How to Improve Your Fiction Writing with Author Tim Grahl
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Do you need reassurance that you can and will become a better writer?
My next podcast guest is going to do exactly that, but he doesn't sugarcoat the amount of work it takes to go from so-so to stellar writing.
It was my pleasure to have Tim Grahl, C.E.O. of Story Grid, join me on the show to discuss his upcoming novel, The Shithead, which releases on September 19, 2024, and his journey to creating something he is wildly proud of.
I had the opportunity to read an ARC (advanced reader copy) of Tim’s latest book, which I finished in about a day, and it blew me away. It's a shockingly honest portrayal of how pursuing the wrong things for the wrong reasons hollows a person out to the point they are unrecognizable. It's both a cautionary tale about the dangerous power of self-deception to the point of delusion and the healing power of self-compassion. Ultimately, this book demonstrates what it costs to return to the land of the living—everything.
Here is the jacket copy for The Shithead:
Faust meets Fleishman Is In Trouble.
Eric Bauer—son, husband, father, and small business owner—is slowly losing his grip on reality. Drowning in debt and a never-ending to-do list, he finally catches a break. To trade the torment of barely scraping by for the riches of Nashville's elite Pinnacle Club, he only needs to keep doing what he's been doing since college. Lie. Playing fast and loose with the truth is the easy part. What's hard for The Shithead is figuring out how to build a meaningful life in a meaningless world.
Tim’s real-life struggles and experience with EMDR therapy inspired part of the novel. His vulnerability and courage are beyond admirable. As he said in our chat, he went to the basement to write this book, and it was damn scary down there.
Tim was kind enough to open up about his writing process and how it’s changed from floundering on his own for years to learning to write in public as editor Shawn Coyne’s guinea pig on the Story Grid Podcast, where every episode Tim would submit his writing and Shawn would critique it and tell him to go back to the drawing board, to working exclusively on narrative craft and scene writing techniques for two years, to finally being ready to write The Shithead.
On a craft level, Tim is adamant about writers learning the skills necessary to make a novel work and highlights the importance of scene writing. I couldn’t agree more. If you understand how to structure a scene and make it as interesting as possible, you’ll be far ahead. The Story Grid: What Good Editors Know is a fantastic reference book to have at your fingertips for learning how to develop your scenes.
I hope you enjoy this episode and that it strengthens your resolve to keep learning, keep writing, and find the tools, resources, and voices you need to write and finish books you are proud of!
The Shithead is available for pre-order now! (not an affiliate link)
My two cents: Read it. It’s life changing.
Listen on Apple, Spotify, or your preferred platform.
