Writing Excuses is partnering with Maurice Broaddus and the Ray Bradbury Center to focus on the theme of learning to love your work. It's all about learning who you are, what stories you want to tell, and how to sustain both yourself and the work out in the world.

What if a character arc had a structure you could actually map? This week, our hosts break down the DREAM arc: denial, resistance, exploration, acceptance, and manifestation. writingexcuses.com/2...

SO excited to be partnering with Maurice Broaddus and the Ray Bradbury Center for our 2027 Writing Retreat! Join us in June of 2027 for classes, breakout sessions, 1x1s with instructors and so much more! Head over to our profile to register now!

Your life is probably weirder—and more useful to your writing—than you think. This week, our hosts explore how to turn lived experience into fiction, from borrowing sensory details and emotional reactions to reshaping real people and events. writingexcuses.com/2...

Registration now open for the Writing Excuses 2027 Workshop & Retreat! We are thrilled this year to partner with Maurice Broaddus and the Ray Bradbury Center to focus on the theme of learning to love your work.

Register now – Writing Excuses Workshop & Retreat: Do What You Love & Love What You Do – Bottleworks Hotel

Writing Excuses Workshop & Retreat: Do What You Love & Love What You Do – Bottleworks Hotel, Thu Jun 10, 2027 - Wed Jun 16, 2027 - A place for writers to learn, connect, and grow. Step away from the daily grind and immerse yourself in a writing workshop and retreat at the historic Bottleworks Hotel in Indianapolis. During this event, you’ll hone your craft, connect with f...

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On Episode 38, we’re celebrating Erin’s birthday by talking about a topic of her choice. Which means we’re flipping “tools, not rules” its head. writingexcuses.com/2...

Join us tomorrow, on September 22nd, for a Q&A with Mary Robinette Kowal on Zoom via our Patreon. Free trial available for our Q&A tier!

SAVE THE DATES! Join our newsletter to be notified when tickets go on sale for Writing Excuses 2027 Workshop & Retreat in collaboration with Maurice Broaddus & The Ray Bradbury Center in Indianapolis! writingexcuses.com/r...

Who's coming to Worldcon? We are and we're excited to see you all there too! Here's where to find the hosts, information about our suite party and more!

Writing Excuses at Worldcon (LAcon V)

We’re going to Worldcon and hosting a party! We will also be hosting a live podcast panel that you should definitely attend (it will also be streamed live and recorded!) Each host should have badge ribbons and stickers for you to grab at either our party or one of their…

writingexcuses.com

Writing Excuses is going to Worldcon again! AND we're having a party! Head to the link below for all our events, the panels the hosts will be on and a sign up link to stay in the know about our official con suite party. writingexcuses.com/w...

How close is your reader to the story? Should they be closer? Today, our hosts get nerdy about narrative distance: the space between reader, narrator, character, and world. We talk POV, sensory detail, and familiarity—and how each can zoom a reader in or pull them back. writingexcuses.com/2...

Who's coming to Worldcon? We are and we're excited to see you all there too! Here's where to find the hosts, information about our suite party and more!

Writing Excuses at Worldcon (LAcon V)

We’re going to Worldcon and hosting a party! We will also be hosting a live podcast panel that you should definitely attend (it will also be streamed live and recorded!) Each host should have badge ribbons and stickers for you to grab at either our party or one of their…

writingexcuses.com

Writing Excuses is going to Worldcon again! AND we're having a party! Head to the link below for all our events, the panels the hosts will be on and a sign up link to stay in the know about our official con suite party. writingexcuses.com/w...

A story doesn’t always need the same tools from beginning to end. In this episode, we talk about recognizing when it’s time to shift gears—and how to make those changes feel intentional rather than abrupt. writingexcuses.com/2...

There never seems to be enough time to write—but is time really the problem? Our hosts explore the reality of working within limited hours, changing life circumstances, and competing priorities. writingexcuses.com/2...

Who's coming to Worldcon? We are and we're excited to see you all there too! Here's where to find the hosts, information about our suite party and more!

Writing Excuses at Worldcon (LAcon V)

We’re going to Worldcon and hosting a party! We will also be hosting a live podcast panel that you should definitely attend (it will also be streamed live and recorded!) Each host should have badge ribbons and stickers for you to grab at either our party or one of their…

writingexcuses.com

Today we are joined by guest Margaret Dunlap as we attempt to answer: why Save the Cat is such an influential story structure and why so many writers have strong opinions about it. writingexcuses.com/2...

Headed to Gen Con this year? Event Registration is open and there are plenty of opportunities to see the hosts of Writing Excuses! See all of them at once at our Podcast Panel or at Network the Gathering and get some really cool swag.

A lot of times people want to know what the "ideal length" is for a chapter. Our hosts explore chapters as a pacing tool rather than a fixed unit of length. writingexcuses.com/2...

What makes a scene feel like a scene? This week, we unpack one of storytelling's most basic building blocks. Our hosts explore where scenes begin and end, how they differ from beats, and why framing and narrative purpose matter more than rigid definitions. writingexcuses.com/2...

How do you move readers from one scene to the next without losing momentum? Our hosts dig into different types of transitions—from scene breaks and interruptions to brief “through scenes” that bridge time and space. Listen on your favorite podcast app or head over to writingexcuses.com/2...

How can exposition be used as a pacing tool, and not just a way to convey information? We attempt to answer this question on today’s episode! Listen on your favorite podcast app or head over to writingexcuses.com/2...

Our hosts explore the many tools writers can use to control pacing. We discuss how cadence, transitions, tone, sentence structure, and white space can all speed up or slow down a reader’s experience. Listen on your favorite podcast app or head over to writingexcuses.com/2...

I'm recording episodes of @writingexcuses.bsky.social this week. It's exhilarating, and it's exhausting.

In this episode we explore how writers control their readers’ attention with the metaphor of a bouncing ball. We break down techniques for guiding focus on the page, including POV choice, selective description, rhythm, and where details appear within sentences and paragraphs. writingexcuses.com/2...

Authors, do you dread the moment when someone asks you to read your work out loud? If that's the case or you're looking to improve your skills, check out this latest video from Mary Robinette Kowal all about how to read your work out loud for an audience.

How to Read for an Audience

Tips and tricks for reading out loud and in front of an audience, from acclaimed audiobook narrator, Mary Robinette Kowal. Mary Robinette is a core cast member of the Hugo-winning podcast Writing Excuses and an audiobook narrator for authors such as T. Kingfisher, Seanan McGuire, Fonda Lee, Neal S

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Our latest episode is breaking down the 7-Point Plot Structure and we were joined by Dan Wells to deconstruct it. Head over to your favorite podcast app or our website to listen to the full episode. writingexcuses.com/2...

New episode just dropped! Let's deconstruct the 7-point plot structure together and see how the hosts learned something new. writingexcuses.com/c...

What Zone are You IN?

Headed to Gen Con this year? Event Registration is open and there are plenty of opportunities to see the hosts of Writing Excuses! See all of them at once at our Podcast Panel or at Network the Gathering and get some really cool swag.