Tiffin Inn Writing Workshop (with Imposter Syndrome & Unlimited Refills)

Tim and Art close out 2024 with a look back on lessons learned this past year and new goals for 2025. Art discusses his goal to finish the first draft of his Sci-Fi novel and outlines what lessons learned have emboldened him to attempt it, while Tim discusses his desire to attempt higher word count stories in 2025 with an eye toward giving his characters more opportunity to strut their stuff. Reme...

Tim and Art welcome author E.B. Hauk to the corner booth to gain insights into her process of publishing her comic novel Heck McTyre, Neuromanfluencer . Join the discussion for tips on software she uses to help develop and promote the book, including Bookfunnel , BookBarbarian , BookRoar , and many others. The blurb for the novel: "Heck hasn't slept in days. There's no telling if he'll dream or ta...

Tim and Art welcome author Jeff Giles to the corner booth to talk about his process of publishing his first novel Langley Powell and the Society for the Defense of the Mundane . For the last 30-plus years and counting, Jeff Giles has been a pop culture writer of mild renown, with bylines at an array of publications including Paste Magazine, the Village Voice, American Songwriter, Ultimate Classic...

Art introduces a two-part series of interviews coming in the next two weeks that focuses on the ins and outs of self-publishing. Tim and Art are inviting two new authors into the corner booth to discuss their experiences with hybrid publishers and with full-blown self-publishing strategies. The conversation should be enlightening for any who want to explore what's out there in the vast, often inti...

Art reads his latest short story, "V-Hold," into the record for Tim to critique. Tim and Art then explore how Art's process has changed (for the better) since the start of the podcast. Listen in on their conversation as a sample of how to give and accept feedback on your work with your writing group. Tim and Art plan to pilot Tiffin Inn Writing Workshops online in 2025! Workshops will be low cost,...

Tim discusses the incredibly fast process from inception to publication on his latest story, and what role the inner editor plays in this process. Tim and Art plan to pilot Tiffin Inn Writing Workshops online in 2025! Workshops will be low cost, high impact, 1-hour sessions with instruction and guided practice. E-mail us at  TiffinInnWritingWorkshop@gmail.com to add your name to the wait list. 

Tim reveals his latest publication in one of his aspirational "dream journals." Tim and Art then compare and contrast common styles, focusing in on how much to use metaphor vs straightforward narrative storytelling. Join us in the corner booth and see where you fall in the range! Tim and Art plan to pilot Tiffin Inn Writing Workshops online in 2025! Workshops will be low cost, high impact, 1-hour...

Success begins with planning. In this Refill episode, Art explores the purpose of our podcast episodes and how they are designed to add tools to your writing toolbelt. Art then lays out his writing plan for 2025 as a template for you to use as a starting point for your writing plan.  Art finally reveals that in 2025 we plan to offer Tiffin Inn Writing Workshops online! This is your chance to work...

Tim and Art are delighted to be joined in the corner booth by acclaimed writer Bethany Jarmul, an Appalachian writer and poet. Her work has been published in 100+ literary magazines including Rattle, Brevity,   Salamander, One Art,  and  Ghost Parachute .   She's the author of two chapbooks and one poetry collection— This Strange and Wonderful Existence   (poetry chapbook, Bottlecap Press, 2023) ,...

Tim and Art discuss how to use role-playing games and writing activities to gamify your creative process. They also tease an important takeaway from next week's interview episode with author Bethany Jarmul about the importance of having a "turn" in your story. Tim and Art are ready to help! Join the conversation at TiffinInnWritingWorkshop@gmail.com . 

Tim makes a case for the value in revisiting old work, then gives an update on his novel progress. Tim and Art are here to help, so email the show at  TiffinInnWritingWorkshop@gmail.com to get your conversation started.

Tim and Art discuss the value of revisiting older drafts to understand your writing journey. Whether it is to mine your past for story prompts, searching for promising unfinished work to revise, or just to plot your improvement over time, revisiting your past work can offer clues on how to better approach your current and future drafts. Tim and Art are here to help, so email the show at TiffinInnW...

Is your creative battery drained or running low? Art describes how using role-playing can help free up your internal editor and create opportunities to explore new characterization. Art shares a story from his early role-playing days that demonstrates how a simple game can free you up to find unexpected studies in character.   Tim and Art are here to help, so email the show at TiffinInnWritingWork...

Tim and Art return for Season 4 by revisiting the fundamentals. Is your story missing something? Does your main character glide through your story with very little at stake? Is the action happening "around" them rather than your character struggling through it? Tim and Art present four easy button concepts to apply to ensure that you put your characters under stress: fear, desire, loss, and pain....

With Season 4 just around the corner, Tim and Art offer a glimpse into their unscripted conversations about their own work. Up this week, Art responds to Tim's novel draft with encouragement and a path forward. Tim and Art are here to help, so email the show at TiffinInnWritingWorkshop@gmail.com to get your conversation started.

Tim and Art look back at Season 3 for lessons learned and cast their gaze forward at Season 4. Even during the hiatus, Tim and Art are here to help. Email the show at  TiffinInnWritingWorkshop@gmail.com to get the conversation started.

The "ideal reader" is that one person in the world, whether real or imagined, who really GETS what we are trying to do and who LOVES our take on fiction. In this Refill episode, Art demonstrates how Q&A can help you define what your "ideal reader" looks like. Knowing this can help you stay focused on the kind of fiction you want to produce as well as refine the list of journals you want to submit...

Have you ever been less than satisfied with your work in progress? Your latest drafts have you rethinking fundamental decisions you've made as a writer? Then join us as Tim cousels Art through his crisis of conscience about the quality of his work in progress. What should Art do to get back to the "good stuff"? In this episode, we reference a published story from Tim Goodwin called " Must Love Eat...

It can be worthwhile to journal about your flaws, whether real or imagined. This is one of the many obstacles we face on our journey to create art. Art demonstrates how to be introspective and critique your own work as a way to refocus and improve rather than giving in to negative thinking.  Tim and Art are here to help, so email the show at TiffinInnWritingWorkshop@gmail.com to get your conversat...

Tim and Art discuss their submission goals and lay out how to mentally bounce back from rejections and stay focused on your fiction.  Tim and Art are here to help, so email the show at  TiffinInnWritingWorkshop@gmail.com to get your conversation started.

Tim and Art discuss how to get back into the right frame of mind to revise your fiction. When we decide to go back, why does that first draft read so much worse than we remember? How can you begin again once you've lost the initial spark of creativity? What's the right way to resume work without messing up what you've already done?  Tim and Art are here to help, so email the show at  TiffinInnWrit...

Art discusses the process of "Active Reading" as a way to pan for gold in published stories. Reading authors with intentionality and purpose can help unlock elements of style or voice that you want to adopt. Art presents a method for getting the most writing benefit out of your reading experience. Tim and Art are here to help, so email the show at TiffinInnWritingWorkshop@gmail.com to get your con...

Tim provides feedback on Art's story "Donut Fridays" from last week's Refill episode. This unscripted feedback session on Art's story is intended to demonstrate best practices of giving and receiving feedback with a trusted beta reader. Tim asks open-ended questions about choices Art made in the story, resulting in a "to do" list of things for Art to think about before the next revision. The goal...

Art reads his 825-word short story "Donut Fridays" into the record in preparation for Tim's feedback during next week's episode.  Art is open to your feedback, so if you want to share your thoughts on this draft of the story,  email the show at TiffinInnWritingWorkshop@gmail.com to help Art make this story the best it can be.

Tim and Art discuss their experiences in gaining (and losing and regaining) confidence in their writing output. They discuss how they know when a piece is "done" and ready for submission. They also reveal how imperative it is to reject the arrogance that sustained them in their youth because ultimately it made it harder to improve as professionals. Tim and Art are here to help, so email the show a...