21.12: Breaking Down Barriers- Environment

21.12: Breaking Down Barriers- Environment

Author: Mary Robinette Kowal, DongWon Song, Erin Roberts, Dan Wells, and Howard Tayler March 22, 2026 Duration: 24:43
When writing feels harder than it should, the problem might not be the story— it might be the room. In this episode, our hosts explore how environment shapes process, from desks and chairs to light, sound, and visual clutter. We talk about running through your senses to troubleshoot what’s actually pulling your focus, and how small adjustments (a different chair, a cleaner desk, a bowl for your phone) can make a real difference. We also dig into noise (everything from industrial playlists to total silence), boundaries with the people you live with, and the fine line between solving a problem and avoiding the work. Sometimes the fastest way forward is figuring out what you’re running from. AND what you're running toward. Homework: Use your senses to make an inventory of your writing environment — sound, sight, smell, touch, even taste. Then identify which elements serve you and which ones create friction, and experiment with changing one barrier this week. Final WXR Cruise! Our final WXR cruise sets sail for Alaska in September 2026—get your tickets here! Credits: Your hosts for this episode were Erin Roberts, DongWon Song, and Mary Robinette Kowal. It was produced by Emma Reynolds, recorded by Marshall Carr, Jr., and mastered by Alex Jackson. Join Our Writing Community! Writing Retreats Newsletter Patreon Instagram Threads Bluesky TikTok YouTube Facebook Our Sponsors: * Check out HomeServe and use my code homeserve.com/excuses for a great deal: https://www.homeserve.com * Check out Talkiatry and use my code Talkiatry.com/WX for a great deal: https://www.talkiatry.com Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/writing-excuses2130/donations Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

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
16.26: Working With Teams [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 21:57
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette Kowal, Cassandra Khaw, Dan Wells, James L. Sutter, and Howard Tayler Our series of game writing episodes draws to a close with a discussion about working with teams. This last skill set, these…
16.25: Breaking Into Game Writing [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 28:01
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette Kowal, Cassandra Khaw, Dan Wells, James L. Sutter, and Howard Tayler So, after all this talk about designing games and writing for games, it's time to address the big question: how does one go…
16.24: Worldbuilding for Games [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 21:12
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette Kowal, Cassandra Khaw, Dan Wells, James L. Sutter, and Howard Tayler Worldbuilding is one of our favorite topics, and it's a domain in which game design and novel writing share a lot of territo…
BONUS EPISODE! 2021 WXR Early-Bird Announcement [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:40
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette, Dongwon, and Dan What's this bonus episode thing? Well, for starters IT'S URGENT, because as of this writing you have just ten more days to get the promised pricing for WXR at sea in 2021. Wha…
16.23: Rules and Mechanics [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:50
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette Kowal, Cassandra Khaw, Dan Wells, James L. Sutter, and Howard Tayler Let's talk about how players interact with the mechanics of the game, and what kinds of requirements those might put on the…
16.22: Scenes and Set Pieces [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 25:13
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette Kowal, Cassandra Khaw, Dan Wells, James L. Sutter, and Howard Tayler Let's have a discussion about scenes and set pieces, and let's lead with this: prose writers often create longer pieces usin…
16.21: Player Characters [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 18:48
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette Kowal, James L. Sutter, Dan Wells, Cassandra Khaw, and Howard Tayler So, you're the hero of your own story, and the hero gets choices, and in many ways directs the story. In our discussion of i…
16.20: Branching Narratives [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 19:52
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette Kowal, James L. Sutter, Dan Wells, Cassandra Khaw, and Howard Tayler How do you give players meaningful choices while still keeping the story within a reasonable set of boundaries? In this epis…
16.19: Intro to Roleplaying Games [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 27:18
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette Kowal, James L. Sutter, Dan Wells, Cassandra Khaw, and Howard Tayler For the next eight episodes we'll be talking about roleplaying games, and how that medium relates to writers, writing, caree…
16.18: Poetry and the Fantastic [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:57
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette, Dan, Amal, and Howard For the last seven episodes we've explored language, meaning, and their overlap with that thing we mean when we use language to say "poetry." In this episode we step back…