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Fifteen minutes long, because you're in a hurry, and we're not that smart.
Today, we are joined by Margaret Dunlap as we dive into the three-act structure. This traditional framework—setup, confrontation, and resolu...
Today we zoom out from moment-to-moment tension and look at how escalation and de-escalation shape a story at the structural level—how raisi...
Today, we’re talking about tension and release as a kind of call and response, and how that dynamic can guide your reader through a story. I...
Today, we’re talking about how to use contrast to make key moments in your story hit harder, especially in the middle. We explore how pairin...
Today, we’re talking about the “try-fail cycle” and why failure is essential to making the middle of your story actually interesting. It all...
Today, we’re taking on the idea of the “soggy middle” and why stories start to lose momentum—often because characters lack clear action, obs...
When writing feels harder than it should, the problem might not be the story— it might be the room. In this episode, our hosts explore how e...
Sometimes the fastest way to hook a reader is to start with something exploding. In this episode, our hosts dig into the promise — and the p...
A cold open can hook a reader with nothing more than voice. In this episode, our hosts explore what makes a voice-driven opening work — cade...
Grounding a reader starts in the very first lines of a story. Where are we? Who are we with? What kind of story are we in? Our hosts explore...
In this episode, we explore what it really means to set reader expectations at the beginning of a story. We talk about how openings communic...
To celebrate Mary Robinette’s birthday today (!!), she is taking us inside the craft (and emotional engine) of her short story “With Her Ser...
In this episode, our hosts dive into what makes a strong beginning and why it matters so much to readers. They talk about openings as an act...
Today, our hosts dig into how stories can feel fresh without losing what readers love. They explore the idea of “same but different” across...
Our hosts take on the Hero’s Journey—where it came from, why it endures, and why it can make writers uneasy. They break it down as a tool (a...
Plot isn’t a set of commandments—it’s a collection of patterns we’ve learned to recognize. This episode kicks off the season’s deep dive int...
This week, we turn our attention to one of the most stubborn traps writers fall into: assuming someone else’s process should work for you. B...
Season 21 kicks off with a new theme, a fresh tagline, and a renewed focus on what Writing Excuses has always been about: tools, not rules....
As our 20th season comes to a close, we reflect on the end of 2025 and a major transition for the show, as Dan Wells steps away from Writing...
A workflow that made daily writing (and comics) possible—Howard Tayler takes us through two decades of the delightfully eccentric process be...
2 quick reminders: Scholarship applications for our 2026 cruise are open now until December 31st, 2025. You can learn more and apply here ....
This week, Mary Robinette pulls back the curtain on some of fiction’s sneakiest power tools: tone and mood. Drawing from a recent craft clas...
In this episode, DongWon digs into one of the business topics of our upcoming craft book: pitching. How do you talk about your work so other...
Dan shares his experience of rebuilding and reinventing his writing career from his section of our forthcoming book Now Go Write. Our hosts...
In this episode, Erin returns with the final two “rules” from her section of our forthcoming book Now Go Write —and why it might be worth br...
In this episode, Erin shares a sneak peek from her section of our forthcoming book, Now Go Write . (To learn more about our book, sign up fo...
We have an exciting announcement! Writing Excuses is publishing a book, Now Go Write , which will feature writing from all of our hosts! Sig...
Erin and Howard sat down with paleontologist Dr. Tara Lepore for a fascinating dive into the science—and storytelling potential—of deep time...
Erin describes her own writing process as, “a bunch of random practices thrown into a bag and shaken up." Nevertheless, for today’s epis...
We’re continuing our episodes focusing on our hosts’ personal writing practices. Like Mary Robinette’s. DongWon’s involves a bit of… chaos....
A lot of people ask published authors what their writing process is like, as if it is a key to being able to write. The only important proce...
Today our hosts tell you why you don’t need to listen to all of our episodes—or even most of them. Each of our five hosts weighs in on how y...
We had the absolute joy of sitting down with Charlie Jane Anders , the author of the book we’ve focused on for our last four episodes (All t...
This is our final episode before we have Charlie Jane Anders on the podcast to talk about her writing process next week! Today we’re talking...
If you still want to read All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders, you can purchase it here! We are looking today at the lens of whe...
If you still want to read All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders, you can purchase it here! Today we’re talking about places and pl...
Last season we took different works to represent different concepts. But this season, we’re looking at a single work— All the Birds in the S...
Throughout this season, we have been doing a series of episodes that feature different metaphors for writing. Today, we’re talking about rai...
Téa Obreht is a short story writer and novelist. Her debut novel, The Tiger’s Wife , won the 2011 Orange Prize for Fiction, and was a 2011 N...
This year, we’ve been looking at writing through various different lenses. In two weeks, on August 24th, we’ll begin a 5-part deep dive into...
Tone is one of those words people use in many different ways when talking about fiction. On today’s episode, our hosts break down what it me...
What the heck is authorial intent? Does it matter? And how do intentions end up on the page without cluttering or overwhelming the story? To...
Every story has been told. Okay, maybe not, but most stories have a tradition/ influence/ history/ genre/ style that they draw upon, even if...
We are joined by author Mark Oshiro, who primarily writes YA and middle grade books and was a guest teacher aboard our 2024 cruise! (Our 202...
What separates the way we experience a game versus the way we experience a prose narrative? Erin Roberts has written for many games, and she...
Our hosts explore how to write compelling confrontations—whether physical fights or emotional arguments—in a live episode recorded on the Wr...
How can listening inform the way you write? We decided to ask Charles Duhigg is a Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist and bestselling author—b...
How does a room sound? Does your childhood have a taste? What is the smell of summer? In this episode, we dive into the sensory layers that...
Time isn't just a backdrop—it’s a powerful tool in storytelling. In this episode, we explore how time shapes narratives, beyond just plot st...
This week, we’re digging into context—what it is, why it matters, and how it can totally transform your storytelling. Whether you're working...