Write Guys episode 15 is here with a very special guest, Children’s Book Author Jonathan Marshall! We talk all things Childrens Books, healthy writing habits, and even bring a beloved segment… BACK FROM THE GRAVE (hint hint). As always we share the submissions from last episode’s challenge, including our own, and have a lot of laughs in the process. Stick around until the end for the new writing challenge! Enjoy!

In this episode, we get to meet Write Guys alumnus Anna-Marie Hamilton, a very familiar name on our show. This is our 4th graduate we will be interviewing for completing the Write Guys Curriculum (submitting 5 challenges in a row). We hear the first chapter of Micah's new story, "Nerd Squad," which he submitted to a fantasy writing challenge here. We read through all the personal limericks assigned in the Scott Orthey challenge last episode, and as always, the following challenge is announced at the very end! So please stick around and enjoy a very exciting episode 14!

Proses are dead Podcasts are new  Poetry is a topic  And poems don't always rhyme  Stop expecting everything to be perfect   Welcome to Write Guys episode 13! Our topic this time is *POETICS* and we'll be talking all about creative ways to use words and language - the characteristics that determine the most immediate differences between written text and art. We'll read poems from last challenge, as well as some of our favorite examples of poetry and poetics in music and culture. Listen to the first 2 Write Guys "curriculum" interviews, where we invite members of our community into the bar on-screen to talk about their experiences writing alongside our podcast. We'll be assigning another challenge for next time, and it's shorter than most - so stick around 'till the end to hear the guidelines for an easy win on your own journey to complete the Write Guy's curriculum (current due date: 6/8)!

Welcome back to WRITE GUYS episode 12. We've missed you! It was an extra long break between episodes and there is a LOT to catch up on so turn your VOLUME as LOUD as you can and click PLAY NOW and DO NOT PAUSE until you are finished watching. In this episode, Ben and Micah discuss the storytelling/scene building concept known as MISE EN SCÉNE - and philosophize over techniques for controlling mood, tone, and setting the stage. Ben brings in a new iumi single "new england" for a LYRICAL DEEP DIVE (click here to listen along!). This is the 3rd and final installment in our 3 part "Story Development" episode series! Meaning we will also be reading through entries to the 3rd and final installment in our TRILOGY challenge series. Then at the end we intro next week's challenge,  which is a completely new task that takes things in a very different direction. So basically like I was saying before PLAY it NOW. LOUD. I'm telling you to download this episode straight to your brain ASAP because there's just too much content and otherwise you'll never get through it and your happiness will turn to ash in your mouth when you realize that you didn't PLAY NOW fast enough or LOUD enough. ----------FIND US----------- website: writeguys.org  instagram: @writeguyspodcast  facebook: @writeguyspodcast  twitter: @WriteGuysPod  discord: https://discord.gg/arGp2hngUU --------CHAPTERS--------- Intro: 0:00:00 What's on your mind: 0:04:48 Ben talks new single: 0:27:53 Lyrical Deep Dive "new england": 0:37:29 Mise En Scène: 1:01:28 Set the Stage: 1:21:30 Challenge 12: 1:54:15 "The Golden Bough" by Anna: 1:57:45 "One's Tavern" by Jamison: 2:06:39 "Death Has Boundaries" by Bryan: 2:16:42 "Spell" (Untitled) by Shannon: 2:27:09 CONGRADUATIONS: 2:35:22 "Oracle" (Untitled) by Micah: 2:37:55 "The Magician's Secret" by Ben: 2:50:52 Challenge 13: 3:06:37

Oops! This was crazy but we accidentally turned on our cameras and recorded a 4 hour podcast. Felt cute, might delete later.   In this episode, Ben and Micah discuss early-stage story development/organization techniques, like the 3-Act Structure, and their views on planning/improvisation in storytelling. This leads into a segment called LIVE WRITE, where these 2 meatheads put pen to paper live on-camera and hammer out a draft of the opening scene from their nascent sci-fi/fantasy novella. What could go wrong? Lastly, we read submissions from the 2nd installment of our 3-part challenge series, and introduce the final challenge in that series, which will be due next Wednesday, 4/20.

Hello everyone and welcome back to the Write Guys bar for our landmark 10TH EVER EPISODE of the podcast! (crowd-cheering.mp3) In this episode we talk about STORY DEVELOPMENT, specifically early stages of story development, and demonstrate some techniques with a new story we are revealing/working on together. You won't want to miss this first look into a writing project we are planning to carry forward through the future of the podcast! Speaking of projects we're carrying forward into future episodes, stick around until the end to hear the first part of our 3-PART "TRILOGY" CHALLENGE series. We've got a bunch of flash fiction that we'll see expanded in future episodes! Hope you enjoy!

website: writeguys.org  instagram: @writeguyspodcast  facebook: @writeguyspodcast  twitter: @WriteGuysPod  discord: https://discord.gg/arGp2hngUU  Elden Ring! New songs! Randy the Robot! Micah and Ben had an abnormally long break between the last two episodes, and there's been a lot on our minds! So take off your shoes, grab the nearest bag of cool ranch and say "alexa dim the lights" because it's gonna be a 4-hour monster of an episode. The topic this time is HONESTY and to be HONEST with you we spend about as much time talking about it as we did last episode. But the topic remains central to the following segment, LYRICAL DEEP DIVE, where we'll take a look at Oh, Sleeper's "Vices Like Vipers." We also read submissions to last week's challenge,  ROLL A ROLE, introduce next week's challenge, and more! Special thanks to Dahi Divine for playing sax on this brand new update of the Write Guys theme!

In this episode, Micah and Ben discuss their recent creative endeavors, struggles and breakthroughs. We look at the topic of GRAY vs BLACK AND WHITE in storytelling, and talk about what it means to stay away from absolutes as writers. We intro a new segment called ROLL A ROLE where we will add depth to characters using a random noun generator - an exercise that may be integral to next week's challenge. As always, stick around until the end to catch everything to do with the challenge! We'll be reading submissions from last week's romance prompt as well as detailing the rules for the next one. We hope you enjoy!

Join our discord: https://discord.gg/arGp2hngUU Cupid is blushing. Logs crackle in the hearth. Dull jazz tones hum through the radio. The pheromones are thick enough to choke on. Love is in the air at the Write Guys bar. So buy yourself a big old box of chocolate turtles and curl up with your favorite person, animal, AI chatbot or cursed weapon, cause it's a VALENTINES (week) SPECIAL, baby! In this episode, Micah and Ben discuss the topic of ROMANCE and how it fits into their ideas of storytelling and writing. They share recent experiences breaking through writers block, and discuss how Write Guys helped them reach certain creative goals in just 5-6 episode cycles of consistent writing. Along with these findings, Ben and Micah introduce the "Write Guys Curriculum." THE WRITE GUYS CURRICULUM: Now ANYONE who completes 5 CHALLENGES IN A ROW will be INVITED on our podcast as a GUEST for an INTERVIEW to discuss how the regular challenges have influenced their relationship with the craft. We can't wait to see you all in the bar! Stick around to the end to hear us read some excellent entries from last week's COLLABORATIVE challenge, and intro the challenge that will be due next week. (Currently Wednesday, February 23)

We've officially launched the WRITE GUYS discord channel! Come join a community of writers dedicated to having fun with the craft: https://discord.gg/sFa4wJwz In this episode, Micah an Ben are joined by Micah's longtime writing partner, Josh Revercomb, for an enlivening discussion on COLLABORATION and accountability. We unpack the old adage "write what you know" and how this plays out when writing high concept fiction like sci-fi/fantasy. We banter over trivial choices in a new segment called POINTLESS ARGUMENT. Stick around until the end to hear some stories that loop from last episode's challenge prompt, LOOP IT, and the announcement of next week's writing challenge (due Wednesay, February 10). HINT: This next challenge may be collaborative - come to our discord server to get paired up if you are looking for a partner!