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’ co…

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 podc…

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 podc…

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 wo…

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 woul…

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 y…

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 i…

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 …

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…

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…

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 genr…

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 (h…

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 de…

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, ho…

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 forum…

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 a…

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 HollysWrit…

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 wr…

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 …

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 ar…

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…

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, …

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. Hollyעל ידי Holly Lisle, Rebecca Galardo

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…

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 i…

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? H…

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?…

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 …

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 Ho…

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?…

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 …

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 …

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 proble…

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…

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 g…

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 infor…

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 co…

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 d…

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…

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 th…

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 s…

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. T…

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 seemi…

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 Ho…

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 meth…

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, Reb…

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 wri…

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 -…

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 wh…

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…