#60: First Chapter Analysis: Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets with Abigail Perry
In this episode, we're taking a deep dive into the first chapter of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling. Join me and fellow developmental editor, Abigail Perry, as we nerd out about the second book in the Harry Potter series: [03:30] A very quick summary of the first chapter [05:30] A macro analysis of the first chapter using 7 key questions from Paula Munier's book The Writer’s Guide to Beginnings [25:00] A micro analysis of the two scenes within the chapter using the "...
14 Jul 202253min
#59: First Chapter Analysis: Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone with Abigail Perry
In this episode, we're taking a deep dive into the first chapter of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling. Join me and fellow developmental editor, Abigail Perry, as we nerd out about the first book in the Harry Potter series: [04:30] A very quick summary of the first chapter [07:00] A macro analysis of the first chapter using 7 key questions from Paula Munier's book The Writer’s Guide to Beginnings [38:00] A micro analysis of the two scenes within the chapter using the "5 C...
25 Mai 20221h 6min
#58: 10 Querying Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)
In this episode, I'm sharing the 10 most common querying mistakes I see writers make and how to avoid them. Here's a preview of what you'll hear in the episode: [02:45] Mistake #1: Your story isn't 100% ready to send out just yet. [04:25] Mistake #2: Sending your query to the wrong person. [06:15] Mistake #3: Not following the submission guidelines. [08:45] Mistake #4: You forgot to include your metadata. [09:50] Mistake #5: Your word count is too high or too low. [11:10] Mistake #6: The ge...
18 Mai 202225min
Bonus: Be A Bestseller 3.0 Summit Interview with Emma Dhesi
In today’s extra special bonus episode, I'm sharing an interview I did earlier this year with Emma Dhesi for her Be A Bestseller Summit. We talked about genre and how your story’s genre can help you write a story that works. And specifically, we dove into the thriller genre and talked about how the key scenes and conventions of the thriller genre show up in The Silence of the Lambs. This was such a fun event to be a part of because it’s always fun to talk about writing, but also there wer...
15 Mar 202240min
#57: Action Genre Conventions
In today's episode, I'm going to walk you through the conventions of the action genre. I'm also going to show you how these conventions show up in the movie The Hunger Games. Here's a preview of what's included: [01:25] Action stories are about life and death, and good versus evil. They’re about a character who has to rise up, overcome great obstacles, defeat forces of evil, and maybe even save the world. But that being said, these stories aren’t always about superheroes. [02:35] Readers cho...
15 Feb 202220min
#56: 5 Reasons Why Readers Stop Reading
In this episode, I'm exploring 5 reasons why readers might stop reading a novel. Here's a preview of what you'll hear in the episode: [01:50] Reason #1: Nothing meaningful happens in the opening pages. [04:15] Reason #2: It’s hard to connect with the point of view characters. [06:30] Reason #3: Readers don’t know what kind of story they’re reading. [09:40] Reason #4: Readers have seen the same thing before. [12:30] Reason #5: Readers don't care what happens next. [15:45] Final thoughts and ...
3 Feb 202218min
#55: 3 Tips for Writing a First Draft in 90 Days
In this episode, I'm sharing three tips for writing a first draft in 90 days. Here's a preview of what you'll hear in the episode: [01:35] How one of my Notes to Novel students, Jennifer, wrote a draft in 90 days (after creating a flexible, yet very fleshed out scene-by-scene outline) [04:35] Tip #1: Block out the time and space on your calendar so that you'll actually have the time and space to write a first draft in 90 days. [05:25] Tip #2: Accept that your first draft will be messy, but d...
18 Jan 202211min
#54: How to Test Your Story Idea Before Writing
In this episode, I'm sharing two of my favorite ways to test out a story idea before you start writing a single word. Here's a preview of what you'll hear in the episode: [01:50] The goal of these two exercises is to find out which foundational pieces of your story still need to be fleshed out. Better to find out now than halfway through a draft! [01:10] Exercise #1: Write a 1-2 sentence summary of your story. Try to capture the WHO, the WHAT, and the WHY of your global story. [04:45] If you...
11 Jan 202213min
