Every story will have at least one coincidence to kick off the plot. After that, as a writer, you’re asking your audience to continue to suspend disbelief to move the story along at the cost of losing them. In this Read more
We’re getting the ball rolling…on a new year! It’s our first episode of 2025, and we’re diving into idioms. We’ll be “tackling” them throughout the year, exploring their history, usage, and how they could be used in writing.
Goodbye 2024! In this episode, Russ and Tim look back at their respective writing goals for the year and grade how they did. Spoilers: everyone got an A+, even if they didn’t deserve it. Happy New Year, everyone, and thank Read more
Book swap! In this episode, Russ and Tim trade books from their favorite genres and give a review. Russ read Nick Cutter’s The Troop while Tim read Lee Child’s The Killing Floor.
Is that an adverb? Ditch it. Overly verbose exposition? Delete. Detailed descriptions of everyday objects? Get rid of it! In this episode, Russ and Tim discuss killing their darlings and reflect on what they left in their novels and why.
Have you ever made a mistake that kept you up at night? Or maybe you set an expectation that you couldn’t quite meet? In this episode, Russ and Tim explore their own writing mistakes and expectations, how they recovered from Read more
Who or what influences you and your writing? Influences can come from anywhere and are important in shaping the stories we tell. This episode Russ and Tim get into the authors, movies, art, music, and even family, that influenced their Read more
We’re not fans of novels getting censored, but what happens when you’re the one doing the censoring? There is a fine line between being true to the vision of your story and being shocking or sultry just for the sake Read more
