Writing Excuses

19.14: A Close Reading on Voice- Epistolary Storytelling Through Voice

What's epistolary writing? Well, it's writing through letters. But it's also a lot more than that. As we continue to dive into the concept of Voice, we want to explore the importance and power of t...

19.13: A Close Reading on Voice: Blue's Perspective - Confidence and Vulnerability

On our third episode diving into Voice through the novella “This Is How You Lose The Time War,” we begin to explore the different voices that make up the two main characters in the story. Last ...

19:12: A Close Reading on Voice - Red's Perspective - Muscular Prose

Today, we are doing a very close read of Red's opening narration and how Red’s voice communicates both character and world in an effective and efficient way. We read several sections alo...

March Q and A is tonight!

This month's Q&A is tonight at 8:00 PM Eastern Time. Your hosts this month are DongWon Song and Howard Tayler!

For this month we are using our new way to run the Q&As (and it was test...

19.11: A Close Reading on Voice- An Overview, and Why Time War

The book that became a New York Times Bestseller because of a tweet. Well, it won LOTS of awards when it came out, but it was rediscovered by a Twitter account with a large following. So-- let's ge...

If you didn't see this tweet when it first took the internet by storm, here's your second chance.

Go get a copy ASAP so you can join us in our episodes analyzing why it's

so

freaking

good

!!!

Our first episode talking about VOICE in "This is How You Lose...

19.10: Introducing Our Close Readings Series

You’ve probably seen us posting about our Close Reading Series, and in his episode, we finally officially introduce it!

For most of the remainder of 2024, we’ll be diving into five core e...

Here is our reading list for our Close Reading Series

Feel free to reference this! The date on the far right is the date of the first episode that will talk about the text! We recommend having it read by that date, as we will be talking about all part...

19.09: LIVE Recording - Rituals, Rights, and Traditions

Hosts Erin and DongWon are joined by Fonda Lee and Mahtab Narsimhan for a special episode about creating traditions in your fictional writing. In this episode, we'll explore some of the following:<...

Introducing Our Close Reading Series

Hello Writers & Listeners,

We have exciting news. In 18 days, we'll be starting our close reading series-- it's sort of like a book club for writers!

We'll introduce the...

19.08: NaNoWriMo Revision with Ali Fisher: Working with an Editor

An agent, an editor, and a writer walk into a Zoom room and record a podcast... but really... that's (part of) what this episode is!

First off, a reminder that your agent, your editor, and yo...

Q&A is Tonight

This month's Q&A is tonight at 8:00 PM Eastern Time. Your hosts this month are DongWon Song and Howard Tayler!

For this month we are using our new way to run the Q&As. If you are at t...

19.07: NaNoWriMo Revision with Ali Fisher: Intention

For our second episode in this three-part series on revising your NaNoWriMo novel—or any other larger project you have—we are diving into intentions with Tor editor Ali Fisher. We asked her how...

Revision Template

Here is the Revision Template that Mahtab Narsimhan mentions in episode 19:05.

19.06: NaNoWriMo Revision with Ali Fisher: Length

Ali Fisher, editor at Tor Books and member of the podcast Rude Tales of Magic, joins us for a three-part series on editing.

First up: length! How do you edit your work—whether it's...

19:05: LIVE Recording - Revisions with Mahtab Narsimhan

Some writers love revisions and some would rather scrub the toilet than revise their writing. On this episode, we are joined by author Mahtab Narsimhan, who many will recognize as a host from past ...

Revision Template

Here is the Revision Template that Mahtab Narsimhan mentions in episode 19:05. 

Scholarship deadline extended!

We are accepting scholarship applications for one more week! Please let all your writer friends know!! 

Writing Excuses Cruise Registration Now Open!

Embark from Los Angeles, CA while surrounded by fellow writers. You’ll visit Ensenada, Cabo San Lucas, and Mazatlán, all while learning how to bring yourself to the business side of publishing.<...

19.04: LIVE Recording - Pacing with Guest Fonda Lee

Pacing is one of the most subjective and difficult aspects of storytelling to get right. What is pacing? How do you know what the right pace is for a story, and what techniques can you use to speed...

Transcripts available!

Hello, writers and listeners,

We wanted to remind everyone that we have transcripts of our podcast available! These are hand-transcribed by one of our incredible listeners, Mike Barker, and p...

1 week left to apply for our scholarships!

This year, we're going to 🇲🇽 Mexico, 📷 Scotland, and Minnesota!📷 for our Writing Excuses retreats!

And they all have Writing Retreat Scholarships available!!

Applications ar...

19:03: Behind The Scenes with Our Producer and Recording Engineer

A few months ago, we were on a cruise ship in Alaska recording podcast episodes for 2024!

This live recording features a Q&A with cruise attendees, who were given the opportunity to ask q...

WX Discord Now Open!

The Writing Excuses discord is now open to anyone at the $5 tier and up! If you have your discord connected to your Patreon account then you should be automatically brought into the discord.

19:02: Q&A Episode with WX Core Cast

We have a LIVE podcast recording from September 2023, when we were hosting one of our writing retreats on a cruise ship in Alaska! (To learn about our next WX Retreats, check out: 2024-01-17 00:01:45 +0000 UTC View Post

Q&A is tonight! Testing new format!

This month's Q&A is tonight at 8:00 PM Eastern Time. Your hosts this month are Mary Robinette Kowal and Howard Tayler!

For this month we are testing out a new way to run the Q&As. If ...

Writing Excuses Discord Opening Soon!

We have created a Discord Community Server just for you! The official Writing Excuses server will open to Patreon members at the $5 level very soon. Simply connect your 2024-01-16 00:01:54 +0000 UTC View Post

Writing Excuses Retreat Scholarship Applications Close January 31, 2024

In 2024, Writing Excuses is heading to 🇲🇽 Mexico, 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Scotland, and a peaceful retreat in ✍🏽 Minnesota.

Want to join us?

Learn more at 2024-01-15 15:00:08 +0000 UTC View Post

Scholarship applications open NOW! (until January 31)

Hello writers and listeners!

Do you or someone you know want to work on your writing this year? Finally finish that manuscript? Learn how to find an agent or publisher? Fuel your creativity? ...

19:01: Interview with Abraham Verghese

In our first episode of 2024, we interviewed author and physician Abraham Verghese, who most recently published "The Covenan...