The Novel Analyst Podcast by Jed Herne
A podcast that analyses stories to help you become a better writer
Buy Across the Broken Stars here: jedherne.com/acrossthebrokenstars
Today’s episode features the audio recording from my latest book launch. Enjoy!
(Below the podcast links, I’ve also included the video version of this event).
Or click here to listen online.
00:00 – 10:20 – Jed’s thoughts on how to become more creative
10:20 – 21:12 – Jed reads scene 1 from Across the Broken Stars
21:12 – onwards – Q & A from the audience.
The Left Hand of Darkness is a visionary sci-fi story about a lone human ambassador to Winter, an alien world whose inhabitants’ biology allows them to choose—and change—their gender. His goal is to facilitate Winter’s inclusion in a growing intergalactic civilization. But to do so he must bridge the gulf between his own views and those of the completely different culture that he encounters. Exploring psychology, society, and human emotion on an alien world, The Left Hand of Darkness is as a landmark achievement – especially considering that it came out in 1969!
In this episode, I examined how despite being very slow-paced (or, perhaps, because of this), Le Guin’s novel is incredibly engaging. Enjoy!
Or click here to listen online.
Show Notes:
Read my latest space fantasy novel, Across the Broken Stars (out today!): https://jedherne.com/broken
Got thoughts? Email me at jed.herne1 (at) gmail.com – I love hearing from you and I respond to as many messages as I can.
Cohesion and resonance. More than anything else, they’re what will elevate your story above the rest, and leave readers thinking long after the final page.
This is the story of my three deaths.
– A Confusion of Princes, by Garth Nix
Show Notes:
Send me your questions: https://jedherne.com/question/
Or: jed.herne1[at]gmail.com
Listen to my in-depth analysis of an amazing fight scene: https://novelanalyst.com/2019/10/16/38-words-of-radiance-by-brandon-sanderson-giving-readers-chills/
Science fiction space operas are stories told at an epic scale. How can you make such a vast world accessible to readers? How can you ground these fantastical and strange new worlds in a sense of realism?
Balancing the epic with the human is perhaps the greatest strength of Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey (first book in The Expanse). Today’s show dives deep into analysing how characters are they key to guiding readers through epic stories.
Or click here to listen online.
Show Notes:
jedherne.com/fires – get a free short story and join my email newsletter to hear about future book giveaways!
jedherne.com/question – submit your questions for the show!
anchor.fm – what I use to make my podcast for free (note: I am not sponsored by them and I make no money for this – just recommending a useful tool that I use)
My debut fantasy novella, Fires of the Dead, is available on amazon for pre-order! Get it here: https://amzn.to/31KMCUR
Or use this link to read a free sample chapter: https://jedherne.com/dead/
A Canticle for Leibowitz is a 1959 post-apocalyptic sci-fi novel by Walter M. Miller Jr. It’s often described as one of the first post-apocalyptic stories. Without it, there would be no Book of Eli, The Stand, or most other post-apocalyptic tales.
Don’t just take my word for it. It won the 1961 Hugo Award – one of science fiction’s highest honours. Legendary scientist Carl Sagan described it as: “so tautly constructed, so rich in the accommodating details of an unfamiliar society that [it] sweep me along before I have even a chance to be critical”.
It’s a remarkable novel. I don’t have the space in one episode to fully analyse it, so today I’m focusing on just one thing: how it uses an unconventional structure to explore the theme and emotionally gut-punch readers. Enjoy!
Or click here to listen online
Show Notes:
Fires of the Dead, by Jed Herne – https://jedherne.com/dead/
Watch my YouTube channel for writing advice every weekday: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVjB-qFoNxNbQq0S3boWxIA?view_as=subscriber
Join my exclusive free Reader Club email newsletter to stay up to date with my writing projects: https://jedherne.com/club/
Twitter: @jedherne
Email: jed.herne1@gmail.com
After Dale from The Reading Gorilla podcast sent in a listener request, who was I to ignore it? This is an episode about Orson Scott Card’s sci-fi classic, Ender’s Game. Specifically, I examine how he crafted such an amazing twist. Enjoy!
Or click here to listen online
And if you want to request an episode, or just have any feedback on the podcast, email me at jed.herne1@gmail.com, or download the free Anchor app to your phone, then search for ‘The Novel Analyst Podcast,’ and click the appropriate buttons to send me a voice message.
Show Notes:
Check out my new youtube channel for writing advice every weekday: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVjB-qFoNxNbQq0S3boWxIA?view_as=subscriber
Join my exclusive free Reader Club email newsletter to stay up to date with my writing projects: https://jedherne.com/club/
Twitter: @jedherne
Email: jed.herne1@gmail.com
In the second part of my analysis of Hitchhikers I extract micro and macro techniques for creating comedy. (You don’t need to have listened to the 1st part for this to make sense).
Micro comedy techniques include:
Macro techniques include:
Or click here to listen online
***
Shownotes:
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/FunWithHomophones
https://www.writersdigest.com/online-editor/humor-writing-filled-novel
Want to read my free short story? Get it here: A Clockwork Prison
Want awesome short stories, bite-sized writing advice, and lists of the best books to improve your craft? Join my VIP email list!
This absurdly funny sci-fi comedy is a fantastic example of how you don’t always need amazing characters to create an amazing story. Buckle up as we use Orson Scott Card’s MICE quotient to analyse what makes this novel work. And remember: don’t panic!
Or click here to listen online
***
Shownotes:
http://www.sfcenter.ku.edu/Workshop-stuff/MICE-Quotient.htm
Get my free short story! A Clockwork Prison
Want awesome short stories, bite-sized writing advice, and lists of the best books to improve your craft? Join my VIP email list!
After reading this amazing book twice (my fave read of 2017!), I finally figured out how to articulate my thoughts about it. It’s an amazing read, full of emotion, and in this episode I break down HOW Daniel Keyes achieves this. Enjoy!
Or click here to listen online
***
Get my free short story! A Clockwork Prison
Want awesome short stories, bite-sized writing advice, and lists of the best books to improve your craft? Join my VIP email list!
The Stars my Destination is a golden age sci-fi novel that has lots to teach – oddly enough – about realism. Bester extracts qualities from historical eras to ground his world in a sense of truth, and in this episode I explore how he does this and how you can do the same.
Or click here to listen online
***
Twitter: @JedHerne
Want awesome short stories, bite-sized writing advice, and lists of the best books to improve your craft? Join my VIP email list!
The Novel Analyst Podcast by Jed Herne 