21.15: Using Contrast for Maximum Effect

21.15: Using Contrast for Maximum Effect

Author: Mary Robinette Kowal, DongWon Song, Erin Roberts, Dan Wells, and Howard Tayler April 12, 2026 Duration: 23:28

Today, we’re talking about how to use contrast to make key moments in your story hit harder, especially in the middle. We explore how pairing light and dark beats, shifting expectations, or placing opposing elements side by side can deepen the emotional impact and keep your readers engaged. Our conversation also looks at different kinds of contrast—from big structural turns to subtle tonal juxtapositions—and explores how managing distance, tension, and “loaded” moments can create that satisfying snap when a scene lands.

Homework:

Look at a pivotal moment in your story and add a beat before or after it that inverts some element of the original. This could mean changing the tone or mood, introducing a contrasting character, or shifting the setting in a way that highlights something new about the scene.

Locus Magazine Annual Fundraiser (ends April 14th, 2026)

Join us in supporting Locus Magazine– explore the campaign and fantastic rewards for donors online at locusmag.com/igg26.

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 Mary Robinette Kowal, Erin Roberts, and DongWon Song. 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
18.51: So You Wanna Play With Format? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:47
Are you interested in experimenting with different writing forms? Do you want to try an unusual or different way of writing? Well this week, we have an episode dedicated to non-traditional formats for writing. In this ep…
18.50: The Unreliable Narrator [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 26:40
All unreliable narrators aren't unreliable in the same way. How do they differ and how does that change the way that we write them? Erin shares her unified theory (look at the graphic below!) of unreliable narrators. Hom…
18.49: Giving Your Story A Voice [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:09
What does it mean if your writing is voice-y? How do you give your character a natural voice? We approach this question from the high-level perspective of craft, and the granular level of word choice and sentence structu…
18.48: NaNoWriMo Week 5 - Writing Endings [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 23:09
Welcome to the last week of National Novel Writing Month! It’s okay if you aren’t going to finish your book, and it’s also okay if you don’t have 50,000 words! You still did a thing—you created a story that didn’t exist…
18.47: NaNoWriMo Week 4 - Climaxes, or OH MY GOD NO [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 22:22
It’s week four of NaNoWriMo! Or, National Novel Writing Month, which happens every year for the month of November. This week, we are talking about how to write climaxes, how to write resolutions, and what exactly the thr…
18.46: NaNoWriMo Week 3 - Raising the Stakes [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:54
We are now three weeks into NaNoWriMo—where writers are attempting to write a novel in the month of November. For this episode, our writers talk about how to raise the stakes in your story. To make something feel more th…
18.45: NaNoWriMo Week 2 - Inciting Incident [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 22:28
Welcome to the first official week of National Novel Writing Month (or, almost the end of this week)! In this episode, we dive into how to write an inciting incident. What is an inciting incident? It is often the thing t…
18.44: NaNoWriMo Week 1- Getting Started [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 19:19
Welcome to National Novel Writing Month! For November, writers all over the world are trying to complete a novel, or write 50,000 words. In honor of NaNoWriMo, all of our November episodes are going to focus on writing a…
18.43: Worldbuilding in Miniature [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:07
If you're writing short fiction, how much of your world do you even need to figure out? Should you have it all written out? Can you just wing it? This week on the podcast, we discuss how much of a world to build for a sh…
18.42: Creating Magic Outside of a System [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 27:55
How do you write about magic? How do you build a world with magic and spells and potions? We dive into the rules and laws behind magical worlds. We often think of magic as being with a system, but what if it's not? What…