Story Grid Podcast

If you had to pick one genre to master, what should it be? Shawn answers the question in this week's episode.

Tim finally nails his scene. What changed? And what is the right process for going from draft to a working scene? Click here to download Tim's scenes from this episode.

Shawn and Tim answer a few questions from listeners and then dive into more rewrites of Tim's scenes. Submit your questions on Twitter @storygrid. Download Tim's Scene 4 Rewrite.

How do you take scenes that don't work and rewrite them? Shawn and Tim walk through best practices and common pitfalls.

Shawn continues working through the Story Grid for Tim's beginning hook. Downloads for this episode: [Tim's Beginning Hook Scenes][1] [Shawn's Notes on Tim's Beginning Hook][2] [Story Grid Spreadsheet for Tim's Beginning Hook][3]

Tim has finished the first 11 scenes of his book -- the Beginning Hook -- and Shawn wades into his critique on where he did well and where he... didn't. Downloads for this episode: Tim's Beginning Hook Scenes Shawn's Notes on Tim's Beginning Hook Story Grid Spreadsheet for Tim's Beginning Hook

The 4 categories of non-fiction and how the Story Grid applies to them.

This week we talk with PhD candidate Andy Reagan who is one of the researchers behind the Hendonometer Shawn and Tim discussed a couple weeks ago. Andy shares where they are at with the research and they discuss the implications for writers in the future. Check out the Hedonometer.

What does it take to move from amateur to professional as a writer? Tim and Shawn discuss this in depth and share their experience.

New research shows there are only 6 stories that every book is based on. Shawn and Tim discuss the implications of this and how it applies to Tim's story. Data Mining Reveals the Six Basic Emotional Arcs of Storytelling Click here to download Tim's Scene Two.

A good developmental editor is mentoring an author through their book. That comes with some basic frustrations, especially when the editor is coaching a newbie like Tim. Shawn shares his views on this along with his new math equation... M + TEⁿ = IF. Click here to see Shawn's edits of Tim's first scene. For those using Word/Pages, you'll be able to see the exact edits he made. Click here to see Shawn's article Is "Good Enough" Good Enough?

How do you get the stakes and tone of your scene right? As Tim begins to understand how to write a better scene, he struggles with going to far. Shawn works with him on how to write a great opening scene that doesn't go too far. Here are the scenes Tim and Shawn discuss: Take One Take Two

Who drives the story? This is a harder question to answer than you think. Shawn and Tim dive deep in this question. Steven Pressfield's The Spine of the Story Shawn and Tim's Emails Tim's story outline he sent to Shawn to look over. Shawn's response. Tim sent Shawn his short story in the Tales from Pennsylvania anthology. Shawn's response.

In this three part series, Shawn and Tim discuss the ins and outs of the publishing industry. Learn how to work with your publisher and market your book. How to Pick the Perfect Book Title.

In this three part series, Shawn and Tim discuss the ins and outs of the publishing industry. Learn how to find an agent and sell your book to a major publisher. Click here to visit Publisher Marketplace.

In this three part series, Shawn and Tim discuss the ins and outs of the publishing industry. They share their backstory and answer the question, "Should I indie or traditionally publish my book?" Click here to see the Book Publishing Calculator.

Learn how to fight Resistance and launch your writing career with the amazing Steven Pressfield. Check out his new book No One Wants to Read Your Shit.

Learn how to fight Resistance and launch your writing career with the amazing Steven Pressfield. Check out his new book No One Wants to Read Your Shit.

Tim and Shawn work to nail down the specifics for the second draft. Narrative device is a big topic along with nailing down the big events in your story.

Is Shawn killing Tim's creativity? This episode starts with that question then moves into deep genre questions and how to use Internal and External genres to tell great stories.