The Writership Podcast Editing Tips For Fiction Authors

Leslie & Alyssa critique the opening of the literary fiction novel Ripples through Time by Lincoln Cole. They discuss characterization, telling detail, the power of subtlety, and what defines literar…

Alyssa & Leslie discuss genre, pacing, tension, and engagement as they critique the first five pages of Christine Waters’s Crystal, a young adult story.

Alyssa & Leslie discuss poetic prose, character introductions, genre expectations, and setting in this critique of the opening of Winifred Onyema’s novella, Eclipse of the Heart.

Leslie & Alyssa discuss prologues, openings, establishing the genre, character relationships, and sensory detail in this critique of the opening of Melissa Bieman’s Chasing Status Quo.

Leslie & Alyssa discuss poetic prose, interesting structure, the hallmarks of literary fiction and how this piece displays them, symbolism, and grounding the reader in the face of extremely poetic pr…

Alyssa & Leslie critique the opening of Last Eve, a short story by Carolina Greene. They discuss throat clearing, developing the conflict of man vs. nature, and provided a few copyediting tips.

Leslie & Alyssa critique the opening of Aaron Hubble’s Sojourners. They discuss the importance of emphasis within a sentence, precision in language, delaying backstory, and the development of great i…

Alyssa & Leslie critique the prologue of Colby R. Rice’s Ghosts of Koa. They discuss identifying repetitive syntax, seamless worldbuilding, developing intrigue, and finding beta readers.

Alyssa & Leslie critique the opening of David L. Storm’s thriller, Rain. They discuss pacing and diction appropriate to the genre, as well as setting, and the introduction of conflict versus backstor…

Leslie & Alyssa critique the opening chapters of The Nutcracker King, a novella by Eustacia Tan. They discuss genre, public domain characters, conflict, and deepening characterization.

Alyssa & Leslie critique the short story “Her” by John Rose. They discuss the use of trademarked characters, establishing setting and point of view, and rapid fire dialogue.

Leslie & Alyssa critique the first five pages of Anthony Greer’s The Messengers. They discuss passive voice, character engagement and sympathy, including telling (not repetitive) detail, word choice,…

Leslie & Alyssa critique the first five pages of Stacy Claflin’s Gone, a Suspense thriller. They discuss how the shifting point of view and resulting irony (where the audience knows something the cha…

Alyssa & Leslie critique the first section of Harmon Cooper’s The Feedback Loop. They discuss how the POV and tense works for the genre, repetitive sentence structure, and dialogue (and its punctuati…

Leslie & Alyssa critique the first chapter of Darren Sapp’s Fire on the Flight Deck. They discuss point of view, establishing the ordinary world, back story, and the technical details that make an un…

Alyssa & Leslie critique the opening chapter of Kindar Ra Harashal’s Tristan. They discuss repetitive sentence structure, passive voice, sentence fragments, and intrigue versus melodrama.

Leslie & Alyssa critique the opening pages from Nicole Quinn’s It’s a Nightmare. They discuss the genre, the function of the comma, the importance of a name, and suspending disbelief.

In this episode, Leslie and Alyssa critique the opening pages from Steeven R. Orr’s Walrus of Death. They discuss appropriate humor and how it can benefit your story, judicious pruning for a smoother…

In this episode, Alyssa and Leslie critique the opening pages from a New Adult novel. They discuss the specter of Pride & Prejudice, building and maintaining sympathy for your characters, and develop…

In this episode, Leslie and Alyssa critique the opening pages from a middle grade novel.They discuss raising the stakes, increasing tension, rapid fire dialogue, and incorporating more telling detail…