Truth VS Narrative in Memoir
We’re starting a NEW BOOK - Judith Barrington’s Writing the Memoir. And what better place to start than by discussing what a memoir is, what memoir isn’t, and just...
AI & Authors Series
Bye Bye Birdy
How do you tackle one of the most famous writing craft books, you take it “Bird by Bird.” That’s what we’ve done with Anne Lamott’s book over the past...
Why Do You Write?
Well, why do you? The answer for most authors is to get published. But is that the only reason, or even the best reason? As we near the...
What To Do When You Have Writer’s Block
Anne Lamott (in her Bird by Bird book) says the dreaded writer’s block isn’t about being blocked, it’s about being empty. In today’s podcast we discuss Lamott’s approach to...
Writing Groups: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
Behind most successful authors there is a writing group (at least according to their novel's acknowledgment section). But how does one find a writing group, and how do you...
Writing Advice from the 90s
Some advice is timeless, some is not. In this episode, we evaluate writing techniques from Anne Lamott's book Bird by Bird and see if they still have value...
Shut (those voices in your head) Up & Write
Sometimes just showing up isn’t enough. You’ve set time aside for writing and instead of your story unfurling on the page (or screen) other things come out. In this...
Goodbye Gardner, Hello Bradbury
Thinking of reading The Art of Fiction, "Young Writer?" Listen to this podcast first. Despite dying in a motorcycle...
Come for the Plot. Stay for the Stripper
Wow! We've gotten to the final chapter of John Gardner's book, The Art of Fiction and it's all about...
Techniques
Gardner promises to show us the proper way for the young writer to achieve artistic mastery. Doesn’t that sound...
Common Errors
Enough with the theoretical, in this episode we get some practical advice out of Gardner's book, The Art of...
Metafiction, Deconstruction, and Jazzing Around
After last episode’s mother of all chapters, we get a reprieve – a much shorter and lighthearted chapter...
Interest and Truth
Moving along to Chapter 3 in The Art of Fiction. We go to war over the various dichotomies that...
Basic Skills, Genre, and Fiction as Dream
Onto Chapter 2 of John Gardner’s The Art of Fiction. We begin with Gardner’s opinions about grammar, and our...
Aesthetic Law and Artistic Mastery
We’re starting our first book – John Gardner’s The Art of Fiction. Let’s find out why writing instructors...
What’s on our bookcase?
Welcome to Words to Write by – a podcast where we discuss, chapter by chapter, those wonderful writing craft...
Making Your Memoir Matter
Baring one's soul in a memoir is hard work. Convincing others to care is one thing, but to engage in your life story? That's a whole other beast. In...