Writer Unleashed

What's the one thing stopping writers from bringing their story to the finish line? Fear. Maybe you fear visibility and the expectations and judgements you’ll open yourself up to. Then there's the fear of rejection. Even if you’re nowhere near ready to submit your story, it weighs on your mind and prevents you from finishing. The idea that after doing all that work, you might face rejection, is stifling. How do you get past that? Maybe you're afraid of putting your book out there....

21 Feb 202320min

In this episode, I'm sharing takeaway ideas on the writing craft from 6 Writer Unleashed episodes. I'll share: how to inject conflict and surprise in your opening sentence;the difference between plot and story, and how to integrate both;why desire is the engine of your plot; show vs. tell, and what to show;what backstory you need to know vs. what your reader needs to know, and;how to connect emotionally with your main character. Quick Links to Episodes: Episode 73: Beyond The Firs...

14 Feb 202325min

When it comes to writing memoir, or even autobiographical fiction, writers often stay awake at night worrying about the possibility of being sued. Writing about facts and events of our own lives will inevitably require writing about the private lives of others who were part of our journey. These are often stories about addiction, abuse, homelessness, or just plain dysfunction. And real people are intertwined with that story. But writers often feel restricted in writing the truth about...

7 Feb 202323min

Every story since the beginning of time has involved conflict. Somebody wants something, goes out to get it, and has trouble getting it. That’s what story is in a nutshell. Conflict is essential because it creates narrative tension that keeps your readers invested. But conflict is not just on the plot level. Every scene is a reconstruction of the main conflict. Each scene will contain some adversarial relationship as your character goes after the thing he or she wants. So, to keep ...

31 Jan 202326min

How do you write a great introduction for your story? An opening that draws a reader in, establishes the voice of your main character, and whets your reader’s appetite for more? Whether it’s an agent, publisher, or the person browsing Barnes and Noble, readers will likely make the decision to keep reading based on your opening paragraph. So, you want to make that initial introduction as enticing as possible. Something the reader hooks into that refuses to let him or h...

24 Jan 202328min

How do you take an idea from its nebulous beginnings and turn it into a story? You may have a feeling about what you want to write, but you don't know where to start. Or, you've already started writing something, but you can't keep it going. Maybe you have an outline, but you're having a hard time getting the words initially on the page. In this episode, learn a 2-step process for generating and developing writing that's meaningful to you. We'll talk about how to take your raw m...

17 Jan 202330min

It's a new year. Fresh start. Clean slate. So, let's talk about promises we make to ourselves. Write more consistently. Finish the book. Publish the book. Sell x amount of copies. Maybe you just want to start writing the story that's been in your head for the longest time. But how do we keep the fire burning so we achieve those goals, or even surpass them? In this episode, we'll talk about why most resolutions fizzle out within a couple of months, what's...

10 Jan 202322min

First-person is a highly versatile point of view. And there's always an implied audience. In today's episode, we'll explore 3 varieties of first-person narration, with a focus on who the first-person character is addressing. We'll cover: Interior Monologue;Dramatic Monologue, and;Subjective First-PersonWe’ll also cover what makes a first-person narrator more unreliable than third-person, and why unreliable narrators are irresistible to readers. Episode Web Page Not sure if your ide...

20 Des 202217min