My Imaginary Friends With L. Penelope

I have turned in my manuscript (let us all rejoice!) and muse on my ongoing struggle with perfectionism.   This week’s best thing: Publishers Weekly starred review of Whispers of Shadow & Flame   Links: Awario.com and Mention.com - for tracking online mentions  AppSumo - deals on techies things VONA/Voices workshop for writers of color The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman The Shadow Warrior by Ann Aguirre Heinlein's rules for writing success Save the Cat Writes a Novel by Jessica Brody   Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast   Website: https://www.lpenelope.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leslyepenelope Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/leslyepenelope Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorlpenelope   Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZk

Thoughts on publishing paths: indie and traditional. Also, inspiring honesty in writing and life. THIS WEEK'S BEST THING: Avengers: Endgame(!!!) MENTIONS: - Angelina Lopez blog post - Indie Author Central (IAC) on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/letztalkbooks/ Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast Website: https://www.lpenelope.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leslyepenelope Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/leslyepenelope Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorlpenelope Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZkVShypKgM  

This week I have a special guest: actor Paul James (aka my brother). Known for Greek, The Last Ship, and The Path, Paul shares his perspective on creating characters by bringing a writer’s words to life. This week’s best thing: my birthday! + Game of Thrones! Links: The Hot Sheet – https://hotsheetpub.com/ Ran Walker, 2019 Indie Author of the Year – https://indieauthorproject.com/2019-indie-author-of-the-year-award/ Kboards – https://www.kboards.com/ The Passive Voice – https://www.thepassivevoice.com/ The Sell More Books Show – http://sellmorebooksshow.com Paul James on IMDB GMC: Goal, Motivation and Conflict by Deb Dixon   Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast Website: https://www.lpenelope.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leslyepenelope Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/leslyepenelope Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorlpenelope Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC B

“Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional." - Haruki Murakami THIS WEEK'S BEST THING: I got to see Audra McDonald perform live! (She could be every week's best thing!) https://audramcdonald.com/ WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT: - Sending my April newsletter - What to write next? - Working on chapter epigraphs for CRY OF METAL & BONE LINKS: - Fonda Lee Twitter quiz: https://twitter.com/FondaJLee/status/1115051419134877696 Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast

How novel revision and software development are basically the same thing. This week I enter the last(ish) stage of my revision, discuss the many uses of index cards, character verbs, and try not to let thoughts of piracy derail me. This week's best thing: I finished the final proofing of WHISPERS OF SHADOW & FLAME! Hoorah! Mentions: - Verbalize by Damon Suede - https://amzn.to/2ORE0qa - The Story Grid by Shawn Coyne - https://amzn.to/2Um01DB - Write Your Novel From the Middle by James Scott Bell - https://amzn.to/2I3ndQd - Creating Character Arcs by K.M. Weiland - https://amzn.to/2UkBv5u - Author Rachel Caine on piracy   Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast Website: http://www.lpenelope.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leslyepenelope Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/leslyepenelope Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorlpenelope Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-

"The function, the very serious function of racism, is distraction. It keeps you from doing your work." — Toni Morrison Writing updates, quarterly planning, and my thoughts on recent events in the romance writing world.  This Week's Best Thing: WHISPERS OF SHADOW & FLAME Advanced Reader Copies are here!! Other Mentions: Robin Covington, romance author Mindlogr - private video diaries Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZkVShypKgM

On managing decision fatigue and why high output (writing all the things!) requires high input (aka my excuse for binge reading). This Week's Best Thing: The Ravenels by Lisa Kleypas  Also Mentioned: Never Seduce a Scot by Maya Banks Robin LaFevers IG Post on Decision Fatigue - https://www.instagram.com/p/BvKP68fHj8w/ - Check out her books! http://www.robinlafevers.com/ Neil Gaiman on Neil Armstrong and Imposter Syndrome Subscribe and view show notes at:

This week I talk writerly intuition and do some research to come up with character names. This week's best thing: Trailers Galore! - Aladdin trailer - Avengers:Endgame - Bel-Air The Writer's Well podcast: http://thewriterswell.org Article on the Sami Concept of Time: http://www.laits.utexas.edu/sami/dieda/anthro/concept-time.htm Cold-Hearted Rake by Lisa Kleypas Show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast Website: https://www.lpenelope.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leslyepenelope Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/leslyepenelope Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorlpenelope Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZkVShypKgM

This week I got stuck in my writing and determined I wasn't leaving enough blood on the page. Show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast Mentioned in the show: - The Umbrella Academy - Madhuri Pavamani, author & poet - Franz Kafka quote and translations Website: http://www.lpenelope.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leslyepenelope Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/leslyepenelope Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorlpenelope Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZkVShypKgM