#137: The Inciting Incident: How To Launch Your Story's Action
What's an inciting incident, and why does your story need one? In this episode, learn what an inciting incident is, and two types that set your story in motion. We’ll also talk about where in your st...
25 Apr 202321min
#136: Present Tense Vs. Past Tense: The Pros and Cons
Present tense or past tense? How do you decide? What are the advantages of present tense, and when is past tense a better option? In this episode, I’m going to explore the pros and cons of present...
18 Apr 202326min
#135: The Secret To Mastering Your Story's Point Of View
One of the most important decisions you’re going to make about your story is its point of view. Point of view is also one of the more complex story structures to master. How do you show what's in o...
11 Apr 202324min
#134: A 5-Step Framework For Writing A Clear Compelling Story
A common challenge many writers face is gaining clarity on the story they’re writing and conveying it to readers in a way that compels them to keep reading. Often, there are too many competing story-...
4 Apr 202321min
#133: Should You Write A Prologue?
Does your story need a prologue? Will it hurt your story? Should you remove or rewrite the one you’ve already written? And how do you write a riveting prologue that gives just enough information so ...
28 Mar 202332min
#132: Do's and Don'ts Of Writing Flashback
How do you write flashback without overwhelming or interrupting your forward moving story? Can you have too many flashbacks? Is it bad to write a flashback in the first chapter? How do you switch b...
21 Mar 202328min
#131: 3 Easy Ways To Write Better Dialogue
How do you make your story’s dialogue more realistic without writing too much dialogue? Or extraneous pass the meat and potatoes dialogue? How do you avoid having the dialogue sound stiff or cliche? ...
14 Mar 202320min
#130: Drilling Down To Your Story's Central Dramatic Question
There's an implicit, central dramatic question driving every compelling story. Will Santiago catch a fish? (The Old Man and The Sea) Will Clarice Starling catch Buffalo Bill? (Silence of the Lambs) ...
7 Mar 202316min
