In this episode, I share my full step-by-step process for writing a great fantasy novel. After publishing four fantasy books (and after helping many other writers finish their own stories), I've got a lot of share when it comes to the craft of storytelling. This podcast compresses the most critical lessons I've learned from 12 years of experience so far. Enjoy! Join my accountability & support community for fantasy writers: https://bit.ly/fantasy-guild Timestamps: 00:00:00 - Introduction 00:00:45 - 1: PICKING YOUR IDEA 00:01:23 - Finding inspiration 00:04:34 - Trope brainstorm 00:06:49 - Narrowing down to 1 idea 00:08:34 - A harsh truth 00:12:03 - Choosing your scope 00:14:03 - Originality doesn’t exist 00:15:28 - Ideas are cheap 00:16:32 - 2: OUTLINING 00:21:03 - The purpose of outlining 00:23:38 - The Hourglass Method 00:24:12 - Exploring the suburb 00:26:01 - Finding your core (premise, theme) 00:39:47 - Guiding principles document 00:41:00 - Building character arcs 00:51:36 - 9-Point Story Structure 01:17:01 - Final thoughts on structure 01:18:06 - 3: WRITING YOUR 1st DRAFT 01:19:36 - The goal of a 1st draft 01:24:10 - Building good writing habits 01:29:23 - Track your word counts 01:32:12 - Do this when you get stuck 01:40:00 - More tips to make the 1st draft easier 01:47:37 - 4: EDITING 01:50:25 - Make notes on your 1st draft 01:53:15 - The 2nd draft (big changes) 01:54:43 - 3rd draft (specific passes) 01:58:17 - Working with early readers 02:04:29 - 4th draft (incorporate reader comments) 02:05:19 - Hire a pro editor 02:08:17 - The final draft 02:10:54 - ‘Finishing’ a book Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
