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Wizards, Warriors & Words has come to an end, and we've gathered together for our final episode to wish you all farewell. Tears are shed, laughs are had, and, as expected, chaos ensues...

Thank you all for listening and supporting the show—without you, we wouldn't have gotten this far.

- Love, Jed, Mike, Dyrk and Rob.

BOOKS MENTIONED:

The Bladed Faith by David Dalglish: https://www.amazon.com/Bladed-Faith-Vagrant-Gods/dp/075955708X

The Shadow Saint by Gareth Hanrahan: https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Saint-Black-Iron-Legacy/dp/0356511537

The Crew by Sadir S. Samir: https://www.amazon.com/-/es/Sadir-S-Samir/dp/9198817310/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1668197124&sr=8-1

STAY UP-TO-DATE WITH US IN THE FUTURE:

Jed's newsletter: https://jedherne.com/newsletter

Rob's newsletter: https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/f8d5k3

Dyrk's newsletter: https://www.paternusbooks.com/newsletter

Mike's Twitter: https://twitter.com/FletcherMR

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Thanks to all of our patrons for funding the show, and an extra-special shoutout to our Legendary Wizard patrons, Taylon, Daniel and Luis!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jed is joined by Gabriel Bergmoser to discuss his latest thriller - an incredibly tense and suspenseful story about a trip through the Australian outback that goes horribly wrong.

To listen to 'The Hitchhiker' for FREE, sign up for a free, 30-day Audible trial here: https://www.audible.com/mk/freetrial

CHECK OUT JED'S PAST CONVERSATIONS WITH GABRIEL:

Wizards, Warriors & Words (2021): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/search/gabriel%20bergmoser

The Novel Analyst Podcast (2020): https://novelanalyst.com/2020/06/03/54

The Novel Analyst Podcast (2019): https://novelanalyst.com/2019/08/06/32

The Novel Analyst Podcast (2018): https://novelanalyst.com/2018/09/01/episode5/

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Thanks to all of our patrons for funding the show, and an extra-special shoutout to our Legendary Wizard patrons, Taylon, Daniel and Luis!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Visit our new Patreon page to support the show: bit.ly/w3podcast (and get sweet bonuses!)

When you join our Patreon page, you'll get cool bonuses in exchange for a monthly donation (like free books, ad-free episodes, priority Q & A access, and even editorial feedback on your own stories!). Don't worry - the show won't be disapearing behind a paywall. And it's not mandatory to support us on Patreon by any means. But if you can afford it and you enjoy what we do, it's the best way to help support us, which will let the show continue to grow :). Thanks for being awesome!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Support the show on patreon for exclusive bonuses! www.patreon.com/wizardswarriorswords . What is grimdark fantasy, and what do our hosts think about it? Our books are often labelled as 'grimdark' (especially Michael R. Fletcher's), so how do we respond to this?

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We discuss tropes vs. unique content, long book series, staying focussed while writing, and constructing a fellowship of characters. Enjoy! And if you have more questions for us, feel free to submit them at: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Get the complete Paternus trilogy audiobook for free with our special link: www.audibletrial.com/words . Welcome to the bad reviews game show, where we read bad reviews and try to guess whose books they're for!

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With 2020 in the rear-view mirror, the Wizards, Warriors, & Words crew discusses what we did this year, our proudest writing accomplishments, our most effective marketing tactics, the most useful writing lessons we learned, our favourite books read, and what's ahead for 2021. Thank you for making the first season of WWW such a fun ride - and here's to the new year ahead!

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is a short extract from a recent episode with Adrian Tchaikovsky (author of Children of Time, Shadows of the Apt, The Doors of Eden, and more). Listen to the full episode here: https://anchor.fm/wizardswarriorswords/episodes/1-21-Adrian-Tchaikovsky-Q--A-enpbpk. 

What did you think of this 'quick bites' edition of the podcast? Let Jed know by emailing wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com .

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We answer your listener questions, again! (Featuring Anna Smith Spark as a bonus guest). More questions? Email us at wizardswarriorswords(at)gmail.com

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Arthur C. Clark award-winning author Adrian Tchaikovsky (Children of Time, Shadows of the Apt, The Doors of Eden) answers a whole bunch of questions from our hosts!

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anna Smith Spark (author of grimdark fantasy book, The Court of Broken Knives) joins us to talk about her unique and celebrated prose styling, along with sharing her advice for improving your prose in general.

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Arthur C. Clark award-winning author Adrian Tchaikovsky (Children of Time, Shadows of the Apt, The Doors of Eden) joins us again to discuss how to create amazing fantasy and sci-fi worlds. Enjoy!

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Peter V. Brett joins us again to discuss how he went from writing on the New York subway to selling over 3.5 million books. This is part two of a two-part interview.

Peter is the bestselling author of the Demon Cycle series, which has sold more than three and a half million copies in 27 languages worldwide. His novels include The Warded Man (aka The Painted Man), The Desert Spear, The Daylight War, The Skull Throne, and The Core.

And, if you'd like to pick up the paperback of Peter's newest book, The Desert Prince, click here: https://www.amazon.com/Desert-Prince-Peter-V-Brett/dp/1984817108/

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Thanks to all of our patrons for funding the show, and an extra-special shoutout to our Legendary Wizard patrons, Taylon and Daniel!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For most of the genre's history, fantasy books were usually set in analogs of medieval England. Today's episode explores why it might be a good idea to write about different types of worlds, and how you can do it. Enjoy!

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Gareth Hanrahan: garhanrahan.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Arthur C. Clark award-winning author Adrian Tchaikovsky (Children of Time, Shadows of the Apt, The Doors of Eden) joins the Wizards, Warriors, and Words team to share his secrets for writing fantasy and sci-fi animals.

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Newsflash: there's a lot of words in a book. How are you going to write them all, while keeping your sanity? In today's episode, we talk routines, motivation, and word counts. Enjoy!

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Gareth Hanrahan: garhanrahan.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Books have words, and a lot of those are contained within dialogue. In today's episode, our hosts share some surprising tips for crafting engaging dialogue. Enjoy!

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we're talking all about gods and monsters ... and who better to join us than Gareth Hanrahan, author of The Gutter Prayer and The Shadow Saint! Gareth is well known for his innovative exploration of gods in fantasy. Our regular host, Dyrk Ashton, isn't too shabby either, thanks to his experience writing the epic urban fantasy Paternus trilogy, which sees hundreds of gods fight for supremacy in the modern day. Enjoy!

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Gareth Hanrahan: garhanrahan.com 

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Read The Thunder Heist here: http://bit.ly/ThunderHeist

In today's bonus episode, Jed Herne reads from his new pirate fantasy book, The Thunder Heist (Twisted Seas #1). 

"From the very beginning, it’s clear that you’re going to get a very clever plot, coupled with action-packed, non-stop pacing. The first chapter alone destroyed me in terms of how frantic it was, it felt like a finale and a blockbuster finale at that. If chapter one is a hook, then Herne’s writing style is the line, and together they just pull you through the story with relentless energy." - Bookends & Bagends

Blurb:

Meet Kef Cutmark. Pirate, monster-slayer, scourge of the Twisted Seas.

After a lifetime of running from her past, she’s returned to Zorith – a tangled jungle of a thousand boats, all lashed together to make a floating city-ship. Zorith is powered by a device that draws energy from lightning. Mysterious, unique, and locked in an unbreachable tower, it’s the envy of Zorith’s rivals.

And Kef? She’s here to steal it.

If she can take the device and cripple Zorith, maybe she’ll find justice for all the hurt the city has caused her. But with an unreliable thieving crew, hunters closing in, and her past bearing down upon her, failure looks more likely. And if she fails, she’ll never find peace again.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Grab your copy here: https://jedherne.com/thunder

Jed's pirate fantasy novel, The Thunder Heist, has just released! 

“The Thunder Heist is a high-octane adventure that starts off full throttle and doesn’t let up. As the title might suggest, this is a heist story, and one with a unique target: a lightning tower in the heart of a floating city. There are plenty of twists along the way to keep things interesting and the plot moves along at a good clip making for a fun, fast read.” – BookNest.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For many readers, magic is what draws them to fantasy. Our hosts share their unique perspectives on what it takes to craft interesting, unique, and suspensful magic systems that add a layer of richness to a fantasy world.

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we're joined by fantasy author RJ Barker (Author of The Bone Ships and The Wounded Kingdom series) for a Q&A about his writing process. Enjoy!

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Get the Black Stone Heart audiobook for free with a 30 day free audible trial: www.audibletrial.com/words (By using this link, it helps support the show - thank you!)

In this bonus episode, Michael R. Fletcher reads the opening of his grimdark fantasy story, Black Stone Heart. Enjoy!

Blurb:

A broken man, Khraen awakens alone and lost. His stone heart has been shattered, littered across the world. With each piece, he regains some small shard of the man he once was.

He follows the trail, fragment by fragment, remembering his terrible past.

There was a woman.

There was a sword.

There was an end to sorrow.

Khraen walks the obsidian path.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Peter V. Brett is the bestselling author of the Demon Cycle series, which has sold more than three and a half million copies in 27 languages worldwide. His novels include The Warded Man (aka The Painted Man), The Desert Spear, The Daylight War, The Skull Throne, and The Core.

This is part one of a two-part interview with fantasy author Peter V. Brett—stay tuned for part two next week!

And, if you'd like to pick up the paperback of Peter's newest book, The Desert Prince, click here: https://www.amazon.com/Desert-Prince-Peter-V-Brett/dp/1984817108/

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Thanks to all of our patrons for funding the show, and an extra-special shoutout to our Legendary Wizard patrons, Taylon and Daniel!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, we finally get around to answering your questions! We had a blast doing this, so we want to do more Q & A episodes. Send your questions to wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com and we'll try to answer them in a future episode!

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Blam! Whack! Pow! In today's episode, we're joined by fantasy author RJ Barker (Author of The Bone Ships and The Wounded Kingdom series) to talk about fight scenes. 

Featured book: War of Gods by Dyrk Ashton ->  https://amzn.to/33hPDjn

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Twitter:

RJ: @dedbutdrmng

Jed: @JedHerne

Dyrk: @UnDyrk

Rob: @RobOfTheHayes

Michael: @FletcherMR

Contact us:

Send us questions/thoughts by emailing wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com .  Jed reads and replies to every email. We might even answer your question on the show!

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we're joined by fantasy author RJ Barker (Author of The Bone Ships and The Wounded Kingdom series) to discuss how tense and POV can serve our stories. RJ will also be back next week for another episode! Enjoy!

Featured book: The Bone Ships by RJ Barker -> http://bit.ly/boneshipsRJ

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Twitter:

RJ: @dedbutdrmng

Jed: @JedHerne

Dyrk: @UnDyrk

Rob: @RobOfTheHayes

Michael: @FletcherMR

Contact us:

Send us questions/thoughts by emailing wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com .  Jed reads and replies to every email. We might even answer your question on the show!

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We give a lot of attention to our main characters, but what about the cast that surrounds them? In this episode, we discuss how to create three-dimensional, interesting secondary characters.

Featured book: Fires of the Dead by Jed Herne -> https://jedherne.com/firesofthedead/

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Contact us:

Send us questions/thoughts by emailing wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com .  Jed reads and replies to every email. We might even answer your question on the show!

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Flaws play a crucial role in developing good characters. In this episode, we discuss how we build flaws to make our characters more interesting, relatable, and complex. 

Featured book: Black Stone Heart by Michael R. Fletcher -> https://bit.ly/BlackStoneHeart

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Contact us:

Send us questions/thoughts by emailing wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com .  Jed reads and replies to every email. We might even answer your question on the show!

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You've finished your first draft. Now what? In this episode, we discuss how we take our books from 1st draft to final publication. 

Featured book: The Sword of Kaigen by M. L. Wang -> https://bit.ly/SwordOfKaigen

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Contact us:

Send us questions/thoughts by emailing wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com .  Jed reads and replies to every email. We might even answer your question on the show!

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fantasy authors are well-known for long series - but how do you write sequels that add to a story, rather than making it worse?

Contact us:

Send us questions/thoughts by emailing wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com .  Jed reads and replies to every email. We might even answer your question on the show!

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With more publishing options available to modern writers than ever before, which is the right choice for you? Our hosts discuss publishing, based on experiences in both the traditional and indie world. 

Featured book:

Across the Broken Stars by Jed Herne

Contact us:

Send us questions/thoughts by emailing wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com .  Jed reads and replies to every email. We might even answer your question on the show!

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Arguably the reason why a lot of us choose to write fantasy is the joy of constructing a brand new world. In this episode, our hosts discuss how to build more interesting worlds. 

Featured book:

Chasing Graves by Ben Galley

Contact us:

Send us questions/thoughts by emailing wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com .  Jed reads and replies to every email. We might even answer your question on the show!

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our hosts share their best tips for writing memorable characters.

Featured book:

War of Gods (Paternus # 3) by Dyrk Ashton. Read it here: https://bit.ly/warofgods

Contact us:

Send us questions/thoughts by emailing wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com .  Jed reads and replies to every email. We might even answer your question on the show!

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How can you hook readers, set up character arcs, and get your story off to a great start? That's what we discuss in this episode. 

Featured book:

Black Stone Heart by Michael R. Fletcher. Read it here: https://bit.ly/blackstoneheart

Contact us:

Send us questions/thoughts by emailing wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com .  Jed reads and replies to every email. We might even answer your question on the show!

For more about our hosts and our books:

Dyrk Ashton: paternusbooks.com

Michael R. Fletcher: michaelrfletcher.com

Rob J. Hayes: robjhayes.co.uk

Jed Herne: jedherne.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Prompted by a listener question, we share the tips we wish we’d known when we started writing our first book. If you’re a new writer, then this episode is for you!

Our top 8 tips:

1. Finish the book
2. Don’t expect to find your voice right away - and that’s okay
3. Try to enjoy the process - writer what you like
4. It’s okay if it’s hard
5. Think about point of view and tense - but it’s okay to mess up
6. There’s no one right way to write a book
7. Be consistent with your routine (but it’s okay to take a break)
8. Just keep writing

WORKS/VIDEOS MENTIONED:

How to Read Novels Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster: https://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Novels-Like-Professor-ebook/dp/B0015DWNR4

How to write your first book (on Jed's YouTube channel): https://youtu.be/amEfcgyUamw

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Thanks to all of our patrons for funding the show, and an extra-special shoutout to our Legendary Wizard patrons, Taylon and Daniel!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jed Herne (author of Siege of Treboulain) is joined by fellow Choice of Games authors Hannah Powell-Smith (Blood Money, Crème de la Crème) and Kate Heartfield (The Road to Canterbury, The Magician’s Workshop). Together, we discuss writing interactive fiction, our experiences of writing for Choice of Games, and more. Enjoy!

WORKS/GAMES MENTIONED:

Hannah's website: https://hannahpowellsmith.com/

Kate's website: https://kateheartfield.com/

Blood Money: https://www.choiceofgames.com/blood-money/

Crème de la Crème: https://www.choiceofgames.com/creme-de-la-creme/

The Road to Canterbury: https://www.choiceofgames.com/road-to-canterbury/

The Magician's Workshop: https://www.choiceofgames.com/magicians-workshop/

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Thanks to all of our patrons for funding the show, and an extra-special shoutout to our Legendary Wizard patrons, Taylon and Daniel!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a special crossover episode, we chat about podcasting in the sci-fi and fantasy space with SFF Addicts host Adrian M. Gibson (who is also the producer/editor of WWW). We dig into the origins of WWW and SFF Addicts, the ins and outs of running a podcast, ordering alcohol from Amazon UK, getting yourself a Jed and more. Of course, chaos ensues…

Watch or listen to SFF Addicts podcast here:

https://anchor.fm/sff-addicts/

https://www.youtube.com/c/FanFiAddict/

PODCASTS/BOOKS MENTIONED:

Novel Analyst podcast

Something Like an Autobiography by Akira Kurosawa

The Emerald Forest Diary by John Boorman

Just Tell Me When to Cry by Richard Fleischer

The Magic Lantern by Ingmar Bergman

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

SFF Addicts: https://twitter.com/SFFAddictsPod

Adrian M. Gibson: https://twitter.com/adrianmgibson

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Thanks to all of our patrons for funding the show, and an extra-special shoutout to our Legendary Wizard patrons, Taylon and Daniel!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mike Carey is a prolific comic book writer and graphic novelist. His work includes The Sandman spin-off series Lucifer, runs on Marvel’s X-Men and Fantastic Four series, and The Girl with All the Gifts, which he helped adapt into a movie.

BOOKS MENTIONED:

Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud

Reinventing Comics by Scott McCloud

Making Comics by Scott McCloud

My Faith in Frankie by Mike Carey

(NOTE: these are affiliate links—using them helps supports the show at no extra cost to you).

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Support Wizards, Warriors, & Words on Patreon for bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/wizardswarriorswords

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Thanks to all of our patrons for funding the show, and an extra-special shoutout to our Legendary Wizard patrons, Daniel Henderson and Taylon!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’re joined by comic book, screenwriter, and novelist extraordinaire Mike Carey (aka M. R. Carey)! Mike has an amazing backlist of work, including The Sandman spin-off series Lucifer, Marvel’s X-Men, and The Girl with All the Gifts, which he helped adapt into a movie. 

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: www.jedherne.com/editing

Support Wizards, Warriors, & Words on Patreon for bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/wizardswarriorswords

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Thanks to all of our patrons for funding the show, and an extra-special shoutout to our Legendary Wizard patrons, Daniel Henderson and Taylon!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We take a listener’s blurb and try to improve it.

NOTE: There were some issues with Rob's recording, so he drops out of the episode partway through.

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Support Wizards, Warriors, & Words on Patreon for bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/wizardswarriorswords

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Thanks to all of our patrons for funding the show, and an extra-special shoutout to our Legendary Wizard patron, Taylon!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We discuss our DOs and DON’Ts for writing multiple point of view characters in a novel.

Support Wizards, Warriors, & Words on Patreon for bonus episodes: https://www.patreon.com/wizardswarriorswords

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Thanks to all of our patrons for funding the show, and an extra-special shoutout to our Legendary Wizard patrons, Taylon, Daniel and Luis!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We answer a bunch of listener questions!

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Support Wizards, Warriors, & Words on Patreon for bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/wizardswarriorswords

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

Thanks to all of our patrons for funding the show, and an extra-special shoutout to our Legendary Wizard patron, Taylon!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Check out Aaron’s ‘50 Years of Text Games’ Kickstarter: bit.ly/50yearskickstarter

Jed is joined by Aaron A. Reed, who’s spent the last year writing in-depth research pieces on text adventure games from the last 50 years. He’s now put his learnings together into an awesome new book, which you can check out on Kickstarter.

We cover:

• Aaron’s Choice of Games story, Hollywood Visionary (which was a big inspiration for Jed).
• How to run a successful publishing Kickstarter to launch a book
• Writing lessons Aaron learned from the 50 games he covered in his new book
• And more!

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Support Wizards, Warriors, & Words on Patreon for bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/wizardswarriorswords

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Freelance editor Sarah Chorn (who has edited Michael Fletcher’s books) joins us to discuss the process of working with editors. We cover the 4 different types of editing passes, how much it costs to edit your book, and more.

NOTE: Apologies for some audio issues this week. We had difficulties with our guest's final recording.

To visit Sarah's website, head here: https://sarahchornedits.com/

For links to tools/software mentioned in this episode: https://wizardswarriorswords.com/tools

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Support Wizards, Warriors, & Words on Patreon for bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/wizardswarriorswords

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’re joined by freelance editor Sarah Chorn to discuss how we edit our books, and how our processes have evolved over time.

NOTE: Apologies for some audio issues this week. We had difficulties with our guest's final recording, especially her introduction, so we had to cut a bit of that out.

For links to tools/software mentioned in this episode: https://wizardswarriorswords.com/tools

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Support Wizards, Warriors, & Words on Patreon for bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/wizardswarriorswords

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We answer listener questions. If you have a question for us, send it through via our website (link below)!

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Support Wizards, Warriors, & Words on Patreon for bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/wizardswarriorswords

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Prompted by a patron question, we come up with a book concept on the spot. Chaos ensues…

If you're interested in having Jed Herne edit your book, he'd love to work with you. Apply for book editing here: https://www.jedherne.com/editing

Support Wizards, Warriors, & Words on Patreon for bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/wizardswarriorswords

Visit our website to send us a question (and see bonus content): https://wizardswarriorswords.com/

Email us: wizardswarriorswords@gmail.com

FOR MORE ABOUT OUR HOSTS & OUR BOOKS:

Jed Herne: http://jedherne.com/

Dyrk Ashton: http://paternusbooks.com/

Michael R. Fletcher: http://michaelrfletcher.com/

Rob J. Hayes: http://robjhayes.co.uk/

This episode was produced and edited by Adrian M. Gibson: https://amgibson.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.