then they talk audiobooks, such as the Draft2Digital recent deal as well as Podium and Tantor.

If you like rants, this is the episode for you!

www.JustinSloanAuthor.com

Writing Mystery and Going from Comics to Novels with Fred Van Lente Jul 17, 2017

Show notes

Comic Artist Fred Van Lente Released the Novel Ten Dead Comedians and is here to tell us about tit and about going from comic writer to novelist, and what that takes.

TEN DEAD COMEDIANS:

Fred Van Lente’s brilliant debut is both an homage to the Golden Age of Mystery and a thoroughly contemporary show-business satire.

As the story opens, nine comedians of various acclaim are summoned to the island retreat of legendary Hollywood funnyman Dustin Walker. The group includes a former late-night TV host, a washed-up improv instructor, a ridiculously wealthy “blue collar” comic, and a past-her-prime Vegas icon. All nine arrive via boat to find that every building on the island is completely deserted. Marooned without cell phone service or wifi signals, they soon find themselves being murdered one by one. But who is doing the killing, and why?

A darkly clever take on Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None and other classics of the genre, Ten Dead Comedians is a marvel of literary ventriloquism, with hilarious comic monologues in the voice of every suspect. It’s also an ingeniously plotted puzzler with a twist you’ll never see coming!

FRED VAN LENTE:

Van Lente was raised by a mystery-loving mother (who preferred Dorothy Sayers to Agatha Christie, but we won't hold that against her) and a wisecracking Woody Allen-lookalike scientist father in what appears to be some kind of genetic experiment to write his first novel, TEN DEAD COMEDIANS, even though neither parent nor the son himself would know it for many years.

Van Lente spent his time between birth and authoring Ten Dead Comedians becoming the #1 New York Times best selling writer of graphic novels like Cowboys & Aliens (the basis of the feature film), Odd is on Our Side with Dean R. Koontz, and several entries the gorily funny Marvel Zombies series.

He did some other things too, but they hardly seem worth mentioning.

Scott King on Going From Screenwriter to Novelist and Writing Cross-Genre Jul 10, 2017

Show notes

Author Scott King came on the show to chat writing multi-genre, going from screenwriter to novelists, and more!

BIO:

Scott King was born in Washington D.C. and raised in Ocean City, Maryland. He received his undergraduate degree in film from Towson University, and his M.F.A. in film from American University.

Until moving to Texas, to follow his wife's career, King worked as college professor teaching photography, digital arts, and writing related classes. He now works full time as a game photographer and author.

As a board game photographer, King shoots games for websites, online stores, and for other marketing needs. He also produces an annual calendar that highlights board and other hobby games.

And check out his new book:

STORY PITCH

Struggling to start your story or lost in the middle? You need a Story Pitch.

A standard pitch is meant for marketing and selling, but a Story Pitch is a powerful tool meant to be used when pre-writing and writing. It can help you jumpstart your novel, screenplay, comic, or whatever type of story you are trying to tell and it can be used as a corrective measure if you get off track during the writing process.

In this book, you’ll learn:

The key elements to story
How those elements are connected
How to construct a Story Pitch
How to use a Story Pitch for outlining
How to use a Story Pitch to fix character problems
How to use a Story Pitch when lost during writing
How to use a Story Pitch for writing book blurbs

If you like honesty, no bull, a bunch of humor, and tons of examples in your writing guides, then you’ll love Scott King’s Story Pitch.

CN Crawford Talks Writing Teams, Urban Fantasy, and Magic Jul 03, 2017

Show notes

CN Crawford Talks Writing Teams, Urban Fantasy, and Magic. We had a lot of fun discussing stories, where the writing team's ideas come from, how they approach writing as a team and husband and wife, and more.

Find her books on Amazon.

C.N. Crawford is not one person but two. We write our novels collaboratively, passing our laptops back and forth to edit each other's words.

Christine is from Lexington, Massachusetts and has has a lifelong interest in New England folklore--with a particular fondness for creepy old cemeteries and execution histories. Nick spent his childhood reading fantasy and science fiction during Vermont's long winters, which have rendered him impervious to the cold.

After the fact, we chatted about marketing, and Christine had this to say:

I’ve read Chris’s book and I would say that I definitely try to “write
to market,” which to me means discovering what people love about the
genre you’re writing it. That’s why it helps to love the genre you’re
writing, because you already have that insight. As a school
psychologist, I taught social skills, and I view “writing to market in
the same way” because they both involve learning about what other
people are interested in and thinking about other people’s
perspectives and internal worlds, not just your own

Check it out!

Amy Duboff the Queen of Scifi Talks Writing Space Opera Jun 19, 2017

Show notes

We chat with Amy Duboff about writing her Space Opera series, Bookbub, and what it takes to be an amazing Scifi Writer.

Check out her books on Amazon!

And don't miss her new release, SCIONS OF CHANGE.

Amy has always loved science fiction in all forms, including books, movies, shows, and games. If it involves outer space, even better! As a full-time author based in Oregon, she is currently finalizing the Cadicle space opera series, and she also writes short fiction for anthologies featuring science fiction, science-fantasy, and comedic sci-fi. When she's not writing, she enjoys travel, wine tasting, binge-watching TV series, and playing epic strategy board games.

Website: www.amyduboff.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/authoramyduboff

Newsletter Signup: bit.ly/amydnews

Nicholas Sansbury Smith on Writing Trackers, Hell Divers, and Traditional vs Self-Publishing Jun 05, 2017

Show notes

Nicholas Sansbury Smith joined Justin and Kevin to talk about his books Trackers, Hell Divers, and share his experience with traditional vs self-publishing.

Nicholas Sansbury Smith is the USA Today bestselling author of the Hell Divers trilogy, the Orbs trilogy, and the Extinction Cycle series. He worked for Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management in disaster mitigation before switching careers to focus on his one true passion--writing. When he isn't writing or daydreaming about the apocalypse, he enjoys running, biking, spending time with his family, and traveling the world. He is an Ironman triathlete and lives in Iowa with his fiancée, their dogs, and a house full of books.

If you'd like to hear more about Nick's books, you can join his spam free mailing list here: eepurl.com/bggNg9

Check out his Trackers series.

Selling Screenplays, Adaptations, and Three-Way Collaborative Writing with George S Mahaffey jr. May 29, 2017

Show notes

Justin' cowriter, George S. Mahaffey Jr. talks Selling Screenplays, Adaptations, and Three-Way Collaborative Writing.

Check out their collaborative Scifi Space Marines / Time Travel series:

SYNDICATE WARS

Find his books on Amazon.

Author Bio:

George S. Mahaffey Jr. is a practicing lawyer, author, and screenwriter. As an author he’s written AMITYVILLE: ORIGINS, AMITYVILLE: REVENANTS, RAZORBACKS I, RAZORBACKS II, RAZORBACKS III, THE PACT, FAMILIARS (Book 1), THE DEVIL’S ARK, and VERTICAL CITY: A ZOMBIE THRILLER (Parts 1 through 4). In addition, his script HEATSEEKERS was bought by Paramount with Michael Bay producing and Timur Bekmambetov directing. He’s also sold or written scripts for Arnold Kopelson, Blumhouse, Benderspink, Thousand Words, directors Louis Leterrier and Paul McGuigan, has co-created a TV show for Sony and Barry Josephson, and is the creator of IN THE DUST, a kick-ass action-horror graphic novel in the vein of 30 DAYS OF NIGHT to be published by Top Cow with art by Christian Duce.

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