Jun 29, 2017
Alida, Kathryn, and Robert discuss the process of introducing readers to new worlds and new experiences by making the strange comfortable enough to get reader's buy in. Every step of the story's way, writers need readers to nod yes in agreement. If a reader pulls back, because something seems implausible or just too out...
Jun 22, 2017
The rule is that your hero must have a character arc. So when is it all right to break the rule? Alida, Robert and Kathryn discuss the merits and pitfalls of writing a hero without a character arc. It has been done to great success, so why do so few people suggest it’s even possible to write an arcless protagonist?...
Jun 15, 2017
Special guest, Chris Fox, joins the round table this week to discuss science fiction. We have a great conversation about sci fi's roots in pulp fiction and some of the early sci fi TV shows that popularized many of the tropes we see in fiction today. Chris and our resident sci fi author, Robert, share their...
Jun 8, 2017
This week, Alida, Kathryn, and Robert discuss the soggy middle problem and what to do about it. Many writers struggle with the middle of their plots as the action slows down and the protagonist has to get from A to B, or the reader has to be fed information critical to later plot points. This slog through the mid-point...
Jun 1, 2017
Cozy mystery author, Sara Rosett stops by the round table this week to talk about characters and the mystery genre. In a companion episode coming soon, we talk about plots. What kind of characters are essential to mysteries? How do you keep your amateur sleuth engaging in crime after crime? How do reader expectations...