The Fantasy Writing Show with Jed Herne

Have you ever struggled to find the right names for your fantasy characters? Maybe you feel like - until you find that perfect name - you can’t start writing their story? Well, over the last fourteen years I’ve been writing, I’ve felt that way plenty of times. But after publishing five books, I’ve developed a system I call the Naming Diamond, which makes it easy to create names that perfectly suit...

Today, I'm joined by Michael Johnson. Three years ago, he joined my Story Coaching program to get my help with his first fantasy novel. That book — Children of Ziwei — is now published! In this episode, I wanted to share Michael’s journey with you, so that you can see what it takes to go from idea to published book. Most importantly, you'll see how Michael overcame the creative challenges he faced...

I wrote the first draft of The Thunder Heist in 42 days, which by my standards is a pretty quick project! But I haven't always been a fast writer. In fact, my first novel took me 360 days to write the first draft. So in today's podcast, I’m going to explain the 5 factors that helped me write the first draft so fast, so that you can speed up the time it takes to bring your own novels to life. ...

Writing the middle of your fantasy novel is hard. Lots of people talk about how to write a great opening, or how to write a great ending. Yet hardly anyone discusses the middle, and that’s a massive problem, because not knowing what to do with your middle is maybe the biggest reason why you’ll get stuck with your story. But that won’t happen to you, because in today's episode, I’m going to show yo...

In today's short episode, I share my thoughts on how to become a more consistent writer — and why most writers don't understand 'consistency' the correct way. Read Plotting Your Fantasy Novel: www.jedherne.com/plot Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There’s 5 critical first chapter mistakes I see new fantasy writers make all the time. I know about these because when writers apply for my classes or coaching programs, they have to send me an application that includes their first chapter. I've now read 761 first chapters from these applications. That’s a lot of data for me to learn from! So today, I want to share what I’ve learned with you, so t...

Read my new book, Plotting Your Fantasy Novel . It just released yesterday! After publishing four fantasy novels, and teaching hundreds of writers in my programs, I’ve realised there are 5 main differences between good fantasy plots and bad fantasy plots. I’ve been thinking about this a lot, because over the past year I’ve spent well over 1000 hours writing Plotting Your Fantasy Novel — my first n...

Have you ever struggled to write about a fantasy culture that feels meaningfully different from your own? Because of the societies we grow up in, we all have these inbuilt assumptions about the way things are . However, the best worldbuilders know how to get outside of those assumptions, so that they can create unique, different, realistic, and immersive cultures. My friend recently showed me a us...

There are 10 big mindset differences between pro fantasy authors and amateur ones. I’ve noticed these from talking with world-class writers like Joe Abercrombie, Christopher Ruocchio, Adrian Tchaikovsky, and dozens more — and from coaching over 220 emerging writers in my classes and programs. Learning these 10 mindset differences has helped me publish 4 fantasy books, and an interactive fantasy no...

There are seven levers that control the pacing of your fantasy novel. In today's episode, I discuss how these seven levers work, and how you can use them to create perfect pacing within your writing. Knowing how to get the right pace for your plot is a critical skill, so I think you'll find today's episode very useful. Join the waitlist for Plotting Your Fantasy Novel: www.jedherne.com/plot Hosted...

Your title is usually the first impression readers have of your story. So if your title sucks, readers will forget about your book without a second thought. But if your title is great, your book will stand out from the crowd and readers will be desperate to know more. After publishing four books and working with hundreds of writers in my programs, I've discovered five principles that consistently...

Most authors will tell you, “Ideas don't really matter. Any idea can be turned into a good story if you're skilled enough.” Personally, I think that’s bad advice. If you start with a weak idea, it puts flaws into your story right from the beginning, and you might only discover those flaws months later — while you’re in the middle of the first draft. After working with hundreds of writers to help t...

There's a simple warm up and cool down routine that will help you quickly get into the flow of writing every day — along with helping you maintain long-term creativity and consistency . In this podcast, I break down the six steps behind this process. Knowing how to get into the 'writing state' every day is a big reason why I've been able to publish my fantasy novels. And from teaching this process...

After reading hundreds of fantasy novels and publishing several of my own, I’ve found four key writing principles that consistently make a fantasy world feel truly immersive for readers. So if you want to write a world where readers truly feel like they are inside your setting, then you'll find today's video useful. This podcast was originally a video. Click here if you want to watch the vide...

When it comes to writing a book, there are 5 key differences between good fantasy worldbuilding and bad fantasy worldbuilding. Understanding these differences will help you write more immersive, interesting fantasy worlds. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In today's episode, I'm interviewed by Joe Sidery as part of ProWritingAid's Novel November challenge. We discuss my early days as a writer (including the most miserable 3-month period of my life, which served as my catalyst to pursue writing full-time), how I grew my author platform, and what I've learned from coaching 200+ writers. We also discuss many aspects of the craft: choosing the right PO...

There’s 12 big plot mistakes you might be making in your fantasy novel. After teaching over 200 fantasy writers in my programs, I’ve seen these issues so many times — and I’ve spent hundreds of hours helping writers fix them. That’s because even just one of these problems can destroy your entire story. And after publishing four books myself, I’ve certainly had to solve these issues in my own writi...

Flaws are the secret to making your fantasy characters relatable and interesting. Yet most new fantasy writers approach flaws the wrong way. I certainly made this mistake when I started out! However, after publishing four books and teaching over 200 writers in my programs, I’ve realised there’s a much better way to build meaningful flaws for your characters. Once you see this, you won’t be able to...

After publishing four fantasy novels (along with an interactive fiction novel), and coaching hundreds of writers, I've learned a lot about the craft in the past thirteen years. In today's episode, I'll share the ten biggest lessons I wish I knew before writing my first book. If I knew these lessons sooner, I would have saved myself years of struggle. So if you're looking to write a fantasy book of...

So, you’ve finished the first draft of your fantasy novel, and now you’re thinking, “how do I turn this messy pile of words into a story someone actually wants to read?” When I finished my first fantasy novel 12 years ago, I had no idea what to do next. I spent four years trying to fix that book, and a lot of the time, it felt like I was making zero progress. But since then, I’ve developed an edit...

Today I’m going to show you six ridiculously simple ways to improve your fantasy novel. What’s great about these techniques is that they only take a few minutes to implement, but they can have a massive positive impact on your readers’ experience. I know this because I’ve used them in my own published fantasy novels, and I’ve seen amazing results teaching them to many of the writers I’ve worked wi...

Joe Abercrombie (author of The Blade Itself and many other brilliant stories) joins me to discuss the opening chapters from his new book, The Devils. This is an in-depth deep dive into the techniques Joe uses to hook readers, introduce characters, and develop an interesting fantasy world. Click here to get my free 5-day character course. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:23 - Writing a great ope...

Today I'm joined by Christopher Ruocchio, author of the Sun Eater series! I share my top 5 storytelling lessons from reading this excellent series, while Christopher shares his top 5 lessons from writing it. This will be a spoiler-free discussion for the first 40 or so minutes, and I learned SO MUCH from this wonderful chat. Enjoy! 00:00 – What is the Sun Eater series about? 02:31 – How to write a...

In this podcast, I explain the Pyramid of Prose -- a concept I wish someone had taught me when I started writing my first novel 13 years ago. Why is that? Well, 'prose' refers to the specific words you use to transmit your story from your mind into the reader's mind. It's crucial to master, because if you can't express your ideas on the page in an effective and emotionally compelling way...

In over 12 years of writing fantasy novels, the Hourglass Outlining Method is the single most useful tool I’ve developed. It’s the main reason why I’ve been able to publish my four fantasy novels, and I’ve also seen this method create amazing results for the 35 writers who’ve done my 7-week Fantasy Outlining Bootcamp . “This course was revelatory for me, and it was by far the best decision I’ve ev...