Writing Excuses

Let's map Newton's Laws of Motion onto writing. Because a wordcount at rest tends to remain at rest...Our Sponsors:* Check out MasterClass: https://masterclass.com/EXCUSES* Check out Quince: https://quince.com/wxSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Dive into the art of blending elemental genres and discover how it enriches narratives. Explore the chilling integration of horror within character arcs, creating unique tension. The discussion shifts to themes of betrayal and financial savvy for creatives, emphasizing the importance of saving and investing. Learn from examples in literature, including 'Word Puppets,' showcasing the magic of genre fusion. This exploration encourages writers to play with emotions and genres, enhancing their storytelling craft.

What's the difference between a conference and a convention? How do we, as writers, get the most out of them?Our Sponsors:* Check out MasterClass: https://masterclass.com/EXCUSES* Check out Quince: https://quince.com/wxSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

The word "genre" has a lot of weight to it. Arguments about whether a particular work is, or is not, part of a given genre are long, and tedious. Season Eleven will not be engaging in those arguments. We're giving all that a wide miss by adding an adjective, and defining a new term: Elemental Genre. During 2016 we are going to explore what we write, why we write, and how we write in much the same way as previous seasons have, but our guidepost this year will be this concept of Elemental Genres. In January we'll stay high-level and firm up the framework. Starting in February we'll drill down on each of the Elemental Genres, and explore the writing process. Here's what the year will look like, month-by-month: January: Introduction February: Wonder March: Idea April: Adventure May: Horror June: Mystery July: Thriller August: Humor September: Relationship October: Drama November: Issue December: Ensemble We're really excited about this year's format, and we're confident that by examining our writing in this way we'll learn (and perhaps even teach!) some new things. Note: 2016 is a leap year, but this episode was recorded in 2015. When we said "it's not a leap year" we were confused. Our Sponsors:* Check out MasterClass: https://masterclass.com/EXCUSES* Check out Quince: https://quince.com/wxSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Ellen Kushner joins us for the last episode of Season 10. Per the title, folks, it's time to be done. What does "done" mean? How do you go about declaring a project "finished" when you know there are still things wrong with it? How do you clear your head, your work space, and your life for the next thing you need to do? Out of Excuses: Per Brandon's plug in the episode, registration is open for the 2016 Out of Excuses WritingWorkshop and Retreat!Our Sponsors:* Check out MasterClass: https://masterclass.com/EXCUSES* Check out Quince: https://quince.com/wxSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Daniel José Older joins us for a Q&A on showing your work around. Here are the questions, which were submitted by attendees at the Out of Excuses workshop: What's the best way to meet editors and agents at conventions? How do you write a good query letter? What do you mention as credentials in your query letter? You didn't cover self publishing at all this month. Self publishing is legit, right? Can you submit the same work to more than one agent or editor at a time? Can you re-submit a revised work to an agent who previously rejected the piece?Our Sponsors:* Check out MasterClass: https://masterclass.com/EXCUSES* Check out Quince: https://quince.com/wxSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Marco Palmieri and Michael Underwood took the stage with Howard and Dan at GenCon Indy 2015 to discuss hand-selling manuscripts. Marco Palmieri is a senior editor at Tor, and Michael Underwood is an author, and is also the North American Sales and Marketing manager for Angry Robot Books. We begin with a list of the things to avoid doing, including the classic mistakes like chasing editors into restrooms, but we quickly move on to where you get started, and what your task list is going to look like. We cover resources like Literary Marketplace, Locus, and Publishers Lunch, and the not-so-secret-anymore #MSWL hash-tag.Our Sponsors:* Check out MasterClass: https://masterclass.com/EXCUSES* Check out Quince: https://quince.com/wxSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

We're at the end of our Season Ten Master Class, and if you've been diligent about the homework, you may very well have a finished manuscript in your hands. What do you do with it? Daniel José Older joins us for a bit of reminiscence. We talk about some of our first submissions, and what we did right, wrong, and weirdly. We cover our criteria for selecting publishers to whom we'd like to send our stuff, and we include the shiny intangibles in that list. This episode was engineered aboard The Independence of the Seas by Bert Grimm, and mastered in an abandoned missile silo by Alex Jackson.Our Sponsors:* Check out MasterClass: https://masterclass.com/EXCUSES* Check out Quince: https://quince.com/wxSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Spoiler Alert! We'll be discussing the latest John Cleaver book from Dan Wells with author, podcaster, and unrepentant bacon-lover Dan Wells! If you haven't read it, and you want to be surprised by it, stop listening and grab a copy now!Our Sponsors:* Check out MasterClass: https://masterclass.com/EXCUSES* Check out Quince: https://quince.com/wxSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

And now for your questions about revision. Or rather, questions from the WXR attendees, who were aboard the Independence of the Seas with us (the answers to these questions are secreted away in the audio file...): During revision, when do you think it's acceptable to throw the whole thing out? How do you fit the whole structure in your head? What do you find you most often need to add? What do you do when your revisions have made things worse? How do you avoid over-writing during the revision process? When revising, how many passes do you make, and what order are they in? Do you take the sounds of words into account when writing and revising? This episode was engineered aboard The Independence of the Seas by Bert Grimm, and mastered in a concrete bunker somewhere in the midwest by Alex Jackson.Our Sponsors:* Check out MasterClass: https://masterclass.com/EXCUSES* Check out Quince: https://quince.com/wxSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy