Most everyone focuses their attention on having compelling protagonists. But are you giving your antagonists the attention they deserve? Whether you’re writing romance, mysteries, or fantasy novels, your bad guys need to be well-rounded to be interesting. Two ways to do this are through sharing their back story and identifying the motivations for their actions.

In this episode, we refer back to some prior episodes: Episode 4, Research’s Role in Writing Fiction; Episode 5, Look Closer at Keeping Your Reader’s Interest with David Ellis; and Episode 6, Dovetailing Creative Ideas and Smart Business Decisions with Kevin Tumlinson.

The Write Approach, Episode 8: Properly Motivating Your Antagonists

Listen to the audio:

Find The Write Approach on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Overcast, Amazon Music, and Audible.

You can also watch it on YouTube.

Barbara Hinske’s  author website — https://barbarahinske.com/

J. W. Judge’s author website — https://jwjudge.com/

J. W. Judge’s writing blog — https://expectantwriter.com/

When you finish one writing project and are mentally (and let’s face it — emotionally) ready to take on a new one, it can be a daunting task to decide what to write next. If you’re like us, you have no shortage of ideas. So how you decide what to write next? Barbara Hinske and J. W. Judge have had very different approaches to responding to this question. Because Barbara has multiple series going, her creative choices are colored by business necessities. J. W. has been a bit more willy-nilly about it to date, but sees changes on the horizon.

This episode is a continuation of Episode 1 in which we talked about where story ideas come from.

The Write Approach, Episode 7: Deciding What to Write Next

You can You can listen to the audio here.listen to the audio here.

Find The Write Approach on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Overcast, Amazon Music, and Audible.

Or you can watch it on YouTube.

Barbara Hinske’s  author website — https://barbarahinske.com/

J. W. Judge’s author website — https://jwjudge.com/

We had a different episode slotted for this date, but when Kevin Tumlinson told us his birthday is October 12, we couldn’t help but give him an early birthday present. We cover a bunch of ground in this interview, and two parts of the conversation really stand out. Kevin talks about writing novels quickly, but also about that costs that can accompany doing that. We also discuss how his crossover stories have origins in being creative endeavors but have the effect of introducing multiple intellectual properties to new audiences.

There is also a discussion about how Kevin researches for his archeological thrillers, which ties in well with Episode 4, Research’s Role in Writing Fiction.

One of the books we talk about specifically in the interview is Evergreen, so we wanted to make sure to link it, along with the newest story from Kevin Tumlinson, The Templar Tunnel.

Dovetailing Creative Ideas and Smart Business Decisions with Kevin Tumlinson

You can listen to the audio here.

Find The Write Approach on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Overcast, Amazon Music, and Audible.

Or you can watch it on YouTube.

Barbara Hinske’s  author website — https://barbarahinske.com/

J. W. Judge’s author website — https://jwjudge.com/

In Episode 5 of The Write Approach, NYT #1 bestselling author David Ellis talks about the tenacity and intentionality required to juggle writing and legal careers simultaneously, how collaborating with James Patterson has improved his writing, and why a writer must prioritize maintaining their readers’ interest in every chapter.

We also discuss David Ellis’ newest book Look Closer and why he enjoys starting a new novel with a character in mind before he starts developing the plot.

The Write Approach, Episode 5: Look Closer at Keeping Your Readers’ Interest with David Ellis

Listen to the audio:

Find The Write Approach on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Overcast, Amazon Music, and Audible.

You can also watch it on YouTube.

David Ellis’ website — https://davidellis.com/

Barbara Hinske’s  author website — https://barbarahinske.com/

J. W. Judge’s author website — https://jwjudge.com/

Barbara Hinske and J. W. Judge give personal updates about their author journey’s, including Barb recounting how she responded to losing two hours worth of writing. In the day’s topic, they discuss different means of researching and the integral role that research has played in writing their novels. In the conversation, they discuss how research can be anything from going through historical archives to traveling to sites pertinent to a story to interviewing people who have the physical limitations or condition you’re writing about.

Here’s a link to J. W. Judge’s writing blog for a couple of photographs and another recounting of the trip to Denver he talks about in the episode that was a part of the historical novel he was working on: Traveling to Add Depth to Your Writing.

The Write Approach, Episode 4: Research’s Role in Writing Fiction

Listen to the audio:

Find The Write Approach on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Overcast, Amazon Music, and Audible.

You can also watch it on YouTube.

Barbara Hinske’s  author website — https://barbarahinske.com/

J. W. Judge’s author website — https://jwjudge.com/

J. W. Judge’s writing blog — https://expectantwriter.com/

The Write Approach’s first guest is #1 New York Times bestselling author Scott Turow. We talk about how marketing new books has evolved, the drive that kept him practicing law for more than 20 years after he was a well-established bestseller, and how he approaches new writing projects.

Scott Turow’s newest book, Suspect, releases on September 20, 2022, and Barbara Hinske couldn’t find enough good things to say about its characters during the interview.

Also on September 20, J. W. Judge’s third book in his dark fantasy series, The Zauberi Chronicles, hits bookshelves wherever books are sold online. Go pick up your copy of Forging Bonds.

The Write Approach, Episode 3: Pioneering the Legal Thriller with Scott Turow

Listen to the audio:

Find The Write Approach on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Overcast, Amazon Music, and Audible.

You can also watch it on YouTube.

Scott Turow’s website — https://www.scottturow.com/

Barbara Hinske’s  author website — https://barbarahinske.com/

J. W. Judge’s author website — https://jwjudge.com/

J. W. Judge’s writing blog — https://expectantwriter.com/

There are many business decisions to make as an author. Primary among them is which name to write your works under. Co-hosts Barbara Hinske and J. W. Judge have both opted to write their fiction under pen names. In Episode 2 of The Write Approach, they discuss their personal reasons for using pen names, the benefits of using a pseudonym, and some of the difficulties that accompany it.

The Write Approach, Episode 2 — Should You Write Under a Pen Name

Listen to the audio:

Find The Write Approach on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Overcast, Amazon Music, and Audible.

You can also watch it on YouTube.

Barbara Hinske’s  author website — https://barbarahinske.com/

J. W. Judge’s author website — https://jwjudge.com/

J. W. Judge’s writing blog — https://expectantwriter.com/

In Episode 1 of The Write Approach, Barbara Hinske and J. W. Judge introduce themselves to listeners and discuss: (1) where the ideas for their stories and series have come from, and (2) what they do with those story ideas once they have them.

The Write Approach: Episode 1 — Where Do Story Ideas Come From?

Listen to the audio:

Find The Write Approach on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Overcast, Amazon Music, and Audible.

You can also watch it on YouTube.

Barbara Hinske’s  author website — https://barbarahinske.com/

J. W. Judge’s author website — https://jwjudge.com/

J. W. Judge’s writing blog — https://expectantwriter.com/