Fifteen minutes long, because you're in a hurry, and we're not that smart.

19.34: Grants and Fellowships

Today we have a wildcard episode for you! We are talking about all the different ways you can sustain your writing career. Our host, Erin Roberts, has done an incredible job of applying for grants, fellowships, and residencies. So, we put her on the spot and got her to dole…

19.33: Workshops and Retreats

Today we’re taking a break from our Close Reading Series to discuss writing workshops and retreats! We dive into how to find and prepare to attend a workshop or a retreat and what to think about for organizing your own.  Thing of the Week: Solo RPGs! (Strider Mode, Star Trek Adventures,…

19.31: A Close Reading on Character: Tying it All Together

Today, we’re taking a higher view on the techniques we’ve been talking about over the last four episodes and focusing on how you can use our takeaways in your own writing. We’ll go over our final thoughts on C.L. Clark’s short stories (until next week’s episode, when we interview them!).…

19.30: A Close Reading on Character: Agency vs. Choices

We have a theory that we want to work through on today’s episode: agency is the ability to take action, whereas choices are more about the interior life of the character. We use Mary Robinette’s talking cat, try-fail cycles, and C.L. Clark’s Your Eyes, My Beacon: Being an Account of Several…

19.29: A Close Reading on Character: Barriers vs. Stakes

Our episode today focuses on C.L. Clark’s short story “You Perfect Broken Thing” for how the character’s stakes shape the barriers facing her. We use this story to examine how to tell the difference between barriers versus stakes. We also examine how to do this in a compressed space– whether that’s a…

19.15: A Close Reading on Voice: Tying It All Together

As we conclude our first deep dive of our close reading series, we want to explore how the evolution of voice helped carry readers throughout “This Is How You Lose The Time War.” We also talk about the relationship between character arcs and language, learning and voice. Stay tuned for…