✨Bonus Character Development Questionnaire; Why You Shouldn't be Networking; Fun Ways to Get Your Book Noticed; & Creating Writing Time✨

Plus, where to register for a reminder for the last ever Deep Dive Virtual Retreat. Early bird registration opens on the 21st of November - make sure you're ready for it!

Happy Tuesday, writers extraordinaire!

If you missed October’s Bonus Episode with Amber McBride, author of The Leaving Room, you must make time to catch up soon! Amber is extraordinary, as is her work. She was recently shortlisted as a finalist for the National Book Awards, so you don’t want to miss a single insight from an amazing interview!

Then, we’ve got the excellent Bonus Character Development Questionnaire that Hannah Mary McKinnon, author of A Killer Motive, is so generously sharing with us after last week’s podcast interview! Knowing what’s in your MC’s fridge can reveal more about character than you’d think which is why there’s much food for thought in the questionnaire. See what we did there… food… fridge… 🤭🙄

New York Times Bestselling Alix E. Harrow, author of The Everlasting, gives brilliant (but unexpected) advice about why you shouldn’t be networking (and what you should be doing instead). 🤔

That’s followed by an excellent essay by Vanessa Lillie, author of The Bone Thief, who explores a travelling arc program as a new and fun way of promoting her book. We really love how she takes us through the entire process, step by step, while also explaining all the pros and cons along the way! If you love practical advice you can apply to your own work, you don’t want to miss this.

And then we another insightful author Q&A with Christina Henry, author of The Place Where They Buried Your Heart, who says:

“I think if it’s important, you have to block off the time and do it no matter what other obligations you have. Even if it’s only fifteen minutes a day before breakfast, or one hour per week on a Sunday night. I know this is pretty old-woman-shakes-fist-at-cloud, but think about how much time you spend on your phone doing absolutely nothing. Actually, if you want to be fully horrified, go look at your screen time stats. If you spent 20 less minutes scrolling on TikTok, could you use that time for writing?”

And we love Christina’s thoughts on pivoting, a common trait of successful authors!

Don’t forget to diarize the 21st of November for the early bird registrations for our very last Deep Dive Virtual Retreat happening the weekend of the 31st of January and 1st of February. Further details will start dropping in November! But if you’d like to get a reminder email to register at 12pm ET on the 21st, you can sign up for that here.

Finally, it’s Carly Watters’ birthday tomorrow so please give her a shout out on socials! Scorpio season is officially upon us, people! ♏

That’s all for now. Thanks for reading! ❤️

❤️ The Shit No One Tells You About Writing Team

---

October’s Bonus Episode!

In this month’s bonus episode, award-winning author Amber McBride joins Bianca to talk about The Leaving Room— a YA novel in verse that unfolds entirely in four minutes, the space between life and death. Amber opens up about losing and reclaiming her voice, the power of poetry to hold emotion, and what it means to write from the liminal spaces of grief and love. A mesmerizing conversation about craft, courage, and creating beauty out of silence.

Tune in to this special October bonus episode — and let The Leaving Room linger with you. Take a listen here or watch it on YouTube!