Alone in A Room With Invisible People: Writing Fiction

We invite you to cozy on up to your listening devices for another two stories for our Halloween Special!  There are two stories that had been mistakenly left on the pumpkin carving table!  You can imagine how this has horrified me so! Just as with the two main episodes, these authors used Holly’s Free ‘How to Write Flash Fiction that Doesn’t Suck’ course, and submitted their Halloween-themed stories.   Beginners and pros alike have joined in to give you hours of tales of the macabre, scary, goofy, quirky, sad and funny!!  If this is the first one you've heard, go a check out parts one and two for there is a story for everyone - all in bite size, delectable chunks, just like your favorite pieces of Halloween candy! So carve out sometime on Hallowe'en to feast on candy & these stories! If you liked what you heard, you can find the Author List (alphabetical by story), links and music on the show notes at www.alonewithinvisiblepeople.com

We invite you to cozy on up to your listening devices for part two of our Halloween Special!  This spooky and spoopy, cute and morbid, heart-warming and heart-ripping extra EXTRA special episode of Alone in a Room with Invisible People is sure to have a story or two fitting your tastes... be they for sweets or gore!Writers and listeners of the podcast have once again given us some wonderful and entertaining stories to behold in our third and final annual holiday podcast!  Enough that you'll be getting one episode today and another on All Hallow's Eve itself!Using Holly’s Free ‘How to Write Flash Fiction that Doesn’t Suck’ course, our authors have submitted their Halloween-themed stories.  Beginners and pros alike have joined in to give you hours of tales of the macabre, scary, goofy, quirky, sad and funny!!There is a story for everyone, all in bite size, delectable chunks, just like your favorite pieces of Halloween candy! So carve out sometime on Hallowe'en to feast on candy & these stories!If you liked what you heard, you can find the Author List (alphabetical by story), links, music and sound attribution on our show notes at www.alonewithinvisiblepeople.com

We invite you to cozy on up to your listening devices for part one of our Halloween Special!  This spooky and spoopy, cute and morbid, heart-warming and heart-ripping extra EXTRA special episode of Alone in a Room with Invisible People is sure to have a story or two fitting your tastes... be they for sweets or gore!Writers and listeners of the podcast have once again given us some wonderful and entertaining stories to behold in our third and final annual holiday podcast!  Enough that you'll be getting one episode today and another on All Hallow's Eve itself!Using Holly’s Free ‘How to Write Flash Fiction that Doesn’t Suck’ course, our authors have submitted their Halloween-themed stories.  Beginners and pros alike have joined in to give you hours of tales of the macabre, scary, goofy, quirky, sad and funny!!There is a story for everyone, all in bite size, delectable chunks, just like your favorite pieces of Halloween candy! So carve out sometime on Hallowe'en to feast on candy & these stories!If you liked what you heard, you can find the Author List (alphabetical by story), links and music in our Show Notes at AloneWithInvisiblePeople.com

In this week's episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) are covering The Artifact.  We take on one way of creating this item, but we did something unique - we switched drawings!  So: Holly created something from my sketch and vice versa.  We go through many questions, building these artifacts and the stories (and worlds) they inhabit.If you want to play along,  download the worksheet FREE (no email required) from our website here!  You can also take and create your own artifact for fun - but we HIGHLY suggest making your own.Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing!If you want to share with us what you got, join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing!  No purchase or ownership of courses necessary!

In this week's episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) are taking on worldbuilding in a "lazy" way.  We'll cover six different genres in our spur-of-the-moment worlds and show you how simple - and FUN - worldbuilding can be!If you want to play along, pause after we give our basic start and write out how you would take the world and story along.  Come into the forums and share with us anything you came up with, either using our starts or just on your own!Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing!

In this week's episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) put each other in the hotseat while showing how to create character from scratch and with nothing but a situation to go on. We'll show what character is and is not while having fun.  If you want to play along, pause after we explain the situation and create your own character and their story! Show notes at AIARWIP.com. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing!

In this week's episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) cover a much, muchrequested topic: the Series Octopus Map!  We go through what it is and how to do it, using Holly's Longview Chronicles series map as an example as well as one I created - and left a few spots blank so listeners could see how we filled them in. Use your Octopus Map to write a series that WORKS from start to finish! Download your worksheet and Holly's Longview Chronicles Octopus Map (offered as a demo of how to do this) HERE:Free Octopus Map Worksheets Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! If you want to share with us what you got, join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing!  No purchase or ownership of courses necessary!

In this week's episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss the basics of worldbuilding for short fiction.  We'd love to help folks submitting to the Halloween Flash Fiction episodes and the three examples are flash fiction, but this is something that focuses on worldbuilding for all short fiction. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! If you want to share with us what you got, join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing!  No purchase or ownership of courses necessary! Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us! FREE COURSE: Write Flash Fiction that Doesn’t Suck 3rd Annual Halloween Episode Rules and Details

In this week's episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss the basics of culture for short fiction.  We'd love to help folks submitting to the Halloween Flash Fiction episodes, but this is something that focuses on culture for all short fiction. Want to submit a story to the Halloween episodes?  Read the rules here and send us your work! Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! If you want to share with us what you got, join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing!  No purchase or ownership of courses necessary! Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

In this week's episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss the basics of revision in general but with an eye towards helping folks who wish to submit to the Halloween Flash Fiction episodes. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) want to get you ready to write and submit to the Halloween Episode!  Holly goes through two examples of her Flash Fiction, we talk a bit about what a good flash fiction story needs and then we go through a couple of prompts which include a genre and a random word from Holly. If you want to share with us what you got, join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing!  No purchase or ownership of courses necessary! Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: How do you create a hero and villain that are perfectly at odds?   How can you create an antagonist that pushes the bounds of conflict for the main character?  How can you get the most out of these three important roles? In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle has created a workshop (no download this time) and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) go through it live!  After the questions are asked (this is a pause and jot down episode) we'll go over our answers.  What will you come up with? If you want to share with us what you got, join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing!  No purchase or ownership of courses necessary! Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction Questions!  Or more accurately, how we do things.   In this final AMA installment, Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) answer your writing questions!  How do you deal with a perfect idea in your head but the words just are not coming out right?  Do you get jealous of other writers and how does one deal with jealousy?   Can you talk about internalizing your process? And more! If you don’t hear yours answered – or you have one you didn’t submit - head on into the forums or email us at show@alonewithinvisiblepeople.com.  We might be done with the AMA but we still want to answer your writing questions. After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

Due to behind-the-scenes issues, today’s episode is the final installment of the Holly Lisle On Writing – Holly’s original 2006 podcast.  The last half was never edited and published, so this will be a treat for long-time Holly followers as well as new listeners. Holly covers all sorts of questions from listeners: how does age affect publication, how to create unique works, what "idea fiction" is and isn't, how to deal with an inner critic, how to get into depth on a character and what a conscience means and doesn't mean (and how to get really in depth about this because it doesn't mean a character is good just because he/she has a conscience) and more.  Lots more! The regular podcast will return next week (8-18-20). After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us.   Show notes can be found at alonewithinvisiblepeople.com Emails: show@alonewithinvisiblepeople.com and rebecca@alonewithinvisiblepeople.com   Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes!

In this third AMA installment, Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) answer your questions!  If you don’t hear yours answered – or you have one you didn’t submit head on into the forums or email us at show@alonewithinvisiblepeople.com   After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us.   Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

In this second AMA episode, Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) answer your questions!  If you don't hear yours answered - or you have one you didn't submit head on into the forums or email us at show@alonewithinvisiblepeople.com   After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us.   Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!  

In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) answer your questions!  If you don't hear yours answered - or you have one you didn't submit head on into the forums or email us at show@alonewithinvisiblepeople.com   Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing!   After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us.   Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Poetry has many uses! Poetry can be difficult - to write, to understand and to share with others. However it can also be so very useful to those who do not even publish the poems they've written! In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss how you can reap major benefits from writing in poetic prose without sharing word one!  So tune in as Holly shares her tips, tricks and poems and we talk a little about how you can become a better writer in any genre while working on poetry. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Whether you want to write a couple of scenes from an animal's perspective, a short story from only their point of view or an entire book or series about nothing but animals and their lives, this episode and worksheet (found here for free, no email required) is intended to help get into the mind of the animal you want discover more about and, of course, to share with your readers. In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss how writing animals is different from other characters, how to create enough of the backstory to fit whatever level of importance your character will have, what important points to focus on when doing the actual writing and more. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Being Naked and Proud Only you can truly see through your eyes... that is until you put them on the page through your characters.  And then everyone can see it.  For better or for worse - and sometimes both - you're revealed in ways even you were not aware of. Being naked on the page is being honest, is showing others who you are, why you believe the way you do, what you think is important and how you want the world to be.  In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss how to write true to yourself, why you'd want to put the best, worst, and ugliest parts of ourselves out there for the world to consume and what we as writers get out of it. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: We are such strange creatures.  We desire comfort and chaos, routine and inspiration.  In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss the importance of creating space in your life for your art.  We go into each of the three types of space in detail and why they're important.   If you're lucky enough to be able to do all three, they can only help in aiding in the building of your writing habit.  Consistent efforts to create and maintain your space will benefit you to creating the life you want to live. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Stories using both the Editor and the Muse! For three weeks we have been talking Sweet Spot Map.  From building a one, to building a world and then building your characters.  In the fourth and final installment, we go over how to use the map for story building. In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss how to take what you've written down on your map and to find key conflicts, mixing and matching over and over to fine-tune your story.  Using examples from both of our works and maps, we'll go over how to find the conflict in the parts you love (and hate) most. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

Becca is experiencing an internet outage. As soon as her provider gets her service back up, she'll get the podcast to you. Please hang with us. We have a really fun episode this week we think you'll love. Holly

How to Write Fiction: Build Characters using the Muse's input! Two weeks we went over building a Sweet Spot Map, last week we went over building a world.  This week we go over how to use the map for character building. In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss how to take what you've written down on your map and build the characters that will inhabit your worlds, using examples from both of our works. Anything on these maps can be used to build characters you've just created or enhance ones you've had around for a while.  We go into how much to include, how to look at different sections in more than an obvious way and drawing from your own life.  Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Build your Fictional World using the Muse's input! Last week we went over building a Sweet Spot Map.  This week we go over how to use the map for worldbuilding. In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss how to take what you've written down on your map and build the world from it, using examples from both of our works.  We'll show you how almost anything can be turned into a worldbuilding element, how to pick out the important parts and how to navigate your way through your muse's more incoherent ramblings. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: How to Unleash Your Muse and Get Creative, Unexpected and Motivating Ideas Our listeners have been asking for this episode since we first started referencing the Sweet Spot Maps.  We are now taking on a four-parter on the topic with personal examples of how we use it in our work.   What is a Sweet Spot Map?  What is it used for?  How do I build one and why do I want to? In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss the technique and how Holly has altered the basic mind map to work on a deeper, more personal, more fiction-focused level.  This helps to develop ideas and cultivate a closer connection to your muse while also creating links you might not have found otherwise.  Learn over the next four weeks how powerful and multi-faceted this tool really is. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

In this episode, we're reading four scenes volunteered by four different writers, and demonstrating not just where the scenes work work and where they fall apart... BUT exactly how you can check your own scenes using the process we demonstrate. Need to know why your test readers aren't thrilled by a scene you thought was going to rock their worlds? Download your worksheet (free at alonewithinvisiblepeople.com, no email required), listen in, and follow along while you discover where things went wrong in your own problem scene... and fix each issue. After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes!

How to Write Fiction: Since we spoke so heavily last week on PRO-Indie and PRO-Series, Holly thought it was important to discuss some incredibly important series fundamentals - elements of your series that you do not want to mess up. What promises do you want to make?  What is the difference between what is important to you and what is important to the reader?  What will cause your reader to go from love to hate for your main character in the span of a series?  How do keep track of what your series core is - the thing you never, ever break? In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss how NOT to break your series in this first episode of series fundamentals.  Next week we'll do our official 100th episode (we don't count The Introductions as an episode) AMA (ask me anything). Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Which is best for building a readership and making a career from writing?  Series Fiction?  Or Stand Alone novels? The best choice may come down to personal preference for each writer but, as far as building a readership and making a living from your fiction, there is no competition.  In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss the question from a listener and Holly-student regarding what the best choice is for authors today.   We'll break down the best options, why they're the best options and what varieties exist within series fiction, as well as breakdown Holly's future marketing plan for her own series fiction - including the pros and cons.  Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: How to Define a Chapter in Your Written Works What goes in a chapter?  Is there a best way to use them?  Are there different ways to use pacing, scenes and chapters together?  What are my options? In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss the weirdness of The Chapter.  What is it?  What should it include?  What should you do - or not do?  Do I have to even include chapters in my work? Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction:  Why do people tell me all of my character’s sound the same and what can I do about it? Ah… character voice.  We’ve all been there.  Maybe you’ve written a few stories and published or shared them.  Or even the first draft of a novel.  Either way you’ve got trusted writer friends telling you your characters “sound the same” or are missing a distinct “voice”. What can you do? In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss Character Voice (not to be confused with your voice), what it is, what it is not and what you can do to work it into your work in a way that deepens and enriches the final product. What does your characters’ dialogue say about them without them spelling it out?  How can mixing it up create deeper, more interesting characters?  What is specialized dialogue and why do we have to be so damn careful with it?  How does being the weirdo eavesdropping on others help you out as a writer? After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Some people are naturally good at coming up with names for their projects. This episode is not for them, but if they'd like to drop into our podcast forums and help out, we'd love to hear their take on this! For the writers out there who struggle to come up with titles that get the book into a reader's hands but also evoke an almost magical desire to read the subject matter, we hear you and we're going to do our best to discuss the subject matter today!   In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss titles, how to dig deep to create ones that fit, the importance of maintaining objectivity on what you've created and talk about a few examples here and there. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say, your own opinions or helpful tips?  Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: The Internal Conflict.  This can be either the driving force of an entire series... or the doom of your book (and anywhere in between, but that's less dramatic). In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss a question posed by a listener regarding internal conflicts, common problems with how they're written and how to do them justice while driving the plot ever onward! Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: What is Process and can I change it?  How does Process effect my writing? Have you been struggling with writer's block?  Maybe you've got a ton of Hard Drive Zombies and you just can't seem to finish anything.  Or maybe you've been writing a long time, have a decent amount of established work... and now what you've always done is failing you. You're not alone. So many writers have writers have run up against the agony that slams you full body into a brick wall when your process suddenly just stops working.  Some writers don't know what process is in general, much less can define their own.   In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss several different processes she has worked through when creating several different works of fiction including different genres and a collaboration.  So listen and then jump into the forums to let us know: What is YOUR process?  Has it changed?  Has it ever failed or is it staying strong?  What do you do: cling to process and force it to the end?  Or drop it at even the hint of Muse Resistance? In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Who doesn't worry at some point that they're going to bomb with their fiction? Many writers put off publishing, revising or even creating for fear of a lack of skill.   If you're a non-linear writer with scattered scenes, how do you know if you technically have a first draft?   Should I change a process I love if I feel it's not getting results I think I am supposed to be getting? In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss several questions emailed to us by two writers who feel their issues were not common enough to warrant a post in the podcast forums - but these are very, very common issues!  Let's get to working on some solutions together. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Listener's Questions! How can I know if the writing is boring to just me as the writer or to everyone?  How do you write flashbacks, dreams, and premonitions well and are they necessary for your main character to gain information when you're limited by point of view?  How do you avoid an info dump when the character has no information but needs it to figure everything out? In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss all of these questions in depth.  If you feel you're still lost, please come into the forums and let us know! Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction Technical difficulties have left us in a bit of a lurch, but we're not leaving you without content.  In today's episode we are republishing more of the much-requested Holly Lisle On Writing - the episodes 4 and 5 from Holly's original 2006 podcast. In this blast from the past Holly answers questions from listeners and readers covering collaborations, world building, languages, themes and more.  We'll have updated links on anything possible in the show notes at AloneWithInvisiblePeople.com The regular podcast will return next week (3-17-20). After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes!

How to Write Fiction: With so many ideas, how do I know which ones are best? If you're stuck in overwhelm on a current novel or story, surrounded by the ideas coming at you from everywhere, this episode addresses just that.  When we're writing fiction, ideas flood in.  The more you write, the more ideas you get.  So how in the world can you tell the difference between a good idea that supports your work and a bad one that derails it?  In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss the overabundance of ideas, what to do with them, how to tell if they're good for a current work or not, and how to maintain your focus on the current story. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Story Ideas VS Fiction Length Two common scenarios, each is one side of the same coin: 1. you're writing a short story that won't end or 2. you've run out of steam with your current novel.  The short story is too involved, while the novel isn't involved enough. So how can you tell whether or not your story matches the length of the work you want to write?  In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss just this question, providing you with a few examples (real and imagined) as well as questions to ask yourself if you find you're running into this very familiar problem. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Example of How to Revise Man... revision.  Whew.  'Nuff said, am I right? Revision can feel like you're stumbling around in a room the size of a football stadium, one with booby-traps and sharp objects, big, hard furniture - and you're blindfolded.  Did I mention you're also trying to find a particular object in this quest? In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss what revision is (and what it is not - hint, editing) and we'll break it down into very basic steps.  We'll use flash fiction examples written especially for this episode.  You'll hear the first drafts, the revised but still rough versions and listen as we try and help each other out with our stories.  If you work on this yourself, please share your work in the forums! Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!    

How to Write Fiction: How to Write Holiday Centric Fiction! Have you ever wanted to write a story surrounding an upcoming holiday, but feel locked into certain tropes?  Have you ever struggled to put your own spin on a piece of work you want to write for a specific holiday?  Maybe you want to create a new take on the celebration or focus the darker side of any number of these "special" days. In this episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) discuss how much fun writing holiday-based fiction can be, how to go about it in an easy and orderly way and how to find what matters to you in each and every holiday. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: How to Beat Burn Out Most everyone has - or will - face burn out.  You're tired of even looking at the work you've been chipping away at.  You want to go hide in a corner or maybe you just push yourself harder at this big, unmovable force.  Either way you want it done and done yesterday. But burn out isn't what you think it is.  This is a signal from the Right Brain Muse and/or Left Brain Inner Critic that all is not well that should be.   In this episode Author and Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) help to show how to recognize burn out, where we as writers need to ask questions and how burn out can actually be a key to making your work better and more you than it was before.  Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Working with a Theme in your fiction and characters! Most writers at one point in their lives struggle with theme.  What is theme?  How do I incorporate it into my story?  How do I tie that in with my characters in actions and thought?  How do I make sure my point comes across?  Can I show different parts of the theme without seeming incoherent? In today's episode Author and Fiction Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) cover all of this with an example that Holly comes up with and builds upon live. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: What is Telegraphing in Fiction and What are the What is Telegraphing and the Truth About Writers' Groups What the heck is telegraphing?  And should I join a Writer's Group?  How do I choose one?  What are things to look for?  What are red flags to watch out for?  How can I contribute to one? This week Author and Writing Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) answer two questions from our listeners.  We've got more coming and very soon, but if you've got a question you want to send to us privately you can either respond to the weekly email (if you're signed up for the episode notifications) or email us at show@alonewithinvisiblepeople.com. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: How to Know if You're Struggling for Good Reason or If Your Book is Killing Your Joy. It's not always a flaw in your character or a lack of self-disipline - sometimes it's just the story.  So then the question becomes: How Can You Tell the Difference? Author and Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) explain the method of looking deep into both yourself and your writing to find the cause of your struggles.  With real life examples we'll show you the difference between the thing we all eventually come to know as truth - WRITING is actually HARD - and the thing many of us might face more than once in our lives - Writing THIS THING is WRONG for me. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Do you have issues with keeping the focus on your fiction?  Maybe you're overwhelmed with all you have to get done?  Or is the inconsistency of your schedule (or lack thereof) getting in the way? If you're suffering from any kind of attention issues, we understand!  In this episode, Author and Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) cover different issues writers face when it comes to putting words on paper and getting work done.  There are  a million things vying for your attention at any point in time - let's focus on the ones that point us in the direction of our dreams. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Writing Goals and Resolutions (or UNresolutions to Holly) and How To Set Them! If you have always wanted to: write and finish that novel in your head, self-pub a bunch of your short stories, finally finish the one big revision that is driving you nuts and submit the damn thing, get a chapbook of poetry out...   Whatever your writing goals, we've got you covered in how to set them, how to work on achieving them - and we've also set up a support system! Author and Teacher Holly Lisle goes over her plan for the year, and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) come up with different examples to have Holly walk me through.  We'll show how to set achievable goals, how to track them, and where to find support all year long as you attempt to keep focused.   The year 2020 is going to bring personal upheavals as every year always does.  It's not going to take it easy on you just because you want to finally make this your year.  So let's set some goals, get clear on why we want to achieve them and what good they'll do!  Let's keep the focus on taking action on our dreams instead of letting them stay dreams.  Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: Take Your Obsessions and Spin Unique Tales to Tell! In this episode Author and Teacher Holly Lisle and I (host, Rebecca Galardo) break down how to create fiction out of the things in life you truly love or have an obsessive interest in.   We not only show you how to find ways to hone in on what you can write about passionately - we also show you how to combine loves and create unique twists and combinations to create a truly different perspective for your future works. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: How to Write the Best Ending... and Discover the Wrong Ones. If you're a writer odds are you have struggled with an ending or two.  Maybe you didn't have a clue how to end a work.  Or maybe you have something that just doesn't feel right.   Trying to "nail" an ending is hard work - even the best of writers can become frustrated when it comes to tying everything up and creating a resolution that both pulls together the threads of your story and satisfies.   So whether you're at a complete loss at the finish line or you just need a little help fine-tuning things during your revision, Author and Teacher Holly Lisle has got a few questions that might help you cross that finish line in first place. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: How to Build onto Existing Stories and Ideas with examples! Do you have an idea you love, but it's not really long enough for the word count you or a publisher wants?  Or did you start writing a novel to find you've only got the meat for a short story? Join Author and Teacher Holly Lisle and myself (host, Rebecca Galardo) as we both build from a single prompt.  Holly creates live while I built mine  the night before the recording the episode.  Holly creates three different ideas (a flash fiction storyline, a short fiction story line and what could be a novel or series storyline) while I take the same idea from the one prompt and add bits and pieces to it to create all three length storylines required. Added request: If possible, come up with your own work and share with us in the forums.  We love to see what you guys come up with. Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!

How to Write Fiction: How to get story ideas while building a Language and Culture! What can you create with ten sounds and three words? The in-depth start to an entire world! The same with creating a belief like like an every day item is Sentient and Evil! Join Author and Teacher, Holly Lisle, and her daughter (writer and host, Rebecca Galardo) as they spawn ideas that thrill them from just the tiniest of worldbuilding! Special Note: Never were the type to be interested in creating a language?  COOL!  I (Rebecca) was the same!  Please: give it a go anyway.  Try it out.  It won’t take long and the worst case scenario - you’ve completely a unique writing exercise you don’t have to ever do again and you maybe got a story idea out of it.  Your Muse (Right Brain) needs stimulation and the Inner Critic (left brain) is the one telling you "I don't do languages." or "That's not for me." and "You don't need them in your genre/writing/work." Join us in this week’s episode and if you have a question for us join us in the forums at HollysWritingClasses.com and get to typing! After the episode: Have something to say? A question to ask? Jump into the FREE forums at HollysWritingClasses.com (no purchase or ownership of courses necessary) and share with us. Share, rate and subscribe for weekly episodes! Good reviews help us find more writers like us!