Story from Scratch
Fantasy writers Yale Wang and Justin Dill embark on a journey of improvised story-crafting. The two 'discovery' writers will guide you from premise to planning to a full working novel. Join in as they discuss writing, story-telling, anime, and much more.
- Update frequency
- every 6 days
- Average duration
- 36 minutes
- Episodes
- 82
- Years Active
- 2018 - 2021
Story from Scratch #21: Yale Wang - An Aspiring Writer's Retrospective
Taking a break from the hard work of writing from scratch, this week's episode is the second part of our 'retrospective' series. Yale digs deep into his memories and tries to break down all the major…
Story from Scratch #20: Assembling the Band
This episode, Yale and Justin continue discussing why writing rules are wrong. They discuss the loneliness of writing and Yale complains about the double standard of what publishers expect from the f…
Story from Scratch #19: Captain and Cyborg
This episode, we continue with our story about a Journey (yet untitled - sorry about that folks). Our captain is not so capable. His cyborg friend is not so happy. And we nail down some details about…
Story from Scratch #18: A Journey (Season Two)
We're kicking off Season Two of the podcast with a new segment where we talk about commonly prescribed writing rules. Specifically, we give our take on how we feel those rules could or even should be…
Story from Scratch PSA: Season Two Trailer!
Welcome to Season Two of Story from Scratch!
We will be embarking on a journey to write an entire fantasy/sci-fi novel to completion (or at least the first draft).
From the next episode onwards, …
Story from Scratch #17: Magic Systems
A second episode this week as promised! We're nearing the end of season one, and we're super excited to be working on a special new segment for season two!
This episode, Yale and Justin discuss what'…
Story from Scratch #16: Essence of a Story
A second episode will be released this week. Season two is coming soon!
This episode, Yale and Justin talk about instinct. Specifically, when should you listen to your gut when you're writing? Things…
Story From Scratch #15: Justin Dill - A Writer's Retrospective
Breaking from our usual format, we take a look at Justin's journey towards becoming a writer. This episode touches on everything from Justin's earliest writing efforts to the roles the critiquing and…
Story From Scratch #14: Writing Woes
The 3rd episode as promised for this week!
This episode, Yale and Justin discuss the struggles that they've encountered in their own writing. Topics include: motivation, authenticity, and publishabil…
Story from Scratch #13: Lens Theory (Sherlock pt. 2)
2nd episode of 3 this week! Once again, we are starting an exciting new project for Season 2. Stay tuned!
This episode, Yale and Justin continue on their journey to creating a story based on Sherlock…
Story from Scratch #12: Sherlock from Scratch
We're releasing three episodes this week! Once we're caught up, we'll be announcing an exciting project we're doing for season two. Stay tuned!
This week, Yale and Justin embark on a new Story from S…
Story from Scratch #11: How We Prepare to Write
This week, Yale and Justin actually have some good actionable advice! They discuss their troubles with writing 'in-genre' (2:18), how they decide what to write about (17:07), and give their best thou…
Story from Scratch #10: Coming Back from a Break
This week, Yale and Justin share their worries about and give tricks that might help you get back into writing again. First drafts are hard, and sometimes you have to take a break. How do you get bac…
Story from Scratch #9: Top 7 Questions About Writing
This week, fantasy writers Yale and Justin take a break from the from Scratch lifestyle and answer popular writing questions in hopes to help give new writers the peace of mind to continue their nove…
Story from Scratch #8: Writing Epic Fantasy and The Musical Death Note
This week, Yale and Justin give their opinions on epic fantasy. Then, they continue their work on creating a story based on The Picture of Dorian Gray. Yale continues to demonstrate that he is woeful…
Story from Scratch #7: Reacting to Criticism and Dorian Gray
This week, Yale and Justin discuss the importance or unimportance of criticism and word specificity. Also, with great focus and organization, they create a new story - from scratch!
Story from Scratch #6: Magic & Endings
This week, Yale and Justin discuss the results of the brainstorming for the last episode and discuss some problems they have in their own writing. What's required for a satisfying magic system? What …
Story from Scratch #5: Sanctuary (Minisode)
Yale and Justin come up with a flash fiction story idea - from scratch! As Justin prepares to participate in a one-day writing project, our co-hosts try to come up with an idea based on the one word …
Story from Scratch #4: A Great First Chapter
Yale and Justin are back with their story based on trees - the kind that serves as magical hard drives. Follow along to find out if they finish writing the first chapter because the rest of the book …
Story from Scratch #3: A Good First Paragraph
This week, Yale and Justin develop the first scene for their novel and lay down the 5 rules for writing a good first chapter.