Ask the Bards Podcast

In which the Bards address several questions from Twitter: * how long does it take for a writer to finish a book and turn it in to their editor? * is it better to do craft exercises or keep working on a book that might not be good enough? * if you’re writing in multiple genres, which one should you try to publish first? * what is the difference between a story’s plot and its conflict? P.S. Patrons at the 2Legit2Quit level, please email your monthly question to askthebards at gmail dot com this week so we can be sure to answer it on the Patrons Only podcast we record this Thursday! And, as always, we cover Things That Will Blow Your Mind. Things mentioned: The Kick-Ass Writer by Chuck Wendig Story Genius by Lisa Cron Mouse Guard by David Peterson (Kevin) Avatar: The Last Airbender (now on Netflix) (Kevin and Delilah both recommend!) Bryan Konietzko’s eBay auctions to benefit the Navajo Relief Fund for Covid (check his Instagram for current links) Void Merch (Delilah)  

In which the Bards address several questions from Twitter: * what was your agenting process like? * if you don’t have connections in the publishing industry, how do you get your book in print? * what books or authors make you say, “How do they do that?”   And, as always, we cover Things That Will Blow Your Mind. Got a question on writing, publishing, books, comics, or the best kind of cocktail or gluten free goodies to power your creativity? Ask us on Twitter with hashtag #askthebards! Things mentioned: places to find agents - AgentQuery and QueryTracker QueryShark 25 Steps to Being a Traditionally Published Author, a post by Delilah (NSFW for language) The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells - (Kevin) Fitbit Inspire HR and the Tim Ferriss Show podcast - (Delilah

In which the Bards—and special guest Chuck Wendig!!— address several questions from Twitter: * what are some tips for maximizing productivity? * do you have the story fully planned or plot as you go, and do you ever write a story around the ‘twist’? * if you’ve lost your muse, how do you get it back? * what is the impact of facial hair on writing? * how much description is too much? And, as always, Things That Blow Your Mind.

In which the Bards address several questions from Twitter: * how do you deal with word count? * how do you know when it's time to trunk a story, and how do you know when it's time to dust off a trunked story?   We continue our SUPER SPECIAL BONUS BOOK PLOTTING SEGMENT in which we start from nothing to build out a book idea to show you how pro authors flesh out the bones of a story. Week 1, we chose a genre, protagonist, and two secondary characters. Week 2, we talked about naming conventions for the book and created three more secondary characters. Week 3, we named the rest of our characters and discussed our antagonist. This week, we come up with the antagonist's name and backstory and talk about our chapter plotting map! And, as always, we cover Things That Will Blow Your Mind. Got a question on writing, publishing, books, comics, or the best kind of cocktail or gluten free goodies to power your creativity? Ask us on Twitter with hashtag #askthebards!   Things mentioned: Maple Grog - with his special recipe! (Kevin) Pine Nut Wild Horse Advocates on Facebook (Delilah)

In which the Bards address several questions from Twitter: * should I create an LLC as an author? * how do you measure daily progress when doing revisions? * do you have tips for making a character’s success feel earned? * what are your highs and lows as published authors?   We continue our SUPER SPECIAL BONUS BOOK PLOTTING SEGMENT in which we start from nothing to build out a book idea to show you how pro authors flesh out the bones of a story. Week 1, we chose a genre, protagonist, and two secondary characters. Week 2, we talked about naming conventions for the book and created three more secondary characters. This week, we name the rest of our characters and discuss our antagonist and how to decide if something is a standalone or part of a series. Next week: plotting! And, as always, we cover Things That Will Blow Your Mind. Got a question on writing, publishing, books, comics, or the best kind of cocktail or gluten free goodies to power your creativity? Ask us on Twitter with hashtag #askthebards!   Things mentioned: Cassandra Khaw’s books (Kevin): Nothing But Blackened Teeth (out next year) Hammers on Bone A Song for Quiet #CreatorsforComics, an auction to raise money for the Book Industry Charitable Foundation (Delilah) Cards Against Humanity (free!) Family Edition (Delilah)

In which the Bards address several quick questions from Twitter: * how much should I consider genre when coming up with a book idea? * how to write humor without letting your characters become one-dimensional joke machines? * should you get an agent first or try to sell directly to publishers, then get an agent? * what are the pros and cons of taking a pen name and how do you choose? * should you pitch a finished book or a partial/idea? We continue our SUPER SPECIAL BONUS BOOK PLOTTING SEGMENT in which we start from nothing to build out a book idea to show you how pro authors flesh out the bones of a story. Last week we chose a genre, protagonist, and two secondary characters. This week we discuss naming conventions for the book and create three more secondary characters together, taking into account how to deal with tropes and how to outfit a functional adventuring party. Next week we’ll work on the antagonist and plot! And, as always, we cover Things That Will Blow Your Mind. Got a question on writing, publishing, books, comics, or the best kind of cocktail or gluten free goodies to power your creativity? Ask us on Twitter with hashtag #askthebards!

In which the Bards address THREE questions from Twitter: * should I query during the pandemic? * what if there are already tons of books out there like the one I want to write? * how do I know if I’ve gone too far with description? With a SUPER SPECIAL BONUS SEGMENT in which we start from nothing to build out a book idea to show you how pro authors flesh out the bones of a story. We randomly choose a genre, roll a few dice, and end up with a book that… we both now want to write! This week, we nail down genre, protagonist, and two secondary characters, plus instigating factor and character arc. Next week, we’ll come up with 2-3 more characters plus an antagonist, so stay tuned! And, as always, we cover Things That Will Blow Your Mind. Got a question on writing, publishing, books, comics, or the best kind of cocktail or gluten free goodies to power your creativity? Ask us on Twitter with hashtag #askthebards! Things we mentioned: Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames Liquore Strega (Kevin) BookBub for buying e-books on sale (Delilah) Story Genius by Lisa Cron (Delilah) All of Us With Wings by Michelle Ruiz Keil (Delilah) Addendums: Per our first question, read this great article for the agent perspective on querying now.

In which the Bards address THREE questions from Twitter: * how do you plan your novel? * what are some frequent mistakes made by first time authors? * what common writing advice doesn't work for you?   And, as always, we cover Things That Will Blow Your Mind. Got a question on writing, publishing, books, comics, or the best kind of cocktail or gluten free goodies to power your creativity? Ask us on Twitter with hashtag #askthebards!   Things we mentioned: How to make masks out of bandanas (from Kevin) Simple Kneads gluten free bread delivery (from Delilah) Note: When Delilah said you could grow money trees in Animal Crossing, note that you must plant a money bag in the glowing hole left behind when you dug up the money bag. You can't just randomly plant money. :)  

CW: In question 3, frank discussion of writing with a history of rape and domestic violence. In which the Bards address THREE questions from Twitter: * how do you write a synopsis? * is it better to write a book with 1 point of view character or multiple points of view? * what do you do when your writing is dredging up uncomfortable emotions?   And, as always, we cover Things That Will Blow Your Mind. Got a question on writing, publishing, books, comics, or the best kind of cocktail or gluten free goodies to power your creativity? Ask us on Twitter with hashtag #askthebards!   Things we mentioned: Iroshizuku fountain pen inks (from Kevin) Misfits Market organic vegetable and fruit box delivery (get 25% off with my referral code, COOKWME-IK4JZM) (from Delilah)  

In which the Bards address two questions from Twitter: * how do you write through the hard times? * how do you deal with disappointment? With a bonus discussion on tips for working from home and maximizing your writing time. Things we mentioned: Seedlip distilled beverages (from Kevin) Aerogarden (from Delilah) A great plant for black thumbs: Pothos and Snake Plant That thing that Delilah balances on at her standing desk: Simply Fit Board FREE online yoga classes Delilah digs: DoYogaWithMe.com and Yoga with Adriene on YouTube And, as always, we cover Things That Will Blow Your Mind. Got a question on writing, publishing, books, comics, or the best kind of cocktail or gluten free goodies to power your creativity? Ask us on Twitter with hashtag #askthebards!

In which the Bards address two questions from Twitter: * how do you create deep, compelling characters? * how do you get to write Star Wars or other intellectual properties? We discuss ways to pin down your protagonist and secondary characters, tricks for figuring out backstories, weaving character in with worldbuilding, tropes, Maslow's hierarchy of needs, what brainstorming really is, how you get an invite to write Star Wars, skills you need to write any IP projects, and how Kevin and Delilah came to the world of IP. And, as always, we cover Things That Will Blow Your Mind. Got a question on writing, publishing, books, comics, or the best kind of cocktail or gluten free goodies to power your creativity? Ask us on Twitter with hashtag #askthebards!

In which the Bards address two questions from Twitter: * what happens after you get an agent? * how do I know what genre my book is? We discuss the agent relationship, submission to editors, what to do if you disagree on edits, how an auction works, what 'being orphaned is', how to figure out genre, why genre doesn't matter as much as you think it does, and more. And, as always, we cover Things That Will Blow Your Mind. Got a question on writing, publishing, books, comics, or the best kind of cocktail or gluten free goodies to power your creativity? Ask us on Twitter with hashtag #askthebards!

In which the Bards address two questions from Twitter: * how do you know when you're ready to submit? * what do you do if agents aren't responding to your query? We also touch on whether or not you need to pay for an editor before querying literary agents. And, as always, we cover Things That Will Blow Your Mind. Got a question on writing, publishing, books, comics, or the best kind of cocktail or gluten free goodies to power your creativity? Ask us on Twitter with hashtag #askthebards!

In which the Bards address two questions from Twitter: * how do you get ideas * how do you approach second drafts? And, as always, we cover Things That Will Blow Your Mind. Got a question on writing, publishing, books, comics, or the best kind of cocktail or gluten free goodies to power your creativity? Ask us on Twitter with hashtag #askthebards!