Writing Excuses

Brandon, Dan, and Howard discuss what an alpha reader is, is not, and where one might find... more

Your Hosts: Mary Robinette Kowal, Cassandra Khaw, Dan Wells, James L. Sutter, and Howard T... more

A great twist shouldn’t just surprise us—it should make us rethink everything that came be... more

This week, our hosts explore kishōtenketsu, an Asian story structure that appears under di... more

How close is your reader to the story? Should they be closer? Today, our hosts get nerdy a... more

A story doesn’t always need the same tools from beginning to end. In this episode, we talk... more

There never seems to be enough time to write—but is time really the problem? Our hosts exp... more

Save the Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need by Blake Snyder was publ... more

A lot of times people want to know what the "ideal length" is for a chapter. But c... more

What makes a scene feel like a scene? This week, we unpack one of storytelling's most ... more

How do you move readers from one scene to the next without losing momentum? Our hosts dig ... more

How can exposition be used as a pacing tool, and not just a way to convey information? We ... more

Our hosts explore the many tools writers can use to control pacing. We discuss how cadence... more

In this episode, our hosts explore how writers control their readers’ attention with the m... more

Dan Wells joins our conversation as we break down the seven-point plot structure! Using ex... more

In this episode, our hosts explore one of the most persistent barriers to writing: interru... more

*Time-Sensitive* Our final WXR cruise is almost sold out, grab your spot before June 4th, ... more

*Time-Sensitive* Our final WXR cruise is almost sold out, grab your spot before June 4th, ... more

Today, we explore why writers place information in the order they do. From broad-to-narrow... more

Today, our hosts discuss how to make every part of your story feel connected through causa... more

Today, we are joined by Margaret Dunlap as we dive into the three-act structure. This trad... more

Today we zoom out from moment-to-moment tension and look at how escalation and de-escalati... more

Today, we’re talking about tension and release as a kind of call and response, and how tha... more

Today, we’re talking about how to use contrast to make key moments in your story hit harde... more

Today, we’re talking about the “try-fail cycle” and why failure is essential to making the... more