Can You Follow Directions?
During her interview with the Write the Book podcast, Jessica Hendry Nelson suggests a writing prompt inspired by the title of her memoir, If Only...
Prompt: The Devil Himself
During her interview with the Write the Book podcast, Nancy Hayes Kilgore suggests a prompt inspired by a scene in her novel Bitter Magic,...
Writing Excuses: What is the M.I.C.E. Quotient?
In this week's podcast, the Writing Excuses hosts start a conversation on the M.I.C.E. quotient: an organizational tool which categorizes story elements as Milieu, Inquiry,...
What Are You Leaving Undone?
During her interview with the Write the Book podcast, Carolyn Conger suggests a prompt inspired by her book, Through the Dark Forest: Transforming Your...
Is Your Novel Correctly Layered?
In this week's podcast, the Writing Excuses hosts compare novels to layer cakes: they deliver a lot of information, some on the surface and...
Write What is Not
During his interview with the Write the Book podcast, Tony Trigilio (Proof Something Happened) suggests this prompt adapted from John Daido Loori's The Zen of...
Blasphemy! When to Tell, Not Show
In this week's episode, the Writing Excuses hosts say that "Show, don't tell" is not universally applicable advice. In fact, they say it's often...
What We Talk About When We Don’t Talk About Love
During her interview with the Write the Book podcast, Caroline Leavitt (With or Without You), suggests this prompt: Write a page about two people who...
Killer First Pages
In this week's episode, the Writing Excuses hosts explore the first page of Lee Child's The Killing Floor, with the goal of learning how...
Call Me Ishmael
In this week's episode, the Writing Excuses hosts explore the first page of Herman Melville's Moby Dick, with the goal of learning how to...
