Category Archives: Guest

Career and Lifestyle, Guest, Season 15, Theory and Technique

15.39: Translation, with special guest Alex Shvartsman

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Your Hosts: Mary Robinette, Dan, and Lari, with guest Alex Shvartsman

Translation is fantastically complex. In this episode Lari and Alex help us navigate those complexities, both from the standpoint of the translator, and from the standpoint of the author seeking to have their work translated.

Credits: This episode was mastered by Alex Jackson

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 20:21 — 14.7MB)

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Write a story in which the characters are in trouble because of a linguistic misunderstanding.

“The Green Hills of Dmitry Totzkiy,” by Eldar Safin, (English translation by Alex Shvartsman)

 

Career and Lifestyle, Guest, Theory and Technique

15.36: Collaboration, with Shannon and Dean Hale

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Your Hosts: Brandon, Mary Robinette, and Dan, with special guests Shannon and Dean Hale

We’ve had several discussions about collaboration, and we’ve learned that the answer to “how do you collaborate with other authors” is different with each collaboration team we talk to.

Shannon and Dean Hale have written fifteen books together, and in this episode they talk to us about how they do it.

Credits: This episode was recorded by Joseph Meacham, and mastered by Alex Jackson

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 15:40 — 11.5MB)

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“Picture-word” game, which you kind of need to listen to Dean describe.

Kind of a Big Deal, by Shannon Hale

Guest, Season 15, Theory and Technique

15.35: Tools for Writing and Worldbuilding, with Erin Roberts

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Your Hosts: Dan, Mary Robinette, Lari, and special guest Erin Roberts

We’ve received a number of questions about the ‘tools of the trade’ for organizing our work, especially with regard to worldbuilding. In this episode we talk about what we use, including some old-school analog tools like sticky notes and ballpoint pens.

Credits: this episode was recorded remotely, and mastered by Alex Jackson

 

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 21:33 — 15.6MB)

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Using whichever tool you would like, examine your favorite worldbuilding elements, and determine what your influences are for them.

The Midnight Bargain, by C.L. Polk (currently available for pre-order)

Career and Lifestyle, Guest, Season 15, Theory and Technique

15.32: Short Story Markets

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Your Hosts: Dan, Mary Robinette, and Lari, with special guest Erin Roberts

Erin Roberts joins us for a discussion of short story markets—a topic which is very susceptible to “churn” because of the way short story markets come and go. We cover how to research and evaluate the various markets based on what you need from publication, and what you might reasonably expect from them.

Credits: This episode was recorded remotely during the Great Isolation, and mastered by Alex Jackson.

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 16:22 — 12.0MB)

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Pick a couple of contemporary short fiction writers. Track their publication history, and get a feel for how their writing career has developed.

Nebula Awards Showcase 2019, edited by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Career and Lifestyle, Demonstration, Guest, Q&A, Season 15

15.31: The Agent in the Room

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Your Hosts: Dan, Dongwon, Piper, and Howard

You had questions for agents, Dongwon has answers!

  • How do you go about becoming an agent?
  • How do an agent and author work together?
  • At what point do agent and author talk about the “sticky stuff?”

Credits: This episode was recorded by Bert Grimm, and mastered by Alex Jackson

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 19:59 — 14.5MB)

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Make a list of the questions, especially the hard ones, you want to ask prospective agents.

Extreme Makeover: A Novel, by Dan Wells

Guest, Live Audience, Theory and Technique

15.30: Write What You Want To Know, with Laurell K. Hamilton

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Your Hosts: Brandon, Dan, and Howard, with special guest Laurell K. Hamilton

We’ve all heard the “write what you know” rule. Laurell K. Hamilton joined us to talk about how she got started by writing what she wanted to know. In this episode we discuss our various paths to learning the things that fascinate us, and which we want to be able to write about.

Credits: This episode was recorded by Dan Thompson, and mastered by Alex Jackson

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 18:18 — 13.3MB)

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I was walking home from work one day…

Noir Fatale, edited by Larry Correia and Kacey Ezell, with stories by Laurel K. Hamilton, David Weber, Griffin Barber, Steve Diamond, and more

Guest, Live Audience, Season 15, Theory and Technique

15.29: Barbie Pre-Writing, with Janci Patterson and Megan Walker

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Your Hosts: Brandon, Dan, and Howard, with special guests Janci Patterson and Megan Walker

Janci Patterson and Megan Walker joined us to talk about their pre-writing process, which involves role-playing in a room full of dioramas with Barbie dolls.

As pre-writing processes go, this one was completely new to us, and we very quickly decided that we love it.

Credits: this episode was recorded live at NASFIC by Dan Thompson, and mastered by Alex Jackson

 

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Role-play, with toys, a scene from something you’ve written.

The Extra, by Janci Patterson, and Megan Walker
Godfire, by Cara Witter

Guest, Live Audience, Season 15, Theory and Technique

15.27: Alternate History, with Eric Flint

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Your Hosts: Brandon, Dan, and Howard, with special guest Eric Flint

Eric Flint joined us at SpikeCon (host of the 2019 NASFIC) to talk about creating  alternate histories. His Ring of Fire book series is enormous in scope, and has many, many more people working on it than just Eric Flint. We get a bit of a peek behind the scenes, and a lot of great information about writing alternate histories of our own.

Credits: This episode was recorded by Dan Thompson, and mastered by Alex Jackson

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 22:23 — 16.1MB)

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Plan your day so you know which bit to write first. Sit down and write something first.

1632: Ring of Fire Book 1, by Eric Flint