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Follow me on my adventures in Kentucky and Colorado. I was able to hit up some amazing places including a flooded mine, an award winning zoo, the Garden of the Gods and other places.  There are tons of writing prompts all around us. Tons of ideas and all we have to do is reach out and touch those thoughts. I love taking some time and enjoying the chance to watch the world move around me and enjoying everything life has to offer. -Bryan the Writer! Support the show

This week I had the amazing opportunity to sit down and talk with Sara Baume who is the amazing author of the book Seven Steeples. Take a listen as we dig into her inspiration and how here art imitated life or maybe it was the other way around, but I promise you will not be disappointed. At its core, Seven Steeples takes a look at a period of two people’s lives over the course of seven years, leading into their eighth. The characters Bell, Sigh and their dogs Voss and Pip occupy this rental house where they seem to have just kind of given up on what we would say is a normal existence. But you get the impression the author does not see it this way. Here her answer when I ask her. We will talk about her naming convention for her charactersWhether or not they are hermitsThe symbolism of the mountain in the bookWe will talk about how it was so strange for me as a reader to see the world through these two seemingly strange characters, but then starting to envy them in some ways.At the end of it all, I can highly recommend the book, Seven Steeples. Check it out. I think you will enjoy it as much as I did. Support the show

Some of you will remember I did a review of the novel, The Playing Card Killer. I very much enjoyed that book and jumped at the chance to read and review Russell James's next book, Demon Dagger. Join us today as we talk about his latest work, how he crafted his novel, why he did what he did, and why he did not do what he could have done on this episode of All Things Writing. We will talk about all kinds of things including; A walkthrough of your latest offering, Demon Dagger.  I love the idea of a protagonist who can see demons. Where did that idea come from? In the beginning of the book, you make it clear that the relationship between Drew and his wife Anna is a difficult one. Tell us why you added that as an element to the story?Keeping in the theme of family, something happens to Drew and Anna’s only son. I have to tell you that I did not see that coming. But it sets up the rest of the book nicely. There is a conventional wisdom in writing that dictates we, as writers, should be careful when we are dealing with children in horror. Explain your thought process in framing what you did concerning their son. I love the idea of a rickety old dagger becoming a formidable weapon only in the presence of a demon. Where did that idea come from? Let’s talk cars for a moment or two. Gabriella, a classic muscle car, plays an important role in this story. Talk about the relationship between the car, Drew, and the character of Lincoln. What do you think is the central message of the book Demon Dagger? We leave Anna and Drew with their weapons. Will see them again? Where can people find you work? Want to know more? Check out Russel James at https://www.russellrjames.com Or at his amazon page at: https://www.amazon.com/Russell-James/e/B006BFIOKQ Thanks for listening! -Bryan Support the show

On the 30th of April I had the most extraordinary opportunity of my life. I was asked if I would fill in as the moderator of the Ravencon chat with Mr. Terry Brooks. Yes, the Sword of Shannara author. The man who brought us the Landover series. An icon in the world of fantasy fiction who changed the playing-field and inspired generations of writers. As you can imagine, it was a tremendous opportunity and I accepted. What you are about to hear is the mostly unedited recording of our conversation. What I did cut out was only a little bit in the beginning where we were getting settled and the end where we were leaving the room. Please enjoy this interview. It is truly amazing and it is really at the heart of why we do this show we call, All Things Writing. Support the show

Do any of you remember who our guest is this week? Here is a hint. He is a novelist as well as an attorney who loves to write two fisted, hardboiled, blood and guts pulp fiction.  Why would I want to keep you in suspense? Welcome to my guest this week, Mr. Mark Mellon.  Listen to Mark while we talk about: What is his favorite genre and why How did he get interested in NoirHow does the day job influence what he writesLonger fiction over short.How do you manage your writing life? I know that for me there are tons of other competing priorities, and I am sure with the day job it can get a little rough. What advice can you give someone out there who is trying to balance life with writing? What are you working on now?I want to remind everyone that next week is a week off for me, but after that I will be back with something amazing that you are just not going to believe you are hearing.Tune in next week. I got to sit down with a man who has single handedly changed the world of writing and opened up a genre to tons of new readers. I will have that interview for you in a mostly uncut form. You won’t believe who I had the chance to sit down with.  Thank you again for hanging out with us. For all things writing, this is Bryan and Mark, signing off.  www.mellonwritesagain.com Support the show

The term trope actually is derived from the Greek word tropos. Tropos means to "turn or, direction, or way". Derived from the verb, it suggests that something is  being turned, to directed, to altered, or changed in some way.  By the way, tropes and their classification were an important field in classical rhetoric. If my sources are to be believed.  Literary terms.net defines tropes as referring to any type of figure of speech, theme, image, character, or plot element that is used many times. Any kind of literary device or any specific example can be a trope. Most often the word is used to refer to tropes that are widespread such as irony, metaphor, juxtaposition, and hyperbole, or themes such as ‘the noble savage’ or ‘the reluctant hero.’ It must be used multiple times to be a ‘trope’ but it is also possible talk about something that’s a trope in only one novel or one author’s works if it is used many times. Are tropes bad? No. No where as bad as using tons of other different types of words and phrases we use in the English language. However, some can be overused. For example, there was a great commercial recently which played on tropes by showing a bunch of teens running from a crazed lunatic. They pointed to a spooky house, a barn full of axes, a hedge maze. One of them screams out something like, “Why don’t we just take the running car?” There was a running car in the background. Stick with me for the discussion and a little later in the show I have a book review for you but before we get to that, I want to discuss a word with you. And that word is trope. Tropes and what are they is really the topic of discussion for today. Thanks for joining us! Want to know more about tropes? https://www.skillshare.com/blog/literary-and-genre-tropes-make-your-stories-interesting/ Want to find out more about the book I reviewed? https://www.amazon.com/Scattered-Smothered-Chunked-Monster-Hunter-ebook/dp/B00A6DT0P2   Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/Bryanthewriter)

Greetings my writing friends!  This week I got the chance to sit down with the amazing Sirrah Medeiros and pick her brain about all kinds of things. An interesting gal with a passion for writing, service, and dogs. And, as you know, I love dogs! Come with me as we talk about all kinds of things like How she became the moderator of a romance groupWhat first made her want to write poetryHow she got into horrorWhat advice would she give to new writers trying to write the chilling things that go bump in the nightWhat is her favorite kind of horrorWho are her favorite horror authors living and deadHow has her background influenced her writing over the yearsAnd of course what is working on now and where can people find her Want to know more about Sirrah? Check her out at her website, https://sirrahmedeiros.com/ As always, thank you for joining us on All Things Writing. If you want to know more or have questions, hit me  up at my e-mail [email protected] Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/Bryanthewriter)

Welcome to the show all of my wonderful listeners. For those of you keeping track, this is episode 83 of the show. You could be anywhere, but you are here with me and I appreciate it. Thank you all for tuning in on this fine day. Today we are going to talk a little bit about what happens when you get the chance to meet your heroes. No, I don't mean like Superman, Spiderman, Bat Girl, and my personal favorite, the nice lady that makes my coffee at the stand at work. And yes, she is a superhero in my book. I am talking about the heroes in the writing world that you admire not because they have amazing abilities. Well, okay maybe they do. Amazing abilities to write that is. Who are mine? Well, before we get to that, take a listen and I will tell you about an amazing book by Darin Kennedy called The Mussorgsky Riddle. Check it out. It is amazing and you will love it just as much as I did. But, back to my heroes. I will point back to people like Ronald Malfi, Jeff Strand, and Josh Malerman. Not because of numbers of sales, but there ability to tell a tale. That is what truly matters to me. These guys are impressive because of how they weave a tale and bring you into the story. Still not convinced? Well, take a listen. I am sure you will agree that if you have the chance you should meet your heroes; more importantly you should learn from them! Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/Bryanthewriter)

I love nothing more than to interview great authors. Those of you who are with me and listen to the show every week will remember that I said this week we would have an interview with the amazing J.D. Blackrose. Join us as we talk about all kinds of things like,  Her razor sharp wit Who she credits for her writing style What she does when she is not writing Her favorite and least favorite parts of the writing process and why What she would tell the younger writing version of herself What is her writing routine She will talk about her Summoner’s mask trilogy Of course we will ask her about her Zombie Cosmetologist novellas Come on and join us as we talk about all of this stuff and even more on this episode of All Things Writing. Want to know more about JD? Check her out here www.slipperywords.com Want to know more about Sheldrick  Trust? https://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/  Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/Bryanthewriter)

So, you may ask yourself, how much am I writing? Well, Right now I am not writing a lot. I suppose that is only partially true. I am writing a podcast script for all of you lovely people. However, book wise I am not writing a ton at the moment. A few things sort of conspired against me and that is the topic of today’s show. What can you do when you suddenly find yourself in between writing projects. You will rightly ask yourself, “But Bryan, why not just start writing another project. I could but lately I have not been feeling great and that really saps my energy, but that is really only part of the reason. I have one book at the editor, another book at the publisher, and another first draft in the drawer, cooling its heels before I launch back into editing. I almost am afraid to start anything new right now. Although I am still going to be hitting the keyboard on other things (not serious efforts, more exploratory work), I am focusing on a few other elements of my writing world that need a little help. Basically, today I want to talk about what those annoying little things that need to get done to enable you to write in the first place. What are those things? Well, simply put, we need to work on Website maintenanceResponding to emails research into open submission callsFile maintenanceAdvertisingThese things are a lot of work, I know. Plus, they really are not fun. But you have to do them if you want to make it in this crazy business we call writing. And more importantly, you have to do those things if you want to get noticed. Because, remember, that if you want attention you have to scream louder than everyone else who is shouting around you. To be fair, I don't know everything. However, I am trying my best to change my little world for the better. So, sit back, take a listen, and hear me talk about these little things I concentrate on when I am not concentrating on my words! Want to reach out to me? Hit me up! Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/Bryanthewriter)

Think fast my writing friends. What would you say is the single most important aspect of your writing game aside from butt in chair making the words happen? I would argue that if you said anything other than the help of a good editor, you would be wrong. And our next guest has a passion of writing and editing and she is going to share with us the things she has learned. If you listened to last week’s show you would already know that my guest this week is none other than Red Lagoe. Listen on as we talk about all kinds of things about how she got into writing, where did all those snakes come from, and... How did she get into horror writing? Who influenced her horror writing? Let's talk about Lucid Screams and Dismal Dreams How did she get started writing in the short story realm? What is the key to great short story writing? What drives her as a writer? What kindled her interest in being an editor? Check out Red at www.redlagoe.com or her Amazon page  Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/Bryanthewriter)

This episode, and a few of the upcoming episodes are going to be special in that I am doing interviews of Horror Writer Association, Virginia Chapter members. I have been a member of that association for quite a long time now, as far as being a member of anything goes and I am happy to say that it has me pretty busy working with other authors on a bunch of different things. It is that association which put me in contact with so many interesting people and I have been super fortunate to make some pretty long lasting friendships in the process. One of the things we do is have a chapter table at various events where we get to talk about how the HWA is an international organization dedicated to horror and really is the only one of its kind anywhere. You don’t have to be a horror writer. You can be a supporting member if you just really like horror and hanging around horror authors. So, it should not shock anyone that my next guest is a member of that organization with a pretty interesting tale to tell not just about horror, but he is a multi-genre author like I am. Want to know more, check out this episode where we talk with author Sidney Williams. We are going to talk about all kinds of things;  His history and the wide depth and breadth of things he has done.His favorite thing to teach.Three things every writer should know or do to make their writing stronger?His influences.His favorite horror novel and How about movie?What did he fall in love with first and how did his other interests come along?He'll tell us about Fools Run, his latest book and the follow-on book.Visit Sidney online at https://SidisAlive.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/SidneyWilliamsBooks Twitter: @Sidney_Williams Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sidney_williams/   Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/Bryanthewriter)