Essential Guide to Writing a Novel

Latest Episodes:

Episode 99 - Traps when writing character-driven stories. Feb 09, 2024

Show notes

Character-driven stories--which delve deeply into the hero's change and growth--can be moving and unforgettable for readers but there are traps that we can fall into when writing them. Here they are, and how to avoid them. Also, Kurt Vonnegut's technique of making a character want something right away. And how Joyce Carol Oates works. Also, the enduring appeal of Anne of Green Gables.

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Episode 98 - Counterintuitive techniques that new writers might resist. Feb 02, 2024

Show notes

At some point all writers are new writers. Here are some sure-fire fiction writing techniques that might not seem right, that are counterintuitive. These are big techniques new writers often get wrong because at first glance they don't make sense. Here's a list of these methods, and how to avoid getting them wrong.

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Episode 97 - Clothing our characters. Also, how to end a scene. Jan 26, 2024

Show notes

How we dress our character will show--that is, to reveal--much about our characters to the reader. Clothing is evidence of our character's personality, and a strong tool for us writers. Also, Jack Bickham has solid advice on how to end our chapters.

Here is a 20-episode master class on fiction writing—a start-to-finish course covering plot, characters, dialogue, scenes, sentence-level craft, and much more. Each episode is focused and about 30 minutes. The full class—all 20 episodes—is available now for a one-time price of forty-nine dollars. If you want structured, concise guidance, click the Buy the Master Class link in the show notes to get started.

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Episode 96 - How to create emotions in our characters and readers. Jan 19, 2024

Show notes

Huge rewards for fiction readers are a character's emotions; love, fear, gratitude, respect, loathing, and many others. Here are techniques on how to create emotions in our characters that will be intensely rewarding for readers. Also: an example of the rule of exceptions regarding likeable characters..

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Episode 95 - More strong dialogue techniques. Jan 12, 2024

Show notes

In the last episode we talked about major dialogue techniques. Here are smaller ones--but still important techniques--that'll make our dialogue shine. And: how does the best-selling novelist Jonathan Franzen work? We'll find out.

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Episode 94 - Seven big dialogue writing techniques. Jan 05, 2024

Show notes

Dialogue in fiction is fun to write and fun to read. Here are seven techniques that'll help make our dialogue shine. Also, why should we create a character readers hate? Because those characters can be riveting, and are a strong element in the story. Here are some famous examples from novels, not main villains, but rather secondary characters who make readers groan when they appear on the page.

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Episode 93 - Can we avoid stupid writing? Dec 29, 2023

Show notes

Let's talk about stupid writing, And: how to get our story going without over-explanation and back-story. How John Updike and Frank Baum wrote. And an encounter with Aphrodite in English 101.

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Episode 92 - Fourteen scene mistakes and how to avoid them. Dec 22, 2023

Show notes

Here is a list of the fourteen biggest mistakes we can make when creating our scene, and how to avoid them. Also, we'll talk about how to avoid the dull tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock metronome beat when writing sentences. And: showing rather than telling about a character's personality.

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Episode 91 - The benefits of a buddy, and Willa Cather and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Dec 15, 2023

Show notes

Adding a close friend for our story's protagonist offers many benefits. Here are some thoughts on buddies. And: how did novelists Willa Cather and Nathaniel Hawthorne work? Plus, techniques for avoiding interior monologue when our character is alone in the scene. And: should we write the story that's loudest in our head or should we aim for the market?

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Episode 90 - Techniques for creating riveting settings. Dec 08, 2023

Show notes

Bland settings works against the story, and riveting settings propel the story forward. Here are techniques for creating powerful settings that will engage the reader. Also, the Wall Street Journal's interview of best-selling Ken Follett is fascinating, and here is some of it.

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