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,...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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!...

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...

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...

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...

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 [email protected]   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...

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 [email protected]   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...

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 [email protected]   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...

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...

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 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...

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...

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...

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...