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21.14: Because at First, They Don’t Succeed

Writing Excuses by Brandon Sanderson, Mary Robinette Kowal, Dan Wells, and Howard Tayler

Apr 5, 202625:21Arts

Today, we’re talking about the “try-fail cycle” and why failure is essential to making the middle of your story actually interesting. It allows readers to follow characters as they try something, fail, adjust, and try ag...

About This Episode

21.14: Because at First, They Don’t Succeed is an episode from Writing Excuses by Brandon Sanderson, Mary Robinette Kowal, Dan Wells, and Howard Tayler. Today, we’re talking about the “try-fail cycle” and why failure is essential to making...

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Episode Details

Published Apr 5, 2026, 25:21 long, audio available.