#isbw

“Every character is the star of their own story.” ISBW 22.9 In this episode we talk about how different writers view characterization, from the ones who struggle to the ones who say the characters live in their heads. How do you manage all these wily beasts who want their stories told? I will also be appearing next week at Ravencon, and then the following week at Demicon! This post went live…

Content warning: since Spread Me is erotic horror, this episode has an explicit tag. I wrote it to have fun because I have written a lot of books that were not fun to write… -Sarah Gailey In this episode, we welcome Hugo winning author Sarah Gailey, author of Spread Me, as we explore the wild world of erotic horror. Sarah shares their journey of writing a novel that takes inspiration from John…

S20 Ep13: In Which Mur Attends Wole Talabi’s Creative Alchemy Transcript   “The primary driver of my sense of success is, ‘do I feel happy with what I’ve done?'” – Wole Talabi Mur chats with Wole Talabi, an engineer turned author (but still engineer). They discuss the Schrodinger’s Cat of publishing, the thrill of rewriting old stories for new audiences, and the joy of challenging the norms of…

“End of year self care, let’s do this” is brought to you in large part by by my supporters, who received an early, expanded version of this episode. You can join our Fabulist community with a pledge on Patreon or Substack! Some links below are affiliate links and I may earn some money at no cost to you when you use them.  ISBW S19 Ep31 Self care, yo. It’s dark, we’re at the end of a big project,…

“NaNoWriMo Prep with Valerie Valdes!” is brought to you in large part by by my supporters, who received an early, expanded version of this episode. You can join our Fabulist community with a pledge on Patreon or Substack! Some links below are affiliate links and I may earn some money at no cost to you when you use them.  ISBW S19 Ep29 NaNoWriMo starts tomorrow! Are you participating? Are you…

“Finishing Projects” is brought to you in large part by by my patrons, who received an early, expanded version of this episode. You can join our Fabulist community with a pledge on Patreon as low as $3 a month! Some links below are affiliate links and I may earn some money at no cost to you when you use them.  Follow the show on your favorite service! S19 Ep18 Recorded live, April 6, 2023 Good…

[ISBW] Why Are Habits So Hard?

“Why Are Habits So Hard?” is brought to you in large part by by my patrons , who received an early, expanded version of this episode. You can join our Fabulist community with a pledge as low as $3 a month! Everyone knows the way to write a book, or get in shape, is to do the thing (writing, exercising, abstaining from junk food, etc) every day, and boom, you’re done. So why is it so freaking…

ISBW #377: Brain Weasels

I know I know I know I always say these supportive things but sometimes it’s hard to listen to myself. Recently – without realizing it! – I’ve been suffering from “first draft must be perfect” syndrome, and had to step back and actually look at myself and what I was doing. First drafts don’t have to be perfect. Write it 100x on the board. Created at…