Writing Excuses Transcripts

Writing Excuses 12.38: What Do Editors Really Want, with Toni Weisskopf and Cat Rambo

From http://www.writingexcuses.com/2017/09/17/12-38-what-do-editors-really-want-with-toni-weisskopf-and-cat-rambo/

Key Points:
Q: What do editors really want?
A: Chocolate and bourbon. To give you a contract for your bestseller and $50,000. The next XXX, but not the same. To buy a book that works. The writer to do the work!
Q: What are they looking for when working with the editor?
A: The ability to take direction, to achieve the author's vision. How do we bridge the gap between "Don't write to the market" and "Editors buy for the market?" The first audience is yourself. Readers, like dogs, can smell crap. Write what you are passionate about.
Q: When an editor finds a problem, what is the next step?
A: A challenge to the author. Editors suggest fixes, but good authors don't do that, they do it their own way, in their own voice.
Q: What are some common pitfalls or advice?
A: Be timely. Don't try to be perfect, just respond, and keep the communication going. Ask yourself, "Will this news get better if I wait?" Editors are not parents or bosses. Collaboration is the name of the game.
Q: Is there an exemplary or hilarious incident from the trenches?
A: Don't respond to a rejection slip with the news that your mother liked the story. Arguing with rejection letters is pointless.

( Chocolate and bourbon, over and over... )

[Dan] So let's finish up. I'm very excited to hear our homework. Which is what I have written down as the Weisskopf possum theory.
[Toni] Oh, God. We don't have enough time for that.
[Laughter]
[Toni] Telling the possum story would be at least 10 minutes.
[Dan] Oh, well, we can't do that. Can you give us like a 10 second version of it?
[Toni] Cat, go first.
[Laughter]
[Cat] Here's my writing advice.
[Dan] Okay.
[Cat] Try something new this week. If you always write indoors, go right outdoors. If you always write by hand, try it on a typewriter. Just mix it up a little. See what happens.
[Dan] Awesome. That's great advice.
[Toni] All right. This has nothing to do with possums. But listen to dialogue. Sit down and write down, if you can, how people actually talk. This is not how you write dialogue, but it will help you writing dialogue.
[Dan] That's great advice.
[Howard] When she says listen to dialogue, listen to people speaking to each other. Not TV dialogue. Listen to people talking.
[Toni] Yes. Thank you.
[Dan] Aaron Sorkin…
[Toni] That's why you're the writer.
[Dan] One of my favorite bits of writing advice he gives is go sit in a coffee shop for an hour and just listen to people talking to each other.
[Toni] Yup.
[Dan] Awesome. Well, that is our show. Thank you very much, Cat and Toni, for being here. We are very excited.
[Cat, Tony] Thank you.
[Dan] Everyone else, you're out of excuses. Now go write.

Writing Excuses 12.36: Structuring a Mid-Length Piece

From http://www.writingexcuses.com/2017/09/03/12-36-structuring-a-mid-length-piece/

Key Points: Novelettes and novellas. In between short stories and novels, how do you structure these? Characters, locations, and plot threads -- too many makes it hard to fit into a short story. But a novella also means fewer plot threads and subplots than a novel. Stick to thematic subplots, not side character subplots. Novellas use some of the same skills that novel writing does. Take one thing from a novel, but don't fill it out with multiple character viewpoints. Focus on one character, with one character arc, overlapped with an external plot. Novellas usually have one viewpoint character. One benefit of the novella compared to the short story is that it's easier to fix things by adding a scene or words, which is hard to do in a short story. It's relatively easy to take one plot thread from a novel and turn it into a novella. Novellas may have a complex plot, but pull back on description, and become less immersive. Or they may have a short story type plot, and more immersion. It's a balancing game -- plot threads, POV characters, and immersion -- which ones do you cut back to fit the story into the available words. Many novels start as novellas or short stories. One approach is to start with a chunk of the longer story, then add more length. Another approach is to start with the whole story in sparse form, and then expand it. Novel readers read for immersion, and assume if you leave something out, you haven't thought about it. Short story readers assume that you leave things out because it's not important. Novella readers enjoy immersion, but they're willing to let you leave things out. This means that as you grow a story from short story to novella to novel, what the readers expect changes. Novellas are in a renaissance, due to ebooks and the changing market. So it's a good time to experiment and learn to write them well.
( Novellas -- not too short, not too long, just right? )

[Brandon] I am going to give you some homework. It's going to be a little different this week because I'm going to target a specific group of people who are like me. Those of you who are listening sometimes get frustrated because you have tons of ideas piling up and not enough time to write them. Now some of you listening are like, "Oh. Luxury! Like, I latch onto one good idea and I spend a long time writing it and then I search for the next one." There are all different types of writers. But I was the type of writer who had so many books he wanted to write that he started to get into trouble, because he would write those books, and then those books implied sequels. The fans wanted sequels and the publisher wanted sequels, and suddenly there are all these novels, and I was leaving so many behind that I couldn't get to. Well, when I started novellas, part of the purpose and training myself was to take some of these really great ideas I had and say, "Let's just do that idea." Rather than expanding that idea into an entire novel, adding a bunch to it, let's just do that idea and write it as its own thing. I have found it hugely liberating as a novelist to have this outlet, to just try out an idea, but to use my same novel writing skills for. So, all of you out there who have these novels planned that you may not ever get to, I want you to take one of them and instead make a novella out of it. At least do the structure. Do the outline, and see if you can practice this form. See if it is something that helps you express yourself as a writer. This has been Writing Excuses. You're out of excuses, now go write.

Writing Excuses 12.34: Fulfilling the Reader's Fantasy, with Brian McClellan

From http://www.writingexcuses.com/2017/08/20/12-34-fulfilling-the-readers-fantasy-with-brian-mcclellan/

Key Points: Romance and flintlock fantasy -- what do they have in common? Fulfilling fantasies. Setting up the promises? The romance genre promises a Happily Ever After! Or at least a happily for now. To set that up, start with a sizzle of attraction, a possibility of a relationship, as early as possible. Then explore the journey that brings them together. Epic fantasy, also, implicitly promises magic and big things happening. At the first possible point, introduce magic in the world. Then drop in big things going on. To make it feel epic, more than one country, large plot lines, bigger stakes. Let the reader figure out that the character worrying about his family being touched by violence means bigger things are going on. Romance, fantasy -- escapism? Wish fulfillment? But... escapism isn't a bad word! In romance, you get to explore possibilities. Try some Tex-Mex, instead of your own cooking. Experimenting. Take over a country, sling fireballs, without real danger. Escape for an hour or two. Hope! Fantasy lets us go somewhere new, explore out there, and also think about what it means to make a choice between magic or family. Without putting 14-year-old boys to sleep.
( Romance and flintlock fantasy? Strange bedfellows? )

[Brandon] You were going to give us a writing prompt, Brian?
[Brian] Okay. My writing prompt. Oh, right. So, write your next story in a time period… Doesn't matter what genre, you can change it up if you want… In a time period that you haven't written before. You can make up the facts if you want. I know Mary would probably murder me if she was here.
[Chuckles]
[Brian] But just do something different, in a different time period.
[Brandon] That is a very good prompt. We want to say thank you for coming. You guys should really all go read Promise of Blood. It is a fantastic book. Brian gets better with every book, which makes us angry, because he is getting so good at this writing thing. You're going to love…
[Howard] We should have killed him before it was too late?
[Brandon] Yeah. His new book, Sins of Empire, we promo'ed earlier in the year. But it is a new starting point. And you can go pick that one up. Thank you very much, Brian, for being on the podcast.
[Brian] Thank you very much.
[Brandon] Thank you, listeners, for listening. But you are now out of excuses. So, go write.

Writing Excuses 12.32: Structuring a Short Piece

From http://www.writingexcuses.com/2017/08/06/12-32-structuring-a-short-piece/

Key Points: Flash fiction and short stories. Short fiction is usually just two MACE elements. Flash fiction is usually a single MACE element, often one problem to solve. Introduce the problem, a couple try-fail cycles, and solution. Often MACE elements get nested, or form frames. Also, changing POV often changes MACE elements, because they are all about affecting the primary character. MACE is often useful for pruning -- focus on what you really want to tell, and remove extra threads. Sometimes flash fiction, short fiction, implies questions or endings for the reader, instead of explicitly describing them. This is good for issue stories (elemental genre).

MACE: Milieu, Ask/Answer, Character, Event.
Milieu: starts when a character enters a place and ends when they exit (often returning home); main conflict is getting out, returning, stopping the main character from getting out of the milieu; journey, quest, man against nature.
Ask/Answer: the character asks a question, ends when they find an answer; main conflict is stopping the character from getting the answer: mystery, puzzle, trying to solve or find an answer. Sometimes getting the answer introduces a bigger question.
Character: internal conflict, starting with dissatisfaction with self, end with new self-definition or acceptance of self; conflicts block the character from finding satisfying self-definition; love, romance, coming-of-age.
Event: external conflict, status quo has been disrupted, ends with new status quo or resolution of some kind; conflicts block character from achieving new status quo.; action, adventures. Often event story introduces character story, as the disrupted status quo causes the character to question their self-definition.
(For more details, see the liner notes!)

( Swing that MACE, hit them in the gut... )

[Brandon] We're out of time. Mary, you're going to give us some homework to help us practice the MACE quotient?
[Mary] Yes. Now, ironically, this is probably the longest description…
[Laughter]
[Mary] For a homework assignment. What I want you to do is, I want you to take either a new idea or something that you're working on that you'd like to be a short story. I want you to write… Pick one of the MACE elements. Whichever one you want to pick. Whichever one you feel like is your major driver. I want you to describe that in three sentences. So the first sentence is where the story opens. The second sentences what your major conflicts are. What your major conflict is, or the type of conflict. Your third sentence is where that winds up. All three of those things should match. Then, I want you to pick a second MACE element and do the same thing. So you've got two things. Say you've got one that's character and one that is ask/answer. So that's part one and part two of your homework. Part three of your homework is to nest them. So that you start with the ask, then you introduce the character, then you close out your character tag, and then you close out your ask tag, so it's nested. Part four of your homework is to flip it, so that the character is on the outside… It doesn't have to be character, whichever of these you picked. Character is on the outside, ask/answer is on the inside. I have this written out in full detail, you'll be happy to know. It is in the liner notes. So that you don't have to remember all of the things that I've just told you. And all of the description of the MACE elements is also in this.
[Brandon] You get a worksheet this time!
[Mary] You get a worksheet.
[Whoohoo!]
[Mary] This is the benefit of the fact that I teach classes sometimes.
[Brandon] Excellent. That actually sounds like a lot of fun. You guys should all totally do that. But for right now… This has been Writing Excuses, and you're out of excuses, now go write.

Writing Excuses 12.30: Tools for Writers

From http://www.writingexcuses.com/2017/07/23/12-30-tools-for-writers/

Key Points: Consider your tools and how they support your process and creativity. Scrivener supports component-based authoring. Other people prefer a key to screen word processor that is bare bones. Index cards, a pen, and Post-it notes. Write or Die for word sprints. Word 2010 and the document map. Wikidpad and other wikis, for encyclopedia or book bibles. Aeon Timeline for dates and times, or an Excel spreadsheet? Excel for outlining -- columns for character, subplot, mystery, then shuffle rows to organize. Spreadsheets for story beats. The browser for research! Asana for time management.  

( Handbrains and index cards... )

[Howard] Who's got our homework?
[Brandon] I do. It's very easy. You're just going to try one of these programs, these different methods. It doesn't even have to be a program, you could try the index card thing if you've never done that. I want this year, this season of Writing Excuses to get you to try to shake up your structure, your planning, your organization, a little bit to see if there are tools that will help you be more creative. This is a perfect example of something that might help you be more creative. Give it a try. This has been Writing Excuses. You're out of excuses, now go write.

Writing Excuses 12.28: Trimming and Expanding

From http://www.writingexcuses.com/2017/07/09/12-28-trimming-and-expanding/

Key points: Revision! Specifically, taking something short and making it long, or taking something long and making it short (expanding and trimming). Novels expand easily, as you add extra scenes. Expanding: longer version of itself, changing genres, layering in a second theme or plot. You can expand at different points in the writing process, early in the development or later during revision. Sometimes adding a second theme/through line/plot can make a story work! To bring out a theme that is already there, but needs more emphasis: Mechanically, every page or paragraph, check that the thematic element is brought out. To turn a short story into a novel, instead of simply making the scenes longer, try looking at the backstory and starting the story earlier -- then build to the climactic moment of the short story, and keep on going! Short story writers often have to learn to linger when writing long form. Readers bring different expectations to short and long forms: Long form is for the immersion, short form is a quick emotional punch in the gut. Cutting? Start by looking at cutting the beginning -- first chapter, each scene? Often we are writing our way into the scene/story, and that bit is not needed. Kill your darlings, especially prose that calls attention to itself. Try the 10% solution -- cut 10% everywhere to see what's really important.

( Snip, snip, whoooosh! )

[Brandon] All right. We are going to stop for some homework, which is going to teach you to do this. Mary, you were going to?
[Mary] Right. So, this is a very brutal solution to cutting. This is when you've got something that you know is bloated. Like, your readers have gone, "I'm getting really drowsy here." Or "This goes on too long, it's a giant infodump." Take a look at it. Examine how many concepts are in that, that the story will completely break if they aren't there. So let's say that it's… That the onions must be sliced thinly, that your main character is wearing red, and there's a bowl of kimchi on the table. Those are the three concepts. You should be able to convey those three concepts in just three sentences, but you're using 11 sentences. So, trim that down to get it to three sentences. It's not that each concept must be in its own sentence, but you're not allowed anymore than three sentences.
[Wesley] Okay. I'm going to add to that. Go the opposite direction and say "The onions must be sliced thinly." Figure out how to expand that, without actually saying "The onions must be sliced thinly," and see what you can kind of expand out to, and kind of discover as you write around it.
[Brandon] Great. So there's your homework, guys. This has been Writing Excuses. You are out of excuses, now go write.

Writing Excuses 12.26: Q&A on Outlining and Discovery Writing

From http://www.writingexcuses.com/2017/06/25/12-26-qa-on-outlining-and-discovery-writing/

Q&A Summary:
Q: How do you outline a scene? Not an entire book. Do you outline scenes?
A: Yes. Index cards: what's happening, what's the joke, what am I moving forward, who are the characters. One line: Awesome hanky-panky hwere while car explodes. If the way it happens is important during outlining, yes. How does it work, what are the beats. My outline is a list of bullet points to accomplish a goal. When I sit down to write a scene, I will write down a sequence of events.
Q: When outlining, how do you know when to stop adding to the outline?
A: When I start adding dialogue, it's time to write the story. When I have the emotional beats to earn a climactic moment.
Q: How much do you have to know about your characters/world before you begin writing?
A: Nothing. Nada. (Implied: you discover that through the writing!)
Q: What do you do to diagnose and fix a structural problem when you have a finished, mostly discovery written draft?
A: Reverse outline. Talk to alpha, beta readers, and analyze the problems they had. Sit down with the scripts and index cards, and push it around. One problem is bad, but two problems may solve each other, if you look at it right.
Q: I taught myself to outline like Dan did, but sometimes I can't always get into an outline like I should be able to. How did you address this, Dan?
A: Change formulas (outlining systems) and see if that helps.
Q: So far I've written five novels. The preparation/outlining process for each has been different by virtue of the story's needs. As pros, do you still deal with this frustration or have you worked out a system that consistently works for you?
A: It's different every time. We aren't chainsaw sculptors making grizzly bears, sometimes we make cabinets and coffee tables. Every book is like a first kiss with a different person. My process has stabilized over the years, but different genres have different processes. Find out what constraints your process has, where the borders are, and then adjust within those borders and constraints.
Q: What are some major indicators that a piece needs more structure?
A: If you find yourself going off track every time you start a new scene or chapter, you may need more structure. Learn the difference between a story and a bunch of stuff that happens. If you've just got a bunch of stuff, your characters aren't growing, you probably need more structure. Stuck, bored, don't want to sit down and write? You may have a broken structure that needs fixing.
( Questions, answers, and MORE! )

[Brandon] All right. So we're going to go to our homework. I have written on my guide for this episode…
[Laughter]
[Brandon] Simply the words "Dan does something wacky weird." Because he promised us.
[Dan] Okay. So here we go. We're playing around with outlines. This is what you're going to do. We're going to force you to think outside the box. You're going to find another writer, or someone who wants to do this with you. Each of you are going to come up with just a quick outline for a story. Point by point, however many points you want. Six or seven. Then, you're going to cut… Print them out, cut them into strips, and then hand the other person the pile of strips. They know the beats of the story, but they don't know what order they go in. Then you have to reorder them, turn that into a cohesive story, and write it.
[Brandon] That's awesome. I love that.
[Piper] That sounds super fun.
[Laughter]
[Howard] It's our I Ching episode.
[Laughter]
[Brandon] Ooo, don't remind me of that one.
[Howard] Okay.
[Brandon] This has been Writing Excuses. You're out of excuses, now go write.

Writing Excuses 12.24: Creating Great Outlines

From http://www.writingexcuses.com/2017/06/11/12-24-creating-great-outlines/

Key points: This episode is about outlines to help you write, not sales tools. People like structure, it is comforting. Mix a familiar structure with a bit of strange, and you can relish the oddity. First, the Kevin J. Anderson: pitch, expand to 5 pages, 20 pages, and keep blowing. Thumbnail sketch, synopsis (internal beats), scenes. This approach keeps you focused on what this novel is about. It also gives you room to be creative and get the discovery writing out as you expand. Beware, too much interesting stuff in the outline can make writing the novel boring. Don't try to include everything, just the key details. The Wesley Chu: outline 30%, write a bit, outline more, write more. The structuralist: seven point, three act, Hero's Journey, etc. Create your beats and build the outline. Also good for diagnostics -- what's wrong with this story? The George R. R. Martin: use historical incidents. Often used in science fiction and fantasy, based on a historical record taken fantastical. The Sanderson: build your outline backward. Start with a great ending, then look at what promises lead to that. How do you justify awesome things? Prequels, interstitial tales. The strength of an outline is that restrictions breed creativity. Structural requirements can push you in directions you might not have gone otherwise.

( Details, details, who has the details... )

[Brandon] All right. Well, we are out of time. We are going to go ahead and have Mary give us some homework.
[Mary] Yes. Okay. So we've talked about a bunch of different outline structures. What I want you to do is I want you to take the list of events in whatever it is that you're thinking about writing. I want you to take a list of structures. So, seven point plot structure, The Hero's Journey, all of these different things. Heist! List out the scene types. Then slot the scenes from your event list into the scene type list for each of these different structures. See which of these kind of fits organically with your story, and which one kind of makes you excited, and what opportunities they allow.
[Brandon] Excellent. This has been Writing Excuses. You're out of excuses. Now go write.

Writing Excuses 12.22: Hybrid Outlining and Discovery Writing

From http://www.writingexcuses.com/2017/05/28/12-22-hybrid-outlining-and-discovery-writing/

Key points: Sometimes, you're not sure what you are going to do until you are halfway through it. Many writers transition from discovery or outline writing to a hybrid approach. What can discovery writers learn from outlining? Thinking about the shiny place you want to take the story before starting to write the prose can be very useful. Knowing your beats allows you to map and combine, then hit those beats. Unconnected vignettes need structure added -- it's easier to start with a structure, and fill in the vignettes. Avoid hijacking, because sometimes you just need to save that new, cool thing before it derails the whole book. Outline the plot, discover the characters. Free write characters, outline plot and setting, to give yourself a framework to work in. What can outliners learn from discovery writers? Joy! Be flexible and dynamic, to take advantage of those new spins, zings, twists, and epiphanies you find while working. Outlining shrinks the gaps, discovery writing fills them in. What goes in the outline and what doesn't. Have circumstances forced you to use a tool? Submit an outline! Proposal is outline plus three discovery written chapters. Barcon: Great story concept, please send us a proposal. Self-imposed practice!

( In the gaps of the outline, a bit of discovery writing... )

[Brandon] In that name, I actually have some homework for you guys. A different kind of restriction. I've been thinking about what we could do for this one, because we've forced you to do discovery writing and outlining so much. I want to shake it up a little bit. I was thinking about my assistant, my editorial assistant, Peter. When he goes through a copyedit, when he's going to copyedit something, he does it backward first. He starts at the last line of the book and works forward. The reason being it lets him take those sentences away from the context he's used to seeing them in. Because by then, he's read the book several times. It allows him to approach them freshly and make sure the grammar and punctuation and things… In the copyedit, he's only looking for that stuff. He's not looking for the larger scale things. So I thought I would suggest you guys try to write a backwards story. Now, these are not fresh and new. They… It's not that new cool thing that it was when Memento came out and things like this. But I still think it could be fun to force you to look at stories in a new way, the structure of a story in a new way. By starting with the last sentence, and then working backward. You don't have to actually write each sentence backwards. You can write each paragraph backward, would probably be easier. Do a paragraph, then the paragraph before, and then the paragraph before. But see what happens if you try to write the story backward, having no idea where you're going. Use one of our writing prompts that we give on this as the last line instead of the first line.
[Howard] But they lived happily ever after, anyway.
[Laughter]
[Brandon] And then they found Howard's pants.
[Laughter]
[Piper] Okay. I can't tell you the images that just popped into my head.
[Brandon] It's a running theme for Writing Excuses. Howard's pants, for some reason. It goes back into the first season.
[Howard] Which I've never, never come to record without, except for maybe that one time… I'm making that up! I'm making that up.
[Brandon] This has been Writing Excuses. You're out of excuses, now go write.

Writing Excuses 12.20: Retrofitting Structure into a First Draft

From http://www.writingexcuses.com/2017/05/14/12-20-retrofitting-structure-into-a-first-draft/

Key Points: Discovery writing, and even outline writing, often means pieces veer off, some zigs and zags. Sometimes it's fine, sometimes... you need some revision. Look at the promises you've made. Step back and take a bird's eye view, then check what each scene does, what you need, what you can rearrange. Lean on the MACE! Check proportion, not too long, not too short, just Goldilock's right. Be wary of sidequests. Genre expected endings should not be the drivers of your book. Make sure the characters earn the ending in the middle -- try-FAIL, not try-success cycles. Look at your structure with corkboards and colorcoding (virtual or actual). For each scene, list character/point of view, type of scene. Try a thumbnail sketch -- where the story starts and ends. Some types of stories have well-known scenes, or use a plot structure (Dan has a handy seven point one!). Sit down and talk over the plot with someone!

( Hacking a path through the jungle... )

[Brandon] Well, we are out of time on this episode. I'm actually going to give you some homework. It's going to relate to things that Mary was talking about. Which is, I want you to take the first 10% of your story, and I want you to look at the promises you make, both in tone or in plotting, what is this story going to be about? I want you to colorcode them. Then, I want you to colorcode the different chapters. Saying, "This deals with this plot, this deals with this plot, or this promise." All the way through your story. The different chapters, or scenes if you've got a short story. Then, at the end, I want you to make sure that you have put a closure to each of those different things.. See if you drop any. That's the real thing. In that middle, did you forget one of these promises? Was your tone early on that you promised this is going to be funny, but it's not funny through all of these chapters and then funny at the end? Things like this. Just look for what you're doing and be very aware of your promises and how you're fulfilling them. This has been Writing Excuses. You're out of excuses, now go write.