19.49: Getting to Know You

19.49: Getting to Know You

Author: Mary Robinette Kowal, DongWon Song, Erin Roberts, Dan Wells, and Howard Tayler December 8, 2024 Duration: 22:14

As we wrap up our Close Reading Series, we’re shifting our focus towards helping you integrate what you’ve learned. For December, we’ll be releasing episodes designed to help you make measurable progress on a writing project. So dust off your current work-in-progress, or pull out your brainstorming documents—we’re here to help you finish the year strong.


What can we learn from romances? Today we’re talking about using elements of romance in your story (even if you have no romance in your current WIP!) Character relationships and dynamics are often at the heart of our stories, so what can we learn from the romance genre? 


We’re thinking about the power of one character putting another one at ease, a character dismissing another (“I’ll never be interested in you!”), or two characters finding a commonality between themselves. Mary Robinette also introduces us to her family’s theory of compatibility, which measures these M-words: mind, money, morals, manners, monogamy, and mirth. 



Thing of the Week: Ancient History Fangirl (podcast)


Homework: In the scene you’re working on, what is one thing your character finds attractive about the other character in the scene? Also, what does your own character think is their own least attractive trait, and how can you make them more anxious about that right now?


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Credits: Your hosts for this episode were Mary Robinette Kowal, Dan Wells, DongWon Song, Erin Roberts, and Howard Tayler. It was produced by Emma Reynolds, recorded by Marshall Carr, Jr., and mastered by Alex Jackson.

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It’s a common piece of advice: if you want to be a writer, you should write. But what happens when you’re staring at the blank page, or when the business side of publishing feels like a maze? That’s where Writing Excuses comes in. Each week, hosts Mary Robinette Kowal, DongWon Song, Erin Roberts, Dan Wells, and Howard Tayler gather not just to talk about writing, but to dissect it. They move quickly, respecting your time while packing episodes with actionable discussions on technique, from character voice to plot structure. But this podcast understands that a writing life isn’t just about craft-it’s also a career. So conversations naturally pivot to the practicalities of the business, navigating careers, and sustaining creativity in a demanding field. You’ll hear five distinct professional perspectives blending into a single, focused conversation designed to get you past excuses and back to your work. It’s like a regular, invigorating workshop session delivered directly to you, meant to equip you with tools for both your manuscript and your professional path.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 500

Writing Excuses
Podcast Episodes
17.34: Developing Subtext [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 19:24
Your Hosts: Dan Wells, Mary Robinette Kowal, Maurice Broaddus, and Howard Tayler We begin this episode with a quick exploration of the terminology, and what we mean when we say "text," "context," and "subtext." Subtext e…
17.33: Building Tension [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 18:44
Your Hosts: Dan Wells, Mary Robinette Kowal, Maurice Broaddus, and Howard Tayler Tension! In this episode we discuss the ways dialog can build and/or maintain tension, especially when placed in context with the rest of t…
17.32: Everything is About Conflict [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 17:41
Your Hosts: Dan Wells, Mary Robinette Kowal, Maurice Broaddus, and Howard Tayler Everything is about conflict? Really? Well, yes. Maybe not in the action-movie sense, but conflict is everywhere, even among people whose g…
17.31: Everyone Has an Agenda [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:21
Your Hosts: Dan Wells, Mary Robinette Kowal, Maurice Broaddus, and Howard Tayler We've mentioned "area of intention" earlier in this dialog master class, but now the concept gets the spotlight. If all of your characters…
17.30: Know Your Characters [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 19:47
Your Hosts: Dan Wells, Mary Robinette Kowal, Maurice Broaddus, and Howard Tayler How well do you know your characters? Sure, you might know their age, nationality, and perhaps wardrobe, but how well do you know their int…
17.29: The Job of Dialogue [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:08
Your Hosts: Dan Wells, Mary Robinette Kowal, Maurice Broaddus, and Howard Tayler We're back with Maurice Broaddus for the second in our eight-episode mini-master-class on writing dialogue. This time around we're addressi…
17.28: Keys to Writing Dialog [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 18:01
Your Hosts: Dan Wells, Mary Robinette Kowal, Maurice Broaddus, and Howard Tayler Writer, teacher, and community organizer Maurice Broaddus joins us for an eight-episode mini-master-class on writing dialogue. In this epis…
17.27: Ensembles Behind the Scenes [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 19:56
Your Hosts: Dan Wells, Zoraida Cordova, Kaela Rivera, and Howard Tayler In this, our final "ensemble masterclass" episode, we discuss the nuts-and-bolts, the tips and tricks, the tools of the trade. In short, we talk ver…
17.26: Hanging Separately [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 18:37
Your Hosts: Dan Wells, Zoraida Cordova, Kaela Rivera, and Howard Tayler Our episode title comes to us across two and a half centuries: "We must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.…
17.25: Archetypes, Ensembles, and Expectations [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:16
Your Hosts: Dan Wells, Zoraida Cordova, Kaela Rivera, and Howard Tayler We've talked about making every member of the ensemble meaningful. In this episode we're discussing who, in archetype terms, everybody is. How can a…