Essential Guide to Writing a Novel
Hosted by James Thayer, the podcast is a practical, step-by-step manual on how to craft a novel. It presents a set of tools for large issues such as story development and scene construction (Kirkus Reviews said Thayer's novels are "superbly crafted') and it also examines techniques that will make your sentence-by-sentence writing shine. The New York Times Book Review has said Thayer's "writing is smooth and clear. it wastes no words, and it has a rhythm only confident stylists achieve.
Episodes
135 episodes
Episode 135 - Maybe the strongest writing tool - contrast.
Contrast is among the strongest tools we writers can use. It's magic. Here is a discussion of how and where to use contrast. Also, Henry Miller's rules of writing and how John Grisham works.
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25:38
Episode 134 - A stong technique for describing a character's personality.
We can show (as opposed to tell) about a character's personality by describing the character's face and body, so that our physical description does double duty. Jonathan Franzen's ten rules of writing. And techniques to add atmosphe...
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29:51
Episode 133 - In our plot what should we save for a sequel?
In our novel should we leave plot questions unanswered so we have compelling questions for a sequel? Here are thoughts on how we can approach it. Also, Hilary Mantel's ten rules of writing, how Anne Rice worked, and techniques for ...
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26:30
Episode 132 - How to avoid the main reason readers stop reading a novel.
Why do readers put down a novel for good before they reach the last page? Here is a reason, maybe the main reason, and how we writers can avoid it. Also, examples of failed showing, as opposed to telling. And Margaret Atwood's...
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28:14
Episode 131 - A review of the ten strongest writing techniques.
Here is a list of the top ten writing techniques in order of their importance, as best I can figure them out. Also, good comments from a book coach. And Zadie Smith's rules of writing.
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24:57
Episode 130 - Kurt Vonnegut's rules of writing, and powerful character descriptioins.
Here are Kurt Vonnegut's eight rules of writing. Also, why reading an Andy Weir novel is such a good writing lesson. And; character descriptions should do double duty. Here is how, with examples from legendary writers.
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26:39
Episode 129 - A scene with too many mistakes. Can we spot them?
Here is a scene with a strong plot point important to our story. It should be powerful but it isn't because of technical mistakes in the writing. Can we spot the mistakes? Also, George Orwell's six rules of writing. And ...
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26:20
Episode 128 - Should we be afraid our plot has been done before?
What if we get the sense that our story is a trope, that the plot is a cliche, that it's been done before? Here are thoughts on cliched stories. Also, Christopher Vogler's twelve steps for plotting our story.
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25:23
Episode 127 - Go big or go home plotting.
Classic novelists knew the strong technique regarding plotting and it's a terrific lesson for us: go big or go home. And what if we want to ignore a proven technique? And: thoughts on a character's stream of consciousness thinking.&...
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28:07
Episode 126 - Should we hire a book coach?
When can a book coach help us and when can a coach not help us? Here are thoughts on book coaches. Also, the master George Orwell on describing a character. Plus, improving our sentence-by-sentence writing by 1) showing, 2) of...
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27:40
Episode 125 - When to avoid the proven writing technique.
Sometimes we don't need to use the standard and strong writing technique, and we can deviate from the proven technique. When? We'll talk about it here. And here are some fun writing quotes. Also, an example of how interi...
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25:51
Episode 124 - Save the cat plotting.
Blake Snyder's famous Save the Cat plotting--where he describes fifteen beats a movie screenplay should have--is useful for us novelists. And wonderful setting descriptions from Willa Cather. Also, what's wrong with this sentence: H...
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25:53
Episode 123 - The beauty of a professional submission.
How can we submit a manuscript that meets the industry's format expectations and so avoids an amateurish look? Here's how to do it. Also, how the best-selling novelist Elin Hilderbrand live and work? And a few comments on pump...
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24:55
Episode 122 - Getting inside a villain's mind.
We aren't villains, and we likely don't have the background and personality of a villain. How can we get inside the mind of a villain for our story, so the villain engages the reader? Here are techniques to do so. Also, big an...
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26:34
Episode 121 - The biggest mistakes new writers make.
Sometimes new writers have a strong plot idea and they begin writing without learning much about fiction writing. Here are the ten most common mistakes new writers make, mistakes that are often prospect killers. Also, how does...
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24:16
Episode 120 - The most important element in fiction.
We learn many techniques to improve our fiction writing. Is there one big thing we should think about first, the most important element? Yes, and we talk about it here. Also, avoiding mixing up the grammatical person and the p...
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27:41
Episode 119 - Making our sentences instantly stronger.
Here is a technique--it's magical--to make our sentence-by-sentence writing instantly stronger; avoiding qualifiers. And how to use good dialogue tags so the reader hears the dialogue rather than the clunky tags. And important tips ...
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25:14
Episode 118 - Naming characters and the framing device.
Naming our story's characters is fun but there is a big technique involved, which we talk about in this episode. Also; the iceberg theory of writing, and the story framing device. Plus, examples of showing rather than telling about ...
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27:30
Episode 117 - Making multiple submissions, and a strong dialogue technique.
It's critical for us writers to make multiple simultaneous submissions. Here are some thoughts on why it's so important. And I mention a wonderful but counterintuitive technique that makes our dialogue smoother. Also: the im...
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23:49
Episode 116 - Advice from your lifestyle counselor, and mistakes when describing our setting.
Where can we turn when wondering about whether we should continue reading a novel? Right here, for some thoughts on reading. Also, here is a discussion on big mistakes we might make when creating our story's setting, and how to avoi...
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29:40
Episode 115 - Downer titles and words that echo poorly.
Some novels--even novels that are great literature--have titles that are downers: titles that are sour and pessimistic. Here are thoughts on why we might not want to give our novels downer titles. Also, why we should avoid words th...
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26:58
Episode 114 - A critical technique to make our story engaging.
Details are proofs, evidence offered to the reader about our story. Details will make our fiction engaging and will allow the story to grab readers. But there are right and wrong ways to use details, and we'll talk about the d...
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24:26
Episode 113 - The clear window technique.
For most of us our sentence-by-sentence writing should be a clear window to our story rather than a barrier to seeing the story. Here are thoughts on the clear window. Also, how George Orwell worked.
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25:29
Episode 112 - Writing in the past or present tense, and making submissions.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of writing in the present tense? And the past tense? Also, a reminder about the importance of setting. And I get on my high horse about writers needing persistence regarding submissio...
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26:10
Episode 111 - If we have to have a big meeting, show rather than tell.
It's hard to make a big meeting scene interesting. Much of the time meeting scenes should be avoided. But if we must have a meeting, showing rather than telling will make it more interesting. Plus, how Carson McCullers w...
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28:35