Writer Unleashed

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 other characters' minds when writing in first person, or limited 3rd? And what about omniscience?  In this episode,  I'm going to give you a different understanding of point of view that y...

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-lines that don't feel integrated. Too many characters whose relevance isn't clear. And then there are random events that don't have a clear story connection.  The story meanders without...

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 we can absorb the rest of your story? Some writers resist writing prologues. They think it's an industry no no. Other writers think it's a requirement. But a common mistake with prologues is w...

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 between flashback and present time? In this episode, I'm answering these questions and more. We'll talk about the difference between flashback and backstory. Then we'll talk about some do&...

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? How do you write dialogue that sounds natural and riveting?  Dialogue is one of the trickiest things to master. And it does take practice.  So in today’s episode, I'm flagging  3 common missteps w...

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) Did Kya kill Chase? (Where The Crawdads Sing) The trick is drilling down to the essential question your story asks. Because that's what's urging your reader through to the end. In this ep...

What should your first chapter do?  What does it need to accomplish? And what are common ways writers get their first chapter wrong? In this episode, we'll talk about the primary aims of your first chapter, 5 common mistakes you may be making, and  what to do instead. We'll cover:  What to do with all that back fill; Surprising ways to bring more action into your first chapter while buil...

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 reje...

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 t...

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...

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 advers...

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 enticin...

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...

 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&ap...

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-Person We’ll also cover what makes a first-person narrator more unreliable than...

For many writers, first-person narration comes naturally.  And for memoir writers, it's the only choice. First-person has some advantages over third person. But it comes with unique challenges. In this episode, we'll cover the pros of first-person, 5 common challenges, and how  to overcome them. So you can capture the full range available to you with first-person. We'll cover how to...

In last week’s episode, we  talked about 3 foundational elements to explore before you outline.  And in this episode, we’re going to start building that outline. I’m going to walk you through six steps I learned from Philip Gerard. This method leaves plenty of room for invention and surprise. Think of it as a living outline, one you can adjust as you write and revise. And a great touch point whene...

When it comes to structuring your story, there's no one-size-fits-all. Some writers wing it all the way, others craft meticulous outlines before they write. Both can produce stunning results. But what's often missing in the I'll just wing it approach, and even in the most detailed outlines, are essential foundations that make a story work.  In this episode, we'll explore 3 foun...

How do we take our characters from their sketchy beginnings and make them come alive? How do we make them convincing? All writers struggle to make characters believable. But much of what readers come to know about a character isn’t stated explicitly. It's  submerged in the way a character speaks, moves, thinks, and behaves. It's beneath the surface. The challenge is conveying all that&ap...

Great stories often start with a trigger. One persistent image, a childhood memory, a family story, or a phone conversation you overhear on  the train ride to work.  In this episode, we’ll explore story triggers: what they are, where they come, how to tap into your own triggers, and select which ones are worthy of expanding into a story.  You'll learn about the triggers that gave rise to stor...

How do you bring a textured, multi-dimensional sense of place to your story? And why is it important? Well, just as plot isn't separate from character, neither is place. Place defines, reveals, and in many ways creates who we are. It's an extension of your characters, and can reflect your  story's central conflict and theme. In this episode, we'll explore 5 questions to bring d...

Among all the POVs, 3rd person is arguably the most confusing. Let's say you're writing in limited third from your main character's POV,  and there are points in the story where other characters do things your MC doesn't yet know, but need to be explained for the reader to understand what's happening.  How do you do that in limited 3rd? Are you allowed to change POV in the...

How much exposition is too much? Should you begin your story with exposition? And how do you write exposition in a way that isn’t excessive, awkward, or dull? In today’s episode, we'll talk about how to write exposition in a way that doesn’t sound like exposition.  We'll cover: What exposition is, and why it's essential; When to begin your story with exposition, and when not to; Two...

Dialogue between characters is one of those things writers struggle mightily with. You want the dialogue to sound like real life, but when you try to make it sound like a real conversation, it just sounds boring and fake. Maybe it's the back and forth, the quotation marks, or that it just doesn't sound right..... but dialogue can be exhausting and futile to write. Is there an easy way to...

Each scene is your story in miniature, a story unto itself.  And each follows the same 3 - Act structure. So, in this episode, you'll learn the story arc of a scene. We'll explore: ⇒ What information to get into your scene 's Act 1 set up, and how previous scenes prepare the reader for what will unfold.  ⇒ How to bring direct conflict and crisis into your scene's Act 2; and ⇒ H...