Writer Unleashed

What's an inciting incident, and why does your story need one?In this episode, learn what an inciting incident is, and two types that set your story in motion.We’ll also talk about where in your story to place it, and how to craft your inciting incident to hook your reader.Episode WebsiteNot sure if your idea has what it takes to become a powerful story? This free quick guide will help you uncover the heart of your idea in just three simple steps. You’ll walk away with a one-sentence premise you can build your entire book on, and the clarity and confidence to keep going.Download Your Quick Guide HereWant to join a community of like-minded writers? Need inspiration and support? Join us in our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. It's totally free to join.

Present tense or past tense? How do you decide? What are the advantages of present tense, and when is past tense a better option? In this episode, I’m going to explore the pros and cons of present tense. We'll explore techniques that are much easier to achieve  with past tense.And if the present is your tense of choice, I'll outline 4 limitations to be aware of, so you can overcome them. Episode WebsiteNot sure if your idea has what it takes to become a powerful story? This free quick guide will help you uncover the heart of your idea in just three simple steps. You’ll walk away with a one-sentence premise you can build your entire book on, and the clarity and confidence to keep going.Download Your Quick Guide HereWant to join a community of like-minded writers? Need inspiration and support? Join us in our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. It's totally free to join.

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 you probably haven't heard before. You'll learn to control it more, and take advantage of the range available to you whether you're writing in first person, third person limited, or third person omniscient. You'll learn:the primary purpose of point of view;why focusing on which person you write in is limiting your story's point of view, and what to focus on instead;what we mean by omniscience (and why it's not the sole province of third person narrators) and;how to bring a third person narrator more deeply into the mind of your charactersEpisode WebsiteNot sure if your idea has what it takes to become a powerful story? This free quick guide will help you uncover the heart of your idea in just three simple steps. You’ll walk away with a one-sentence premise you can build your entire book on, and the clarity and confidence to keep going.Download Your Quick Guide HereWant to join a community of like-minded writers? Need inspiration and support? Join us in our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. It's totally free to join.

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 a point. This makes the story hard for a reader to follow. So, the challenge is to nail down who your story's about, what problem your character is trying to solve, what incident catapults him or her into action, and  how he or she goes about solving their story problem. It's a pretty straightforward framework. And there are 5 parts to it, which we'll break down in today's episode. So, if you're having trouble finishing your story, if you're getting stalled in the middle, or overwhelmed and lost in your own material, this episode is for you. Episode WebsiteNot sure if your idea has what it takes to become a powerful story? This free quick guide will help you uncover the heart of your idea in just three simple steps. You’ll walk away with a one-sentence premise you can build your entire book on, and the clarity and confidence to keep going.Download Your Quick Guide HereWant to join a community of like-minded writers? Need inspiration and support? Join us in our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. It's totally free to join.

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 writing one which has no substantial relationship to the global story. Which is why publishers dismiss the manuscript without turning the page. That's what makes a prologue a no no. Not the prologue, but the execution of it. Hate them or love them, prologues are sometimes necessary to help readers navigate and enjoy your novel. This episode will help you decide if your story could benefit from a prologue. You'll learn 4 types of prologues and what makes them work. And then you'll get tips for writing a winning prologue. Episode WebsiteNot sure if your idea has what it takes to become a powerful story? This free quick guide will help you uncover the heart of your idea in just three simple steps. You’ll walk away with a one-sentence premise you can build your entire book on, and the clarity and confidence to keep going.Download Your Quick Guide HereWant to join a community of like-minded writers? Need inspiration and support? Join us in our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. It's totally free to join.

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's and don'ts when writing effective,  resonanting flashback. Episode WebsiteNot sure if your idea has what it takes to become a powerful story? This free quick guide will help you uncover the heart of your idea in just three simple steps. You’ll walk away with a one-sentence premise you can build your entire book on, and the clarity and confidence to keep going.Download Your Quick Guide HereWant to join a community of like-minded writers? Need inspiration and support? Join us in our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. It's totally free to join.

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 writers make with dialogue, with easy fixes for each.Episode WebsiteNot sure if your idea has what it takes to become a powerful story? This free quick guide will help you uncover the heart of your idea in just three simple steps. You’ll walk away with a one-sentence premise you can build your entire book on, and the clarity and confidence to keep going.Download Your Quick Guide HereWant to join a community of like-minded writers? Need inspiration and support? Join us in our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. It's totally free to join.

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 episode, you'll answer 3 questions to help your drill down to your story's central dramatic question. So grab a pen and paper, and let's do this together. Episode WebsiteNot sure if your idea has what it takes to become a powerful story? This free quick guide will help you uncover the heart of your idea in just three simple steps. You’ll walk away with a one-sentence premise you can build your entire book on, and the clarity and confidence to keep going.Download Your Quick Guide HereWant to join a community of like-minded writers? Need inspiration and support? Join us in our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. It's totally free to join.

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 building intensity;How to avoid overloading your first chapter with insignificant  details;How to establish a strong, identifiable point of view, and;Why giving away too much of your plot is deflating the readers' urge to know more, and how to keep  them curious. Episode WebsiteNot sure if your idea has what it takes to become a powerful story? This free quick guide will help you uncover the heart of your idea in just three simple steps. You’ll walk away with a one-sentence premise you can build your entire book on, and the clarity and confidence to keep going.Download Your Quick Guide HereWant to join a community of like-minded writers? Need inspiration and support? Join us in our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. It's totally free to join.

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 rejection, is stifling. How do you get past that? Maybe you're afraid of putting your book out there. You just keep wanting to do one read-through after another. It's never good enough. Maybe your greatest fear is that you'll let yourself down. In today's episode, we're breaking down 4 common fears that may be keeping you stuck.  Then we'll replace those fears with mindset shifts to get you unstuck. So you can shift your writing from dream to reality. Also Listen To:Episode 108: 3 Things Published Authors Do DifferentlyEpisode WebsiteNot sure if your idea has what it takes to become a powerful story? This free quick guide will help you uncover the heart of your idea in just three simple steps. You’ll walk away with a one-sentence premise you can build your entire book on, and the clarity and confidence to keep going.Download Your Quick Guide HereWant to join a community of like-minded writers? Need inspiration and support? Join us in our private Writer Unleashed Community Facebook Group. It's totally free to join.