Let’s welcome back LA Bourgeois as she shares with us “On Perfectionism: Don’t Let Perfect Kill Your Project.” Enjoy! *** Perfectionism reminds me of James Bond, handsome, charming, fashion on point, cocktail in hand, whispering soft nothings into your neck as he slides the knife into your back. That’s not nice! While achieving greatness is a fine goal, perfectionism’s siren song can hinder your progress. It can prevent you from starting a project because you doubt your abilities. It can stop you from finishing because your work never seems “good enough.” It can drain the joy from your process ..read more

Storytelling to Convey Complex Ideas with Maggie Ostara (part 1) – How To Write the Future podcast, episode 97 “Human brains work. We live in story.” – Maggie Ostara  In this episode of How To Write the Future, podcast host Beth Barany talks with Amazon Bestselling author, Maggie Ostara. Together they discuss the concept of Feminine Sovereignty explored in Maggie’s book “Feminine Sovereignty: 8 Pillars for Regenerating Ourselves and Our World.” They delve into how the book engages readers, the writing process, and the importance of storytelling in conveying complex ideas to empower peop ..read more

Confidence and Purpose with Writing Coach, Kirsten McNeill – How To Write the Future podcast, episode 96 “I really wanna be able to help writers focus on themselves, be themselves, figure out what they wanna write, and create, a community and a, a library of fiction novels or any kind of novels that they’ve written and live life and have fun because we need more of that positivity and that sunshine in the world.” – Kirsten McNeill In “Confidence and Purpose with Writing Coach, Kristin McNeill,” How To Write the Future podcast host Beth Barany talks to confidence and writing lifestyle coach ..read more

Let’s welcome back monthly columnist Kelley Way as she shares with us “How Do I Gift My Copyright?” Enjoy! *** Making Copyright Bequests Let’s say you have written and published a book. Congratulations! Then you realize that you have to actually market the book to get people to buy it, and suddenly it’s not so fun anymore. Or perhaps you’re happy with the way things are now, but you want to give your copyright to someone down the road who you know will do the work to keep the income flowing. How do you do that? Gifting Your Copyright If you’re looking to give away your copyright down the road ..read more

Today we welcome a new guest writer to Writer’s Fun Zone, Andrew Zimba who is stopping by to chat with us about “Designing a Magic System: Magic in the Land of Ardalencor.” Enjoy! *** Writers and Worldbuilders, Looking for a guide on developing a magic system for your fantasy setting? I’m Andrew Zimba — author of the medieval fantasy novel In Times of War: A Tale of Ardalencor.  Often learning how someone else navigated the design process can be the best guide. I’ll take you through an overview of my decision-making journey and share some additional thoughts at the end. I hope you find th ..read more

Know Yourself (Part 4/4) – How To Write the Future podcast, episode 95 “Editing is challenging. So whenever you get lost, feel overwhelmed, confused, just in a state about the editing process, come back to your goal, motivation, conflict about why you write.“ “Know Yourself” In episode 95 of the How To Write the Future podcast, Beth Barany explains the importance of knowing why you write, focusing on your strengths, and trusting your creative process including why you study sentence structure and knowing which grammar rules to break when. (Part 4 of 4: Transform Your Novel with These 7 Editi ..read more

Let’s welcome back monthly columnist Catharine Bramkamp as she shares with us “Pre-Sales, the Reason Why.” Enjoy! *** Is there a good, compelling reason to create and manage a pre-sales campaign?   Yes. If your book has gathered enough pre-sold books, it shows your publisher that you have a fan base and more important – sales. Pre-sales numbers will spur your publisher (and this includes Amazon) to print books ahead of the official book launch date/publication date so when the book actually launches, there will be a very short wait time for your customers to receive delivery. Ah ha ..read more

Tropes for Fiction Writing with Jennifer Hilt – How To Write the Future podcast, episode 94 “I’m trying to be creative and original and all that and so I was like, thinking, yes, but how come we need to have these words in common in order to build a story?”  In this episode of How To Write the Future, podcast host Beth Barany talks with USA Today Bestselling author of The Trope Thesaurus, Horror Trope Thesaurus, and Trope Thesaurus Romance, Jennifer Hilt. Together they delve into the how, why, and when to use tropes, plus discuss using them to help build your story. Platforms The podcas ..read more

Let’s welcome back Laurel Osterkamp as she shares with us “Nine Steps to Crafting a Romantic Heroine.” Enjoy! *** Romance novels have hit the mainstream.  Just look at the shelves on your next bookstore visit. You’ll find a ton of illustrated covers in various shades of pastel, each with blurbs on the back promising a funny yet profound love story. These novels all have several things in common, like employing any number of romance novel tropes that readers expect. More importantly, they’ll feature a female protagonist that is both believable and compelling. There’s a lot to consider when ..read more

 Know Your Genre and Characters (Transform Your Novel with These 7 Editing Tips for Bestselling Success, part 3 of 4) – How To Write the Future podcast, episode 93 “Take the expectations of the genre and spin it. That’s our job, is to take what’s expected and play around and work through multiple iterations.” Know Your Genre and Characters. In episode 93 of the How To Write the Future podcast, host Beth Barany explains the importance of knowing your genre, shares about reader expectations and tropes, and about bringing in your uniqueness. There’s also a special invitation to work one-on ..read more