I think to be a good writer you need to have at least a tiny sliver of sadism in your DNA. It comes with the territory. In order to tell an engaging story you need to tease and tantalise. This can be done with a light, playful hand, or you can leave your poor reader a sobbing wreck in a puddle on the floor as they weep for the fate of the characters and the hell that you've put them through. That's my theory, anyway. Eliciting an emotional response from a reader should be the goal of any story. I think I thrilled readers with Robot Overlords, people told us that Back to Reality made them laugh, but I don't think I made anyone cry until The End of Magic (if you know, you know). And I have to admit it gave me a sadistic thrill and I wanted more. So every book/script since I've worked hard to create characters that readers will love, then done terrible things to them that either destroys them or makes their eventual triumph all the more satisfying. This week's podcast guest, Jeremy Szal, told me how he also works to "break the readers" and jokes that their "tears are delicious" and he's right to do it! Jeremy also speaks honestly about writer burnout and the toll that getting published and staying published can take, and me and Mr D discuss the realities of publishing and the mental health of writers. And in the extended version for patrons, we discuss the value of short stories and I give tips for writing actions scenes. If you want to support the podcast and get access to hundreds of hours of extra material like this, then become a Chart Topper Patreon here.
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