I am so excited to share this week's episode as each of these conversations was so much fun to record. Edan has been on the show before, but I wanted to have her back to talk about her love of writing difficult characters within the framework of her latest novel, Woman No. 17. Edan delights in creating tension by revealing her character's flaws for the reader's view and puts these characters in situations sure to highlight these flaws and bring them to a head. So many books create tension through plot and action, but the suspense in Edan's books is just as much about pushing flawed characters to their edge, all the while leaving us asking "Oh my god, what will they do now??"
Jim Butcher has written so many novels that I wouldn't be shocked to learn that he doesn't sleep at all. He admitted that he has trouble keeping track of the exact details of former books after having revised them numerous times, so he relies on his fanbase Wiki to keep track, a detail I found both charming and extremely practical. In addition, we dove into the beauty of throwing your characters into sticky situations and the necessity to write scenes so things go from bad to worse. This chat helped me feel much braver about putting my character into tough spots to see how she will navigate rocky territory.
I hope both these conversations inspire you to investigate the less savory corners of your story and take your books into riskier places. May we all send our characters down a dark alley, metaphorically, after taking both of these writers' advice!
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#156 : The Goal of a Book | Meg Wolitzer
#155 : The Hardest Book I Ever Wrote | Ruth Reichl
#154 : Finding Fresh Language + A New Publishing Model | Greta Solomon
#153 : Finding a Writing Group | Judy Reeves
#152: From Editor to Novelist | Anna Pitoniak
#151 : When Memoir Takes You By Surprise | Allison Pataki
#150 : The Glorious First Draft Mess | Chip Cheek
#149 : Cracking the Code of Anne Lister | Anne Choma
#148 : Putting Sexuality at the Center | Saskia Vogel
#147 : Trusting Your Editor | Martine Fournier Watson
#146 : Why We Need Writers Over 40 | Kusi Okamura
#145 : How to Disappear | Akiko Busch
#144 : Staying Motivated through Dark Places | Jacqueline Winspear
#143: Writing the Salt Path | Raynor Winn
#142: The Trial of Lizzie Borden | Cara Robertson
#141: Fiction Revolution & New Clone City | Mike Hembury
#140 : Breaking Through Writer's Block | Jasper Fforde
#139: Point of View | Christopher Castellani
#138: The Truth in Fiction | Lauren Wilkinson
#137: The Curse of Ambition (+Tarot!) | Theresa Reed
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