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Sometimes we want to put something in our stories, but we don’t know much about it. What’s the answer? Research! Whether it’s the specifics of knotwork on a Phoenician trade ship or the grand sweep of empires colliding, research is a vital skill for speculative … read more »
Three people with opinions recording a podcast, what a ridiculous notion! See what we did there? That’s called lampshading, or when a story deliberately draws your attention to some aspect of its production, usually a flaw. It’s often a great source of laughs, but is … read more »
An author’s voice is generally considered to be important; sometimes it’s even said to be the most important element of writing. But what is voice, exactly? Is it really that important? Does it change from book to book, and how is it different from character … read more »
Why settle for just one god when you can have a bunch of them? That’s right, this week we’re talking about pantheons, the divine clubhouses where a bunch of different deities hang out. We discuss how pantheons often work in mythology and then talk about … read more »
This intro was originally five paragraphs long, but that would have been way too much information, so I shortened it. Coincidentally, we’re talking about over-burdened stories. What makes a story over-burdened, you ask? Listen and we’ll explain! We talk about how stories get loaded down … read more »
Whether we call it the underworld, Hades, Hell, or some other name, fiction is full of the idea that there are other dimensions out there, and that they’re bad. At the very least, they’re the sort of places we avoid for as long as we … read more »
We’re not saying this podcast is about aliens, but it’s about aliens. Specifically, what makes aliens cool and how that is different when you’re talking about alien characters vs alien monsters. We go over options for making aliens feel unique and cool while also keeping … read more »
Spec fic takes us to amazing places, from deep space to the ancient past. But one place it rarely takes us is under water, so that’s what we’re talking about today. Dive in as we discuss the unique potential of underwater settings and why almost … read more »
Today our podcast is about stories that only do what you expect – PSYCHE, it’s really about fake outs! We bet you were really surprised by that sudden reveal, but was it a good thing? Did it add to this paragraph, or was it just … read more »
Everyone loves a good romance, yet storytellers aren’t that great at depicting them. There are a whole host of technical mistakes that can make a romance boring or annoying, and that’s before you even get into all the ways a romance can be creepy or … read more »