The Writers' Block Party Podcast

Episode 80: Setting up your files with Heather Maddix

Pru and Merry happen to know a file guru—someone who can show us how to set up the good habits that will avoid disaster (like, O GOD MY COMPUTER CRASHED and O GOD I DELETED THE WRONG SCENE and O GOD IT WAS BETTER FOUR EDITING ROUNDS AGO). Heather Maddix knows the simple tricks that will save you gallons of adrenaline, tears, and despair. Go, Heather, go!!

Episode 79: Writer’s Block with Christi Barth

Staring into your coffee mug each morning—deep breathing—the fragrance of bergamot or lavender—a simple neck roll. Author Christi Barth not only tells Merry and Pru HOW to break up writer’s block…she also explains WHY her solutions have such power. Dang, girl—that list is amazing!

Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert. 

For essential oils, Christi recommends Eden's Garden 

Christi and Merry both listen to Brain.FM when they're writing.

Burnout to Breakthrough by Eileen McDargh

Meditation Made Easy by Lorin Roche 

Atomic Habits by James Clear 

Episode 78: Theme

Did you loathe the concept of “theme” in high school English class? Oh, gaw—me, too! (said Pru.) Fortunately, Merry knows what she’s talking about, and she teases out the concept of theme so it actually makes sense and becomes a valuable tool for an author. Plus—bonus!—an aside on the concept of diversity and why you CAN write with diverse voices, as long as you follow a few key steps. Yay!

Episode 77: Tips and Tricks for Writing a Series

We go from the wildly ethereal (the mystical power of three throughout the known universe) to the hugely practical (why you want to write a trilogy and not a quartet—pay attention, now, this affects the bottom line!). Merry tells us about the sophisticated experienced author’s planning philosophy, and Pru blurts out what the novice does instead. Then we insist that both methods are just FINE.

Episode 76: Imagery

Is it all just metaphors and similes? Was your English teacher right? Do you have what it takes to create a rich description that tells you as much about the describer as about the object described? Where did I leave my red gloves?! So many questions. At least some of them are answered in this example-rich half hour!

For your edification: https://ansible.uk/misc/striking.html. A useful list of similes!

Episode 75: World Building

If you think world-building is only for sci-fi, listen up! The subtlety of world-building may be why your book feels flat or overly factual. If you want a slippery book that people just fall into, then consider the concept of world-building (in the wine world, it’s called “terroir”—the flavor of the earth). Merry and Pru wander through this topic, from JRR Tolkien to yesterday’s blog post. There’s a lot to consider here!

Episode 74: The Heroine’s Journey

The author of “The Heroine’s Journey”—noted author Gail Carriger—recently spoke to the Washington Romance Writers, and Merry and Pru are eager to discuss this fascinating theory. Don’t worry; it’s not all philosophy. We talk about The Lion King, Harry Potter, The Wizard of Oz, Star Wars…all the juicy stuff that makes philosophy so much more fun!

Want to get the scoop straight from the horse's mouth? Of course you do! Here are the links to all three remarkable books:

The Heroine's Journey: For Writers, Readers, and Fans of Pop Culture by Gail Carriger 

The Hero With A Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell 

The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers by Christopher Vogler 

Episode 73: An Interview with Cyber-Security Expert Chuck Hall

You thought you were safe. You’re an author—why do you need to care about all that Skynet internet security stuff? Oh, honey. Listen to a fascinating chat with cyber-security expert (and urban legend) Chuck Hall about the steps you really DO need to take to avoid some kind of embarrassing cyber-disaster. And we thought it was only going to be an explanation of Apple’s MMP (Mail Privacy Protection)!

Here's the PDF of Chuck's Powerpoint.

Meredith recommends the "website concierge" service provided by Nate Hoffelder. His website is https://natehoffelder.com/

Episode 72: An Interview with Meg Napier

Merry and Pru visit with a new romance author to hear her take on writing (pantsing or plotting? Meg’s answer is so cool!), publishing (and the annoyances of multiple platforms), and marketing (oy! What an endless rabbit hole to fall into!). There’s so much to learn—and all we want to do is write!

Episode 71: Writer Accountability Tools

The “frustrated writer” is all too common a type—but be in the now, man. Work with who you ARE, not who you want to be! Meredith shares all kinds of writing tools and jaw-dropping tips with Pru in this podcast to help the four major personality types find the motivation and success they crave as authors. Accountability—turn it into your greatest strength!