20 Minutes with E. C. Myers

Last week, Guest Host Peter Newman’s book “The Vagrant” was released on the world and we couldn’t be more delighted for him. So delighted in…

Dedicated to “female writers of paranormal fantasy & the readers who love them,” UtopYA Con is a YA lovers paradise, fraught with wall-to-wall authors, fabulous panels and events, and an air of festive and impassioned creative mojo that you rarely see in a first-year event.

We talked to Janet Wallace (owner and prime mover-and-shaker at the Social Deviants marketing company) about the origins of UtopYA Con as well as her philosophy behind this 3-day extravaganza.

Justin Macumber – author of Haywire, co-host of The Dead Robots’ Society and The Hollywood Outsider, writer of a diverse spectrum of intriguing speculative fiction – rejoins us for an awesome Workshop episode. We are joined by Scott Roche, an accomplished author and podcaster in his own right, offering up a very cool YA superhero tale that generates an epic Roundtable Podcast discussion.

Lauren Oliver – author of astonishing tales for all ages, including the New York Times Best-Selling YA series “Delirium”, and “Liesl and Po” and “The Spindlers“ (for younger audiences) AND one half of the evil genius team (with Lexa Hillyr) behind the innovative Paper Lantern Lit literary house – returns to the Big Chair at the Roundtable to apply her experience and writerly mojo in the workshopping of a tale offered up by Guest Writer Kebreht Walker.

Keb comes load for bear (or wolf, as the case may be) with a very cool YA spin on the Red Ridinghood fairy tale, full of intrigue and danger. Ryan Stevenson and I dive in and everyone brings their “A” game resulting in a huge basket of Literary Gold. Don’t take it to Grandma’s… hit ‘play’ and keep it for yourself!

Mary Robinette Kowal – Hugo Award-winning author of Shades of Milk and Honey, Glamour in Glass, Without a Summer, and Valor and Vanity – returns to the Big Chair at the Roundtable to workshop a tale of supernatural murder.

Having Rish Outfield and Big Anklevich – the mad geniuses behind the epic Dunesteef Audio Magazine – for our thirteenth episode turns out to be very lucky indeed. Joining us at the Roundtable is the remarkable Renee Chambliss, she of the wonderful voice, the gifted pen, and the keen ear, who brings a wonderfully innovative idea for a comicbook hero to the Table for the discussion. Origin stories, multimedia storytelling, and the nature of rats… all this and more awaits you… just hit that PLAY button

Peter Ellis – whose name you may recognize from the many insightful comments he’s contributed to various posts – has indulged in some statistical research and presented us with an intriguing gift: A breakdown of the stories that we’ve workshopped!

With Brion and I having our heads “deep in the weeds” and focusing on individual episodes, we can’t always see the trends and cycles of the stories we’re engaging with each week. It’s enlightening to be provided with a birds-eye view of the genres, themes, and tropes that have been workshopped on the show.

E. C. Myers – author of the acclaimed “Fair Coin” and “Quantum Coin” – returns to the Big Chair to bring his superb insights and aesthetic to help Brion and I workshop a very cool YA SciFi tale offered up by podcaster and Gentleman Twitter-kin Richard Green.

Richard brings a delightful tale of an alien school field trip on Earth that goes horribly wrong that inspires a great discussion about the qualities of YA stories, defining character arcs and relationships, and a superb exploration of how to take a great idea and make it even better (which is kinda what we do, right?). Literary Gold is pretty much a foregone conclusion.

Gail Carriger – author of the Parasol Protectorate series, The Finishing School series, the Custard Protocol, and more – returns to claim her rightful seat in the Big Chair at the Roundtable (with a nice cup of tea) to lend her not inconsiderable writerly mojo to brainstorm a tale of young adventurers in a most dangerous city.

The table for our brainstorming feast is set by creageous Guest Writer Rick Milone, a story of friends caught in conspiracies in a city that defends the world against its greatest evil. Joined once again by the incomparable (and brilliant) Lauren “Scribe” Harris as co-host, we launch into a truly epic, sometimes (very) silly, but ultimately fabulous search for Literary Gold. We found SO MUCH we can’t carry it all… we need your help, so click that “PLAY” button and get you some.

This week, Justin Landon – host of “RocketTalk“, co-editor of the “Speculative Fiction 2012: The Year’s Best Online Reviews, Essays and…

Leanna Renee Hieber – performer, playwright, and author of lush and luxurious tales of dark Victorian and Gothic splendor – returns to the Big Chair to help Brion and I workshop a marvelous magical spin on a venerable theater superstition offered up by Guest Writer Mac McEntire.

Mac’s tale may be YA or midgrade, but it’s filled with many levels of genuine drama, humor, and character nuance. With all our theatrical enthusiasm escalating our natural delight in seeking out the awesomeness of a story, we all find many paths to explore on our way to a mountain of Literary Gold!

Gail Carson Levine, recognized by the New York Times, LA Times, Library Journal and numerous other Best-Seller lists, joins us at the table to discuss Jacci Turne’rs intriguing YA tale of time-travel. Everyone weighs in and, by the end of the episode, Jacci departs with a large bag of Roundtable Podcast gold.

Jerry Gordon – editor of anthologies and author of tales (check his “Coming Up” section below for all his awesomeness) – returns to the Big Chair at the Roundtable for an ​epic​ story workshop. Guest Writer, Dan Scholes, brings a scifi tale of a distant culture dominated by nanites that infect every aspect of society.

Dan’s story becomes the foundation of one our most intriguing and in-depth workshops ever. You’ll be raking in the literary gold like autumn leaves, friends… just hit that “play” button.

Brad Beaulieu – author of lush and richly-rendered epic fantasy tales and co-host of the fabulous Speculate podcast – returns to the Big Chair at the Roundtable to workshop a tale of nerds transported into a an epic fantasy world.

The story is conjured from the imagination of creagous Guest Writer, John McCarthy (Surfside Jack to his friends), a coming of age tale of thwarted destinies, grim nemeses, and the fate of worlds hanging in the balance. Moses Siregar joins me as co-host and together we delve into the tale, exploring everything from genre to character arc, worldbuilding to romance. It’s a classic brainstorming froth that culminates in a trove of Literary Gold for all.

If you’re going to workshop a story, you might as well do it right… bring in a scientist who has also been an editor with Dell, founded two editorial lines of books, published three novels for a hugely successful television franchise, AND has spent the last 20 years leading one of the top literary workshops in the industry. That’s exactly what we did, inviting Jeanne Cavelos, founder and lead instructor of the Odyssey Writers Workshop back to the Big Chair to brainstorm a story idea.