Answering YOUR writing questions! (Kate & Abbie Show Special)
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- Опубликовано: 22 май 2024
- You asked us writing questions... and we are here to answer them! In this end-of-year special episode of The Kate & Abbie Show, we're sitting down and tackling your toughest writing struggles, offering insightful tips and tricks that have helped us throughout the years to build successful and joyful author careers. So grab your favorite cozy blanket and something yummy to drink...and let's dive into this discussion!
Are you writing anything new in 2024? Comment below and tell us about it! Subscribe for more episodes of #TheKateAndAbbieShow
RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
✍️ Write better character voice: • How to Write Better CH...
✍️ Abbie's advanced character creation training: mailchi.mp/abbiee/advanced-ch...
✍️ The ultimate character profile: • The Ultimate CHARACTER...
✍️ Write better action scenes: • How to Write Addictive...
✍️ 7 reasons to keep writing when you lose motivation: • How to KEEP WRITING wh...
✍️ END BURNOUT & reclaim your POWER as a creative writer: • END BURNOUT & reclaim ...
✍️ 5-minute breathwork practice for writers: • QUICK breath-work to W...
✍️ How to write a character who's not like you: • How to Write Character...
🧠 CHECK OUT KATE'S MEDITATIONS FOR WRITERS: • Meditations 🙏
Start the Writer's Wellness Course here 👉 kaemmons.teachable.com/p/well...
✨ DON'T MISS OUR CO-WRITTEN SERIES RELEASE - sign up for the waitlist here: mailchi.mp/kaemmons.com/kate-...
Read Abbie's new book, The Otherworld: www.amazon.com/Otherworld-Abb...
➡️ Join the Patreon and get access to exclusive live hangout sessions: / thekateandabbieshow
Kate's 7-Day Meditative Journey for Writers: kaemmons.teachable.com/p/writ...
✏️TAKE ABBIE'S SCRIVENER MASTERCLASS: makeyourstorymatter.teachable...
📓GET ABBIE'S FREE WRITING TEMPLATES: eepurl.com/gFYD8z
💻GET 20% OFF SCRIVENER - USE CODE "ABBIE" → www.literatureandlatte.com/sc...
GET ABBIE'S SCRIVENER THEMES: makeyourstorymatter.teachable...
📚Buying our books is the best way to support us as artists! 📚
Get my first book, The Blood Race here: www.amazon.com/Blood-Race-K-E...
Get Abbie's book, 100 Days of Sunlight here: www.amazon.com/100-Days-Sunli...
Like this episode? Give us a thumbs up, subscribe, and tell us what you thought.
Connect with Kate on Instagram (@lonehawkwriter) or her blog: www.heretocreateblog.com/
Connect with Abbie on Instagram (@makeyourstorymatter) or her blog: www.abbiee.com/
time stamps for questions (they're not perfect, but I hope they help!):
1:31 What advice would you give to yourselves when you first started writing?
3:54 Kate and Abbie: What was your first full-length project and what do you think of it now?
4:44 How do weave character descriptions into the story without slowing down the plot?
6:17 How would you go about finding your character's misbelief if they lost all their memories?
8:16 How do you pace stories well that it isn't rushed?
10:28 Do you have to follow a structure?
11:52 How can a pantser and a planner write a book together?
15:26 When writing a contemporary, how do you know if it's too much fluff or too long?
17:17 How much influence has being homeschooled had on developing your writing?
20:03 How do you give each character a different vibe, personality, backstory, flaws, etc?
21:56 How do you make action scenes feel non-stagnant but simultaneously balancing the plot and character's emotions?
24:41 How do you create a cover for your book?
26:06 How do you overcome being unmotivated at the beginning of a book?
28:08 How do you overcome being unmotivated in the middle of a book?
29:41 How do you use social media to promote your writing?
32:32 How do you stay focused on your writing?
34:59 How do I stop comparing myself to others and feeling the need to be perfect?
36:35 How do you keep the momentum of a story to prevent readers from getting bored?
38:28 What is the best way to match my character's fear and misbelief?
40:21 Kate and Abbie: What are your publishing plans for the new year? Are you going to focus on publishing the series that you are co-writing?
41:46 How do you balance your writing routines to avoid creative burnout and staring at a screen for too long?
43:29 How do you get into the mindset of your character?
45:28 How do you realize that revising and editing is done?
47:35 outro
gg ✨
Thanks!
Thank you so much!
Homeschoolers here! I am the mom, but I love hearing you talk about your experience and your creativity. I do this with my kids. I have always allowed my kids as much time as they want and need to pursue their creativity. I definitely believe in nurturing creativity and imagination. I now have two daughters with published books out in the world and my younger two kids are creators as well. I love it.
That's amazing! Well done for your great parenting, good luck to your children when they enter (and continue in) the writing world ❤️
That is AWESOME! 💗 We are cheering you guys on!
Homeschool moms don’t get enough credit! I’m not one, but I think homeschooling is such a good, and beneficial experience for young minds. I respect the creative expression it allows kids to show!
I can't believe I forgot to tune in for this 😭. Im currently being homeschooled, it came as such a nice surprise that you were too! You two are my main writing role models
Thank you as always Abbie & Kate for taking your time to answer these questions.
I just finished writing my debut novel today!
You two helped so much along the way with your expertise and attention to the craft.
I wish that 2024 brings lots of creative energy and you can write and publish more books.
Thank you very much. Your work is appreciated.
God Bless
You are so calm! If I'd finished my novel today I would be shouting it off the roof! 😆
Congrats!!
@@lisaneedham4302 Hahaha I did! A lot! Now I'm in the process of registration and printing the copies so I must stay calm.
After the euphoria of finally finishing this book a sense of peace and harmony took over my soul. I'm like flying in a world where everything is preety and meaningful.
I hope you finish your book soon, so you can experience this and other feelings as well. Don't rush it though, make the best work you can.
Best of luck🙂
@@_SpreadingLove_ Thanks! I hope your writing journey is going well too.
Yes, an episode on description with actual examples would be amazing!
I’m in Australia and won’t be awake for this Q&A. Hopefully this (very early) question will still make the list! 🤞
For Abbie and Kate - do you both write your books linearly (in the context of start to finish) or do you jump around based on the chapters/scenes that inspire you the most in a moment? Do you have any opinions on pros and cons of each, for example, when writing linearly the character voice grows and evolves as the story does etc.)
Thank you 🙏 Jess
Thank you 🥰🙏
Just want to thank you guys for all your advice and support this year! I really feel setup for a productive 2024!! Happy holidays to you both!!😉👍🏻🙂
I'm so happy that I found your channel and this podcast! You two have been super helpful on my writing journey and I can't thank you enough!!!
I completely forgot. I even set up a reminder too. Grr. Oh well, this video of you both has been amazing. I too cannot believe its the end of the year. Congrats to you both on your upcoming book series! Have a great time off and enjoy the holidays! See your next podcast next year!
You guys help me so much in my writing journey
Love the content! Side Note: You guys are SO pretty. I couldn't stop looking at your nice outfits, hair and complexions. Beautiful.
How often do you have writer's block? How do you cope with it?
You both are such beautiful people! ❤ Thank you so much for sharing all your knowledge! You both are such a great inspiration to so many people!
Yes, PLEASE do another book cover design video!!!
Will you provide your thoughts on scene and chapter outlines for a beginner?
Great answering thanks Abbie and Kate ❤
I’m currently planning an animation story called “Shadow Bound”.
It’s an adventure/horror/fantasy story about my two main characters Alice Cilla and Stêrvin (Steve) Accoslan.
Steve is a member of an ancient race long since destroyed by the antagonist, the Primordial Shadow (an evil entity that desires absolute control)
Alice is a human, mysteriously branded with the mark of the Primordial Shadow, the Umbral Sigil.
I really enjoyed writing the conflict between her and Steve (who’s sworn to destroy the Primordial Shadow and all who associate themselves with it)
I’ll be working on the story more in 2024, but I still need to work on my books too.
That sounds so cool!!! Are you going to publish it anywhere?
@@jasmine_rice Thank you.
I was planning on making a new account on RUclips specifically designed for animation.
I can see it taking shape in around 5 years maybe.
I’m not great at drawing at the present moment though.
Thanks for all the advice of 2023! Here's to a productive 2024!!!
Thank you for your thoughtful answers! You are the best❤
I love your videos so much and they get me so psyched up, I am working out while watching this! ❤
Going to editing my (YA) novels series even historical fiction and writing another series.
Love this video!! All of the questions that you answered today were so good. And I wish 2024 will bring me more focusing on my writing and outlining my new WIP idea. 😊❤️❤️📕✍️
Excellent video.. Thanks so much.. Very helpful..😊💖
Looking forward for next years episodes ✨
Merry Christmas!
Thank you for all your advice and super helpful tips. Thanks to you I was able to publish the short story I wrote for school. Thanks so much.
(the story's called The Unlikely Tales of Buck Morgan 😁)
👏 Well done! (I'll see if I can find it :)
Hey! I will hopefully watch this later when I have time! Looks like it's great though!
Great episode
hi everybody. happy holidays. this was an amazing Q&A video it was really useful
Thank you guys so much for answering my question 😇 I'm hoping to get into short story contests for 2024, and then go on to self publish🙃 you guys have inspired me so much in my writing journey, and I don't think I would be where I'm at without you, so... thank you kindly 😇
I was planning a book with an alternating POV, but I noticed that I had a bias towards my first main character. Should I make the series all about him (with maybe an occasional POV switch), or should I try to connect with my other protagonists more?
Thank you so much, Kate and Abbie!
I follow especially your channel for a while, Abby, & I am so grateful for all your tips and for how diligent and passionate you are about writing! You managed to encourage me to write at a phase of my life where I could barely find time for it.
Your videos manage to motivate me when I am doubting and they remind me why I started doing it and never want to stop it - because I love writing and I want to move readers with my words!
Thank you very much. ♥️
(This isn‘t my account, I‘m just allowed to use it - unimportant Information) 😂
Greetings from Germany :)
#Askabbie! Can u please make a video on the Ultimate Insta love story structure with a printable PDF template for Microsoft Word so I can transfer it to my Google Docs?
#Askabbie
Hey Abbie!
Can you pleasee discuss how to start writing a book from scratch as a complete beginner???
Thanks and love ya
I don't think all that fits in one video. Just start and learn on the go. Don't fool yourself to think that your first project is going to be great. It's not. Is probably going to suck. But that's fine. The first sock you knit will also look shitty. Writing takes practice. It takes finding out how your brain develops story. Your process might be completely different from theirs. There is no cut and dry, perfect list of things you need to do. There is no one way to write a story. No guide can prevent you from making mistakes. But you can learn from them. Failure is the greatest teacher.
If you stifle yourself with rules before even having started, you will most likely be overwhelmed and paralysed and give up before you even started. Developing your own voice is what takes the longest. It can't be taught. You just find it along the way. If you rely on others telling you what exactly to do out of fear of failure, you will learn to ignore your own gut feeling on what to do or even what you like in books. Maybe one of their nono pet peeves is something you really like. Just because they tell you not to write it doesn't mean you shouldn't. Write the book you want to read but that isn't there yet because no one wrote it yet.
I started writing at 8 years old. No rules, just for fun. Structurally, everything I wrote sucked until I started watching writer tube at like 16. But I have a voice now, I know how to play with language, I nurtured my imagination without stifling it. I'm very good at crafting worlds in a way that serves the story, at bending pre existing rules in my world in order to make it all make sense when viewed together. Find the fun, the instinct that drives your writing first, then add rules later. It's impossible to do it the other way around. If you are too in your head about it from the start it's hard to ever write out of your heart. But you can slowly add more and more rules to your free, not stifled by perfectionistic rules writing. But it will take years. This is not learning the recorder. Or playing dodgeball. You won't be even close to passable after a year. That's why the fun is so important. If "write a great book" is your only motivation, you won't be continuing because it will be out of reach for a long time. The writing itself needs to be making you happy by itself. Because you won't receive the motivating dopamine hit for achieving the goal of being a great writer for many years.
@@hannahl.4494 thank youu so much ❤️
You are soo right. The fear of not writing a 'good book' is actually what keeps me away from writing.
I'll keep your valuable advice in mind.
Thanks 🥺❤️
MY FAVORITE DUO
how should you switch from a short story writer to writing a novel
Noooo I missed the segment!!!!
I have a question, hope you'll cover in next Q&A🤔.
I am constructing an engaging dialogue between two main characters, both with hidden motives. But i necessarily have to fit in short flashbacks for both while they engage in current one. How to proceed with that, without interrupting the flow.
Arranging someplace else in the story would been ideal but it make sense here most 🙏.
❤❤❤
This is a wonderful video, I only wish that my question had been noteworthy enough to have made the cut. If there is a next time I hope that I ask a question able to make the cut.
#video_request make a video for the face of the franchise, like how to choose the best character to be the representation of the audience if i have a lot of characters to choose from (for example, Pikachu from Pokemon, etc etc) and also how it affects the audience's expectations and beliefs.
can you share your thoughts on the hunger games book .what do you think of the characters and character development
#Askabbie hi Abbie, can you please tell me how to write a character who IS SIMILAR to me? I really want to showcase myself and my feelings through the character I’m writing, I’m really passionate about what I want to write and it matters to me so much because I really want to depict myself and who I am within, through my writing. But I’m confused because many writers tend to write characters who are not like them and is it wrong for me to write a character similar to myself? 💕💕💕💕💕💕
Self inserts are a little frowned upon. I guess because they are kind of lazy.
I'm curious, doesn't writing a character similar to you happen automatically? It does for me. It's kind of a running gag how I unravel my many problems by creating characters and then realizing "oops, that's me, I didn't even know I had that trauma, good to know"^^
👍🔥
Here is a question for your next question & answers video. I was watching an author talk about how when he first wrote his book, it was longer then 400 pages yet he took it down to 217 pages! I am curious, how can an author do that to a story? I mainly because I’m trying to write about what it was like being cyber bullied online & I am afraid my story might be too long.
Can u briefly tell how to start a novel from scratch as a beginner
Good question! 👍
Here’s where I come in.
I am not a published author as of yet, but I have many stories that I want to write.
It all starts with the baseline. An idea. It doesn’t matter what you start with, characters, worldbuilding, storyline, as long as it kicks off everything else.
To get an idea, draw inspiration from the stories, genres, tropes, and authors that you like.
You can just sit down and try to think up a story, but I find that difficult.
My book “the Mage”, was originally based off of 3 other books. The Belgariad, the false prince, and Skyrim.
And it only took until chapter 5 until my writing became fully my own.
So then I rewrote those 5 chapters to not be just a copy of another writers work.
My story “Shadow Bound” was based off of Hollow Knight, Dark Souls, and Murder Drones. But despite that, it became my own work almost immediately.
Just remember, inspiration can come from anywhere.
Nanowrimo and pantsing
Read "no plot no problem" how to write a novel in 30 days.
And if that's not your taste than listen to Abbie's preptober videos on how to be a plotter instead of a pantser
@@pterodactylman136oh thanks foe the recommendation .I'll definitely try it out
What software do you use to write?
'Big Author Energy" lol
What’s the genre of the series you’re co-writing?
On the amnesia problem:
It's my understanding that someone with amnesia has the memories, but they are suppressed by whatever caused the amnesia. If that is the actual case wouldn't that person have reactions to things like he/she would have otherwise? IOW, if someone had a history that made him/her afraid of stuffed bunnies wouldn't they still react that way when suffering from amnesia?
Probably yes, although my information only comes from an old film called Spellbound where a man with amnesia is terrified of lines on white surfaces because of the skiing accident that caused him to lose his memory. Hope that helps :)
Though I'm glad that I am going to school, I was (and still am) constantly bullied for my poetry. If you are in high school and still making fun of my poetry, you're just insecure at this point. But I'm sure it would've been better to be in a welcoming environment. Maybe I would've started sooner.
I have a question. Professors have said my work's publishable, encouraged to submit it to contests, quoting one "Damn. Just damn. All I can say is keep writing, keep stretching your arms further." But I've had only rejections.
Maybe I was just writing for my particular audience--college professors--well? *How can we know when to give up on a piece for publication?*
I'd say just don't. Keep writing, keep editing and improving, the publishers are sure to discover your talent soon enough!
If you love what you are writing don't give up on it
Hi I want to become a writer but I have 3 genres I want to but in a book but my mom told me to pick 2 but and I don't know how to write in third person need help
On the subject of designing book covers, in traditional publishing, with a publishing company like Tor, they have specialist illustrators and graphic designers (either in-house or have connections with outside contractors) who do that task for you, and is the reason I would choose traditional publishing over self-publishing.
This might be an unpopular option, but I think it has merit to it.
True. But you don't have much of a say in the cover then. And having watched many "hilariously bad book covers" videos, I'm not sure I'm going to be willing to let go of that control.
@@hannahl.4494 It depends if you have the skill and talent to make a professional quality cover art yourself, since being a writer doesn't automatically also mean you are good at graphic design or illustrator
That is why personally I would prefer to outsource it to someone who specialises in that sort of thing
@@unicorntomboy9736 Yeah, but you could also do that yourself. As in finding someone who will do it for you and paying them. Maybe a graphics design student or something so it's not too expensive. Or maybe you know someone who does it professionally and will give you a discount.
How do I decide which characters point of view do I write a scene from? Criteria?
anyone can answer really, I’ll delete the comment once the answer is there
A novel about Ukraine or about the Iraq War
Hi gal, share with us how to show and not tell so much. Thank you
Hi sister!
I'm from India 🇮🇳
Were do you live exactly!
I'll come and meet you!
Hi iam a short story writer writing about spiderman stories in my own and posting it in my RUclips channel but i didn't get much views for my videos so make some videos helpful to my comment for that