Writing Roots

S28E8 – The Best Resources for Your Writing

One of the best habits any author can get into is to make a habit of using our resources. There are so many things around that can help you improve, from specific advice from experts in fields you’re writing about to craft books by well-known authors.
It’s not just about having these resources, though. You must use them. How often have you gotten a book that will help you learn something, and it ends up sitting on the shelf or your nightstand for months? If you really want to get serious about your writing, you must make the conscious decision to learn, to explore, and to stretch your mind to improve every day.
In this episode, we talk about some of our favorite resources, our reader’s favorite resources, and the kinds of places you can go to learn in your writing journey.
First aired January 27, 2022.
Recommended Books:– On Writing, by Stephen King– Save the Cat! Writes a Novel: The Last Book on Novel Writing You’ll Ever Need, by Jessica Brody– Telling Lies for Fun and Profit, by Lawrence Block– The Fantasy Fiction Formula, by Deborah Chester– Write Your Novel from the Middle: A New Approach for Plotters, by James Scott Bell
Recommended Websites:– Notebooks for Writing Selfishly– Think Written Writing Prompts– Grammar Girl with Quick and Dirty Tips– Writer’s Digest– Inkarnate (Map builder)– US Copyright Law
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S28E7 – Learning While Consuming Stories

One of the best habits you can get into to improve your writing is to learn from the writing and storytelling of others. We don’t want to take the fun out of consuming stories, but we do recommend taking time to think about it. Think about what you like, what you don’t like, how you would change aspects to make it better.
Once yo figure out how to do this with other media, you can then take it to improve your own writing. Listen to this episode for more tips and tricks to learn from consuming stories, and how make it a habit.
First aired January 24, 2022.
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S28E6 – Building a Writing Community

Though the process of actually writing is often a solitary activity, it’s not something we can take on alone easily. We need support, encouragement, and people around who know our struggles. This is why finding and participating in a writing community is a healthy writing habit.
Including other people in your writing process can give you different perspectives, a sounding board for ideas, and provide knowledge you might not have alone. They also don’t know your story, so they can bring a fresh view. On top of that, having fellow writers in a community means having people you can talk with to sift ideas, get past writer’s block, and provide accountability.
In this episode, Leigh and Ley discuss the benefits of having writing friends, their own experiences, and how you can find and build one of your own.
First aired January 20, 2022.
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S28E5 – Preparing Your Environment for Writing

Where do you go to write? Have you found that some spots work better than others? Now is the time to figure out why those places work best. We can guarantee it comes down to the environment and how well it can spawn creativity.
When it comes to the best environment for your writing, there is no one right answer. Each person is different, so their needs are different. Some people like to write in busy places with lots of people, such as a café. Others prefer the solitude of a closed office. But the environment is about more than just where. It’s the noise, the clutter, the distractions.
Hosts Ley and Leigh discuss the different ways you can prepare your environment to capitalize on your writing time, to make it the most creative and most efficient time possible.
First aired January 17, 2022.
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S28E4 – Hacking Your Brain to Make Writing an Addiction

Computers aren’t the only thing that can be hacked. You can, over time, trick your brain into thinking and reacting the way you want. This trick is especially helpful when you want to build healthy habits.
It takes about twenty-one iterations of a thing to make it a habit, and it’s much easier to do something twenty-one times if you make it something desirable. Something we want to do. Or as James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, would say, make it a healthy addiction.
There are four steps in an addiction. The cue, craving, response, and reward. We can hack our brains into making writing an addiction by following these steps. Create a cue. Something that will trigger that craving. In order to make it an addiction, we then need to respond to the craving, and then we end by rewarding ourselves.
Listen to this episode for more about things you can do to start hacking your brain and instilling in yourself an addiction to writing.
First aired January 13, 2022.
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S28E3 – Improving Your Writing Through Time Management

There are few things more counterproductive than poor time management when it comes to writing. This isn’t just about not giving yourself time to write, but about making sure the time you spend is worth it. Just sitting and staring at a blank page isn’t helpful.
Good time management with your writing is important, not only for your stories but for your physical health. Writers often find themselves wearing themselves out trying to push too hard towards their goals.
If you find yourself falling into those habits – staying up too late but not getting things written, for example – this episode may help. We talk about setting realistic timelines, making sure you’re taking breaks, and getting the most out of the time you do spend writing. This is where quality is more important than quantity. A few shorter sessions that give you great writing is better than several long sessions of no progress.
First aired January 10, 2022.
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S28E2 – Setting Realistic Writing Goals

Writing a whole novel is a huge undertaking. For some, it takes years to complete a single draft. If it gets finished at all, that is. That’s why setting goals for your writing is such an important step in the process. Without realistic and achievable goals to work towards, we can often find ourselves pulled away by other things in our busy lives. Goals can help you focus on your task and then feel accomplished as you make progress.
There are a number of things you can do when setting the goal that will help you become more successful. Rather than saying “I want to finish this book this year,” break it down into chunks. Steps you can finish along the way. The first version is vague and easily forgettable. Procrastinators out there will understand that kind of deadline is too far off to take the steps now. That means setting hard dates and breaking down the book into the steps needed to finish it.
Listen to this episode for more about how to set realistic goals for your writing to help you achieve your dreams.
First aired January 6, 2022.
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S28E1 – Discovering Yourself Through Writing

Writing should be a journey of self-discovery, which means allowing yourself to explore. Throughout the month of January, we’ll be talking about developing good habits when it comes to writing. That all starts with giving yourself permission to discover what we mean when we say “write selfishly.”
It’s common around this time of year for people to try to reinvent themselves. “New year, new me” is a common phrase (common enough to have become satirical in many places). Even if you aren’t trying to vastly change yourself, make this your chance to set and keep your writing goals. Build the habit of trying new things, all until you figure out what works best for you in the end. This exploration helps you find your voice, your strengths, and even you weaknesses. Go outside of your comfort zone and see how you grow.
First aired January 3, 2022.
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S27E9 – What Are the Current Trends in Fiction, and Should I Follow Them?

Just as with fashion, the world of books and writing has trends. Certain styles and genres and topics and tropes will go in and out of popularity as time passes. Ley often refers to it as a circle, going from growing, to popular, to a downslide, and into satirical before it starts growing again a few years down the line. Trends are how we know what people like, what people want to read, and what might sell the best. Following trends, though, is tricky work.
Following a trend is as it sounds. You’re behind the curve, following in the footsteps of others. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but doing so intentionally will always leave you in the dust. On the other side, it’s good to know what’s popular, what’s trending, and to let it influence your writing. Listen to this episode for more about achieving this delicate balance between following a trend and being influenced by the trends in the writing world.
First aired December 30, 2021.
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S27E8 – How Do I Transition From One Scene to Another?

There are two kinds of moments in a story: The Scene and The Sequel. Not every moment needs to be action. Not every moments needs to propel the plot forward. Sometimes you need a sequel. You need a moment in between the scenes. A moment to pause, to think, to talk. The idea of scene and sequel is an important one when learning how to transition from one scene to the next.
Knowing exactly when to end one scene and start another is a skill learned with time. Readers don’t want to read all of the traveling and walking and the in-betweens with nothing happens. That means whenever you have a moment of Sequel, it need to have purpose. Otherwise it’s just filler and fodder for the editing room. You need to trust your readers. Trust they will fill in the gaps. Those scene transitions aren’t as jarring as you think.
Listen to this episode for more about how to transition between scenes, and a breakdown of the concept of scene and sequel.
First aired December 27, 2021.
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