StoryADay Update Week 3, 2023

In which Julie updates you on her (imperfect) progress this May

In which I talk about perseverance during the StoryADay May Challenge

Video Version

Support the podcast

And finally a remainder that know you can support this podcast, if you would like to, which some people have asked me about and to do that, you go to glow.fm/storyaday, and you can make a one-time or recurring donation to keep the show going. And I really appreciate your support. That’s it from me this week. Happy writing. And I’ll see you again soon.

Transcript available here

Creative Rebellion – Episode 275

Join us as we talk about building a productive writing practice, no matter what…..

It’s an end-of-year episode with a twist (hint: don’t want to set New Year’s Resolutions? Join the rebellious crowd!)

Listen to the Audio

Full transcript here

Watch the video

Watch video with full transcript here

LINKS:

LINKS:

More Writing Help

StoryADay Short Story Framework

Download the free Short Story Framework and write today, not ‘some day’. Go from ‘idea’ to ‘the end’ without getting lost along the way!

StoryAWeek logo

Weekly writing prompts and lessons in your inbox, every Wednesday with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

StoryaDay 3-Day Challenge

Take the 3-Day Challenge and write three short stories this weekend!

Where’s My Butler? An Interview with Mary Robinette Kowal about the writing life – Part 2

Join us as we talk about building a productive writing practice, no matter what…..

My conversation continues, with award-winning author Mary Robinette Kowal as we discuss her new novel The Spare Man and the art of writing even in the face of challenges. Don’t miss it!

Listen to the Audio

Watch the video

Watch video with full transcript here

LINKS:

LINKS:

More Writing Help

StoryADay Short Story Framework

Download the free Short Story Framework and write today, not ‘some day’. Go from ‘idea’ to ‘the end’ without getting lost along the way!

StoryAWeek logo

Weekly writing prompts and lessons in your inbox, every Wednesday with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

StoryaDay 3-Day Challenge

Take the 3-Day Challenge and write three short stories this weekend!

An Interview with Mary Robinette Kowal about writing “The Spare Man” – Part 1

Join us as we talk about writing, cocktails and the art of writing what you don’t know…

Murder! Cocktails! Adorable service dogs!

Award-winning author Mary Robinette Kowal comes to the StoryADay podcast to discuss her new novel The Spare Man and the art of writing books you’d actually want to read. Don’t miss it!

Listen to the Audio

Watch the video

Watch video with full transcript here

LINKS:

LINKS
MaryRobinette.com
Mary Robinette Kowal’s Patreon
My Favorite Bit (10 best Fantine curses) 

More Writing Help

StoryADay Short Story Framework

Download the free Short Story Framework and write today, not ‘some day’. Go from ‘idea’ to ‘the end’ without getting lost along the way!

StoryAWeek logo

Weekly writing prompts and lessons in your inbox, every Wednesday with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

StoryaDay 3-Day Challenge

Take the 3-Day Challenge and write three short stories this weekend!

It’s Annual Review Time!

Don’t be afraid!

it’s that time of year when you’re supposed to make goals, but how to do it without getting bored, scared, disappointed or terrified? I have some thoughts…

Listen to the Audio

LINKS:

Never miss an episode: Subscribe to the Podcast

Link to this episode: https://storyaday.org/episode272

Join the discussion in the Serious Writers’ Accountability Group (SWAGr)

Need something to help you get closer to your purpose while setting or assessing your goals?

Get the Annual Planning Bundle

Read the accompanying article

Get writing prompts and lessons in your inbox every week with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

Annual Planning Bundle

Download the Annual Planning Bundle and always know your next, smallest step as you chase your writing goals.

Goals are Disruptive

This simple phrase changed everything for me, this week.

This was a massive (and kinda obvious) disruption to my thought processes this week. It goes deeper than simple fixes, but is much more likely to have a real impact on your writing life…and your quality of life. Enjoy!

Listen to the Audio

Watch the video

LINKS:

Never miss an episode: Subscribe to the Podcast

Link to this episode: https://storyaday.org/episode269

Join the discussion in the Serious Writers’ Accountability Group (SWAGr)

Need something to help you get closer to your purpose while setting or assessing your goals?

Get the Keep Writing Workbook

Get writing prompts and lessons in your inbox every week with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

Download the Keep Writing Workbook and always know your next, smallest step as you chase your writing goals.

What Do You Do in The Pause?

I wrote this story on the blog this week, but in this week’s podcast you get a more complete version, along with some thoughts about what to do if you’re In The Pause

I wrote this story on the blog this week, but in this week’s podcast you get a more complete version, along with some thoughts about what to do if you’re In The Pause

Listen to the Audio

Watch the video

LINKS:

Get the Keep Writing Workbook

Get writing prompts and lessons in your inbox every week with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

Download the Keep Writing Workbook and always know your next, smallest step as you chase your writing goals.

Preparing for NaNoWriMo?

Everyone you know seems to be preparing for National Novel Writers’ Month. Are you?

I’ve done a few challenges in my time (from StoryADay to NaNoWriMo) and I have some questions for you about how you’re preparing and what you’ll do instead-of/as-well-as outlining to sustain you through the month.

Listen to the Audio

Watch the video

LINKS:

Get the Creative Challenge Workbook

Save The Cat Writes A Novel, Jessica Brody

Dan Wells’s 7-Point Story Structure

Romancing The Beat, Gwen Hayes

(some of these links are Amazon affiliate links, but you should feel free to look for these books wherever you like to buy/borrow books.

Join the Critique Week Waitlist

Get writing prompts and lessons in your inbox every week with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

P. S. Want to read about That Time I Met NaNoWriMo Founder Chris Baty, and how, sometimes, doing a scary thing turns out to be wonderful?

Who Do You Listen To?

In which I tell you what my critique partners said about my latest pages…

Listen to the Audio

Watch now

Watch the video

It’s dangerous to allow rejections, acceptances, marketing budgets or any other business-related nonsense to determine your worth as a writer.

So who should you be listening to? In this episode, I have some thoughts…

LINKS
StoryADay Critique Week: https://stada.me/critique

LINKS:

QR Code for stada.me/critique

Join us in Critique Week

Take the 3-Day Challenge

Get writing prompts and lessons in your inbox every week with the StoryAWeek Newsletter

Soaring

How to soar in your writing life…and as a result, the WHOLE of your life.

Listen to the Audio

Watch now

What do you need to do to help you soar in your writing life? Join me for a Lesson in Creative Thermodynamics!

LINKS:

See the illustration and leave a comment on the Lesson In Creative Thermodynamics

Take the 3-Day Challenge

Out of Order

StoryADay September is coming! What’s it going to look like, this year? Tune in and find out.

PLUS I got some great advice this week on how to write a sequence that was stalling me. I’ll share it in this episode.

LINKS

Sept Challenge: https://storyaday.org/fun-size

StoryAWeek Newsletter: https://storyaday.org/storyaweek

Endlessly Inspired

This week we take a look at the publishing industry, your goals, and how you can become endlessly inspired and creative…

Learning about the realities of the publishing industry can free you to create your own definition of success (that may or may not include traditional publishers). Step 1 towards success is to imagine your vision. Step 2 is to turn up for your writing, something the new StoryAWeek newsletter can help with!

For industry perspective: Jane Friedman’s The Hot Sheet: https://hotsheetpub.com/

Leave a comment about this episode: https://storyaday/episode259

StoryAWeek Newsletter Logo

A Writer’s Vacation

This week I talk about the  creative boost I got from my recent travels, and how you can get a similar boost in your writing life, without even leaving home.

This week I talk about the  creative boost I got from my recent travels, and how you can get a similar boost in your writing life, without even leaving home.

I also tease some of the upcoming events at StoryADay as we look towards the change in seasons.

Want more?

Join me at the Writer Unboxed OnConference 2022: https://writerunboxed.com/2022/08/05/writer-unboxed-onconference-community-focus/

Get the StoryADay Short Story Framework: https://storyaday.org/framework

What is Your Legacy, As A Writer – Episode 253

Writers don’t just write for themselves, we write to be read, and with that we leave a legacy. in this episode I tell the story of two writers who left an impact on me, and invite you to think about your legacy

LINKS:
The 3-Day Challenge – https://storyaday.org/3dc
I, WRITER Waitlist – https://stada.me/iwriter

Music credits: Alan McPike, https://standardstrax.com/
Video credit: (Tony Conaway) Gary Zenker, Main Line Writers’ Group (full video https://youtu.be/1R0rqla54hk)

Something Has To Change

It’s not just your protagonist who must change!

In a story your protagonist faces the possibility of change before they can  solve the problem they face, win their true love, or defeat their enemy…in short, achieve their heart’s desire.

Funny thing is: as writers, we face that moment of decision too.

That’s what I’m talking about on the podcast this week.

What To Write Next

Part II of the StoryADay debrief process, which helps you assess what you learned during the challenge and what to focus on next. This process is useful after any big writing project or push, so don’t skip this episode, even if you didn’t take part in the StoryADay Challenge

::LINKS::

Comment on this episode here: https://storyaday.org/episode211

Get a printable version of these questions: https://storyaday.org/debrief

Last week’s episode: https://storyaday.org/episode210

Ready to write today, not “some day”?

StoryADay Has Begun. Let’s Talk About Perfectionism

Perfectionism is a creativity killer, and today and I’m talking about how StoryADay May can help you find a way forward.

LINKS

The Challenge: https://storyaday.org

The Challenge+ (even more support): https://members.storyaday.org/join-challenge-plus

Ready to write today, not “some day”?

196 – Narrative With Dr. Julie Helmrich

Why the story we tell ourselves is the most important we’ll ever tell…and the impact it has on our ability to manage our inner critic, imposter syndrome and to get our work done.

Dr. Julie Helmrich, psychologist and founder of Iron Psych specializes in change fluency and narrative, and is my guest this week, talking about psychological fitness for writers.

Links:

Dr. Helmrich’s site: https://juliehelmrich.com/

Writing prompt: https://storyaday.org/wow-customs

Ready to write today, not “some day”?

186 – Shiny Object Syndrome

Should you take part in NaNoWriMo this year? Should you attend that conference or take that class? Should you buy that new writing craft book?

Here’s a process to get you started figuring out whether or not you’re looking at a shiny object or a shiny opportunity.

Links:

Should You Sign Up for the NaNoWriMo Writing Challenge?

 

Ready to write today, not “some day”?

Write on Wednesday – Divided Languages

This week on the podcast, I interviewed Seumas MacDonald about the importance of culture in the development of language, and about ConLangs (or constructed languages) in fiction.

man and woman not communicating

The Prompt

Write a story where two or more characters come from different cultures and have difficulties understanding each other

Tips

Continue reading “Write on Wednesday – Divided Languages”

Episode 145 – Ending Strong

It can be hard to write endings (So many logistics! So tired from writing the whole story!), but the ending is the thing that sends your reader off into the world feeling good about your story…or deflated because you let them down.

Paisley 10k Finishing Line

In this week’s episode I talk about the importance of endings, and a powerful way for you to think about them so you can delight your reader.

Also:  I talk about StoryADay’s writing prompts for November and my impressions of the 2019 edition of the Best American Short Stories anthology, edited by Anthony Doerr.

LINKS: 

https://storyaday.org

Mirror Mirror Writing Prompt

Penny For The Guy Writing Prompt

A writing prompts about openings & endings

The StoryADay Reading Room series

Browse the archive of 590+ writing prompts

The Best of StoryADay for January 2017

Happy January!

This month’s theme has been ‘Practice’ (as in setting up and maintaining a healthy writing practice).

Here’s what you might have missed:

Podcast

The January 2017 episodes covered:

Stay Excited About Your Writing This Year

Continue reading “The Best of StoryADay for January 2017”

Anchoring Habits For A More Productive Writing Life

To create a regular writing habit (and stick to it), try scheduling it immediately after something you already do regularly…

There is a very helpful technique for creating new habits, known as ‘anchoring'[1. I didn’t make this up. It’s being studied by Dr BJ Fogg, a human-behaviour scientist at Stanford University].

Anchor In Sand image
Photo by: Plbmak

The idea is this: you don’t think about brushing your teeth before you go to bed at night, or showering when you get up. It’s just something you do.

If you want to create a new habit (and stick to it), try doing it immediately after something you already do by rote.

So, if you want to remember to floss your teeth, say you’ll do it after your morning tooth scrub. If you want to brainstorm ideas for stories, say you’ll do it as soon as you’ve poured your first cup of coffee.

Choosing Your Anchor

Your anchor has to be something that works for you, specifically. Continue reading “Anchoring Habits For A More Productive Writing Life”