All Episodes

#170. How To Pick Your Publishing Path With Nicole Meier

#169. 5 Tips To Help Neurodivergent Writers Finish Their Books

#168. Women's Fiction vs. Romance: What's The Difference?

#167. Why Marketing Matters From Day One With Lacy Lieffers

#166. Student Spotlight: How Jennifer Sold 5,000+ Copies of Her Debut Novel in 18 Months (Without a Big Social Media Following)

#165. How To Interpret Agent Rejections (& What To Do Next)

#164. Student Spotlight: Why She Ditched Her Agent And Self-Published Her Debut Novel With Stefanie Medrek

#163. How To Find & Work With A Book Cover Designer With Zoe Norvell

#162. Book Recs: 5 Books Every Aspiring Writer Needs To Read

#161. Scene Beats: What They Are & Why They Matter

#160. How Tim Grahl Wrote His Best Book Yet In 6 Months

#159. A Week in the Life: 7 Days Behind the Scenes with Savannah (September 2024)

#158. How To Strengthen Your Writing with the Power of Social Media With Lara Ferrari

#157. 10 Surprising Lessons From My First Book Launch

#156. Student Spotlight: 5 Lessons Learned from Notes to Novel (Season 4)

#155. 10 Things That Will NOT Make You A Better Writer

#154. Coaching Call: Critiquing Jac Sahlin's Query And First Five Pages

#153. Scene Analysis: Chapter 5 "Diagon Alley" From Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

#152. Three Act Structure Breakdown: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Bonus: The Global Story Structure of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

Bonus: How To Write Scenes Like Rowling (An Interview With Savannah Gilbo & Abigail K. Perry)

#151. How Rowling Built A World Ripe For Life Or Death Conflicts (An Interview With Savannah Gilbo & Abigail K. Perry)

Bonus: How Rowling Used Plot Catalysts to Keep Readers Engaged (A Sneak Peek From My Book!)

#150. How Rowling Created A Cast of Compelling Characters (An Interview With Savannah Gilbo & Abigail K. Perry)

Bonus: What Made Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone A Best Seller? (An Interview With Savannah Gilbo & Abigail K. Perry)

[SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT] My Book Is Available For Pre-Order!

#149. 5 Questions To Write Better Antagonists

#148. How To Use Universal Fantasy To Write Better Books (& Sell More Copies) With Theodora Taylor

#147. A Week in the Life: 7 Days Behind the Scenes with Savannah (June 2024)

#146. 6 Ways Mindfulness Can Make You A Happier & More Productive Writer With April Dávila

#145. How To Develop Your Character's Backstory

#144. Student Spotlight: How She Landed A Book Deal With Her Dream Publisher (With Savannah Carlisle)

#143. How To Pitch Podcasts With Michelle Glogovac

#142. How To Write A Query Letter That Get Requests

#141. How To Create Believable Monsters With Randy Ellefson

#140. First Chapter Analysis: Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

#139: 5 Multi POV Mistakes (And How To Avoid Them)

#138: How To Manage Your Creative Anxiety With Rhonda Douglas

#137: 5 Tips For Writing Better Fiction (Even If You're Just Starting Out)

#136: First Chapter Analysis: Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

#135: Mastering Point of View and Voice: Expert Tips From Gabriela Pereira Of DIY MFA

#134: How To Stop Procrastinating: 5 Productivity Tips For Writers

#133: A Week in the Life: 7 Days Behind the Scenes with Savannah (March 2024)

#132: First Chapter Analysis: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

#131: 5 Steps To Start Planning Your Book Series

#130: How to Craft Romantic Chemistry & Tension Between Characters

#129: Overcoming The Fear Of Marketing With Alexa Bigwarfe

#128: What Are Obligatory Scenes And Conventions?

#127: First Chapter Analysis: The Five People You Meet In Heaven by Mitch Albom

#126: Save The Cat! Troubleshooting Common Plot Problems With Jessica Brody

#125: Novel Writing Pitfalls: Don't Make These 5 Mistakes

#124: Student Spotlight: 5 Lessons Learned from Notes to Novel (Season 3)

#123: How To Overcome The 5 Types Of Imposter Syndrome

#122: Counting Down The Best Writing Tips From FWME In 2023

#121: 5 Takeaways From Coaching Writers in 2023

#120: First Chapter Analysis: Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

#119: Student Spotlight: How Fern Bernstein Wrote A Dual Timeline Novel Based On The Edies of Grey Gardens

#118: How To Find The Major Dramatic Question Of Your Story

#117: Exploring the World of Beta and Sensitivity Reading with Julie Taylor from The Spun Yarn

#116: First Chapter Analysis: Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

#115: Student Spotlight: How Anne Mortensen Went From Inspiration to Publication (& Indie Published Her Novels)

#114: 3 Common Dialogue Mistakes (And How To Fix Them)

#113: First Chapter Analysis: The Magicians by Lev Grossman

#112: 5 Questions Your Reader Shouldn't Have To Ask

#111: Student Spotlight: From Messy First Draft to Publishing His Debut Novel With Edward J. Cembal

#110: Is A Writing Course Really Worth it For Beginners?

#109: 5 Common Scene Issues (And How to Fix Them)

#108: Why Your Capacity For Zero is Crucial As A Writer

#107: Email List Building Essentials For Authors

#106: 5 Steps to Building Your Author Platform

#105: First Chapter Analysis: Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

#104: 10 Tips For Writing Better Dialogue

#103: Morality Genre Conventions

#102: 3 Common Interiority Mistakes (and How to Fix Them)

#101: First Chapter Analysis: Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

#100: A Week in the Life: 7 Days Behind the Scenes with Savannah (July 2023)

#99: 5 Mindset Tips to Help You Unlock Your Writing Potential

#98: How to Add Subplots to Your Novel

#97: First Chapter Analysis: A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

#96: 5 Worldbuilding Tips for Sci-Fi & Fantasy Writers

#95: How to Start Writing Your Science Fiction or Fantasy Novel

#94: How to Reveal Your Character’s Inner Life on the Page

#93: First Chapter Analysis: Legendborn by Tracy Deonn

#92: The 5 Functions of Dialogue in Your Story

#91: Student Spotlight: How She Went From First Draft to Landing Her Dream Agent with Jamie Varon

#90: How to Choose the Best Point of View for Your Story

#89: Student Spotlight: How She Used Short Stories to Hone Her Craft (and Publish Her Debut Novel) with Pauline Yates

#88: Perfectionism vs. Procrastination: What's REALLY Going On?

#87: First Chapter Analysis: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

#86: A Week in the Life: 7 Days Behind the Scenes with Savannah (February 2023)

#85: Student Spotlight: How She Overcame Her Fear of the Blank Page (and Indie Published Her Novel) with Jennifer Lauer

#84: The 6 Scenes Every Status Story Needs

Bonus: Ask Savannah (Listener Q&A)

#83: What Kind Of Editor Do You Need For Your Book?

#82: Show, Don't Tell: What This Advice Really Means

#81: First Chapter Analysis: Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover

#80: Student Spotlight: 5 Lessons Learned From Writing a First Draft

#79: 3 Things to Focus on if You’re a Brand New Writer

#78: Counting Down The Best Writing Tips From FWME In 2022

#77: 5 Takeaways from Coaching Writers in 2022