The Paragraphing Podcast

Episode 6 - Taking the 30,000 ft. View

In episode six of the paragraphing podcast, Jamie and Brendan set the groundwork for a new experiment in their storytelling.  That is to say, they toss away (for the time being) the paragraph-by-paragraph structure for something completely different.  After reading this week’s episodes, they visit a whale at 30,000 feet, sit down for an interview with the Paris Review, and join comedian Eddie Izzard in a pitch for a new comic-book TV show.   LINKS AND SUCH:  * The whale of Douglas Adams:  http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/198068-another-thing-that-got-forgotten-was-the-fact-that-against [http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/198068-another-thing-that-got-forgotten-was-the-fact-that-against]  * The Paris Review interview with P.G. Wodehouse: https://www.theparisreview.org/interviews/3773/p-g-wodehouse-the-art-of-fiction-no-60-p-g-wodehouse [https://www.theparisreview.org/interviews/3773/p-g-wodehouse-the-art-of-fiction-no-60-p-g-wodehouse]  * The clip from Eddie Izzard’s standup is part of this performance: https://www.amazon.com/Eddie-Izzard-Circle-Anastasia-Pappas/dp/B003A3UXLK [https://www.amazon.com/Eddie-Izzard-Circle-Anastasia-Pappas/dp/B003A3UXLK]  * We’d also highly recommend one of the best standup performances of all time: Eddie Izzard’s Dress to Kill: https://www.amazon.com/Eddie-Izzard-Dress-Lawrence-Jordan/dp/B003A6VPS2/ref=tmm_aiv_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr= [https://www.amazon.com/Eddie-Izzard-Dress-Lawrence-Jordan/dp/B003A6VPS2/ref=tmm_aiv_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=]  * And yes—we will be disrupting our daily paragraphing for a new experiment in chapters.  This won’t disrupt the weekly podcast schedule, though.  So keep subscribing!    * Subscribe on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-1-the-first-9-paragraphs/id1212787121?i=1000382303012&mt=2 [https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-1-the-first-9-paragraphs/id1212787121?i=1000382303012&mt=2]  * Follow daily updates to the story at www.armisticedesigns.com/paragraphingblog [http://www.armisticedesigns.com/paragraphingblog]  * Or on Twitter at: @graphingblog  * Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com [http://www.armisticedesigns.com] * Jamie’s website: Thanks4Listening.com [http://Thanks4Listening.com]

Episode 5 - Sorkin vs. Wodehouse

Episode 5 Notes:  Take five and listen to the fifth episode of the paragraphing podcast!  Actually, take six times five—as Jamie and Brendan read the latest installments and discuss everything from Aaron Sorkin to injecting new life into old phrases.  They even ask the question: how do you light a scene that takes place in the underworld?   LINKS AND SUCH:  The writers talked about two dialogue styles: longer paragraphs vs. short exchanges.  Here are the two contrasting examples they shared: the paragraphs of P.G. Wodehouse vs. the sentences of Aaron Sorkin.   From "What Ho, Jeeves" by P.G. Wodehouse  [https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/53a99493e4b0bcc18cd0c2d9/1491549188516-4NBBKMXI3N065SY7G1E1/image-asset.png?format=1000w] From the episode of The West Wing called “20 Hours in America,” by Aaron Sorkin [https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/53a99493e4b0bcc18cd0c2d9/1491549232300-G7SVZM7S2M4KPGC7PO37/image-asset.jpeg?format=1000w] The characters of Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Winnie-the-Pooh_characters [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Winnie-the-Pooh_characters]    Subscribe on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-1-the-first-9-paragraphs/id1212787121?i=1000382303012&mt=2 [https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-1-the-first-9-paragraphs/id1212787121?i=1000382303012&mt=2]  Follow daily updates to the story at www.armisticedesigns.com/paragraphingblog [http://www.armisticedesigns.com/paragraphingblog]  Or on Twitter at: @graphingblog  Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com [http://www.armisticedesigns.com] Jamie’s website: Thanks4Listening.com [http://Thanks4Listening.com]

Episode 4 - The Fourth Wall

In the fourth episode of The Paragraphing Podcast, we continue with an episode packed with surprises!  If, by surprises, you mean an episode surprisingly long and illustrious.  Brendan and Jamie continue picking up where the story left off.  After the reading, they break their writing down moment-by-moment, walking through each section.  Along the way, they talk about why they had to rewrite sections for the audio version, breaking of the fourth wall, unsolved literary murder mysteries, how to write action in writing, and the aim of getting two characters in one room talking.  Like us!  * The breaking of the fourth wall: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourth_wall [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourth_wall]  * Vogons in Hitchiker’s Guide by Douglas Adams: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vogon [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vogon]  * The unsolved murder mystery of Charles Dickens’ last book: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mystery_of_Edwin_Drood [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mystery_of_Edwin_Drood]  * Quantum Leap: https://www.hulu.com/quantum-leap [https://www.hulu.com/quantum-leap]  * Search Lincylum on Google: https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=lincylum&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8 [https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=lincylum&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8]  * A primer on the River Styx: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Styx [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Styx]  * The music from the TV show Jeeves and Wooster (featuring Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry):  https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-world-of-jeeves-and-wooster/id692597964 [https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-world-of-jeeves-and-wooster/id692597964]     * Subscribe on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-1-the-first-9-paragraphs/id1212787121?i=1000382303012&mt=2 [https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-1-the-first-9-paragraphs/id1212787121?i=1000382303012&mt=2]  * Follow daily updates to the story at www.armisticedesigns.com/paragraphingblog [http://www.armisticedesigns.com/paragraphingblog]  * Or on Twitter at: @graphingblog  * Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com [http://www.armisticedesigns.com] * Jamie’s website: Thanks4Listening.com [http://Thanks4Listening.com]  [https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/53a99493e4b0bcc18cd0c2d9/1490939847694-VM61BKBE6G8KQIZIY8P5/image-asset.png?format=1000w]

Episode 3 - Avoiding The Sense of Destiny

In the third episode of The Paragraphing Podcast, the story continues—with the introduction of an entirely new character, the explication of actor ants, and a somewhat surprising narrative effect. Afterwards, Brendan and Jamie share thoughts on the story’s fast-paced twists and turns; the difference between where you expect the story to go and where the next writer takes it; and the comedic style of their favorite authors.  They also discuss how writers can achieve the sense of a “thinking person” on the page, rather than a “sense of destiny.”  Essentially, they conclude that flaws in thinking can often be more interesting than flaws in character.   LINKS AND OTHER THOUGHTS:  The book that Brendan and Jamie co-wrote called This is Zoic: https://www.amazon.com/This-Zoic-Bedsum-Grey-Adventure-ebook/dp/B006KRFQN8 [https://www.amazon.com/This-Zoic-Bedsum-Grey-Adventure-ebook/dp/B006KRFQN8]  Listen to James Horner’s Pas de Deux:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0ZoomQfCXg&list=PLH9C08qrQ7S7SNGWB9LVMrKkIumbMMvK1 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0ZoomQfCXg&list=PLH9C08qrQ7S7SNGWB9LVMrKkIumbMMvK1]  A glimpse of P.G. Wodehouse: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P._G._Wodehouse [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P._G._Wodehouse]  The music from the BBC show based on P.G. Wodehouse’s books: “The World of Jeeves and Wooster.”   https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-world-of-jeeves-and-wooster/id692597964 [https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-world-of-jeeves-and-wooster/id692597964]  The movie Amelie: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0211915/ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0211915/]  House of Leaves, an incredible novel about a house that’s bigger on the inside than the outside.  This is one that you’ll want to flip through via the “look inside” feature: https://www.amazon.com/House-Leaves-Mark-Z-Danielewski/dp/0375703764 [https://www.amazon.com/House-Leaves-Mark-Z-Danielewski/dp/0375703764]  “Tut Tut, it Looks Like Rain” from Winnie the Pooh: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NitBpJaom5k [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NitBpJaom5k]  Serialization was huge when it came to the novels of authors like Charles Dickens: http://dickens.wpi.edu/history.html [http://dickens.wpi.edu/history.html]  Don’t forget to subscribe if you haven’t already:   Brendan’s podcast player of choice: https://overcast.fm/+ImMUq-CJc [https://overcast.fm/+ImMUq-CJc]   Jamie’s podcast player of choice: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-1-the-first-9-paragraphs/id1212787121?i=1000382303012&mt=2 [https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-1-the-first-9-paragraphs/id1212787121?i=1000382303012&mt=2]  Follow daily updates to the story at: www.armisticedesigns.com/paragraphingblog [http://www.armisticedesigns.com/paragraphingblog] Or on Twitter at: @graphingblog  Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com [http://www.armisticedesigns.com] Jamie’s website: Thanks4Listening.com [http://Thanks4Listening.com]

Episode 2 - The Thing About Titanium Levitation

In episode two of The Paragraphing Podcast, writers Brendan and Jamie Steidle read the next eight day’s worth of the continuing story.  In the discussion section, they share details on scene setting, the role of planning, and where the story might be going next. LINKS:  The “wise man” who said that the knack to falling is to throw yourself at the ground and miss was none other than Douglas Adams.  In the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.  Here’s that section: http://www.extremelysmart.com/humor/howtofly.php [http://www.extremelysmart.com/humor/howtofly.php]   The premise of this back-and-forth storytelling was inspired by the book that Brendan and Jamie co-wrote called This is Zoic.  Here’s how to get a copy: https://www.amazon.com/This-Zoic-Bedsum-Grey-Adventure-ebook/dp/B006KRFQN8 [https://www.amazon.com/This-Zoic-Bedsum-Grey-Adventure-ebook/dp/B006KRFQN8]  Don’t forget to subscribe if you haven’t already:   Brendan’s podcast player of choice:  https://overcast.fm/+ImMUq-CJc [https://overcast.fm/+ImMUq-CJc]   Jamie’s podcast player of choice: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-1-the-first-9-paragraphs/id1212787121?i=1000382303012&mt=2 [https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-1-the-first-9-paragraphs/id1212787121?i=1000382303012&mt=2]  Follow daily updates to the story at www.armisticedesigns.com/paragraphingblog Or on Twitter at: @graphingblog  Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com [http://www.armisticedesigns.com] Jamie’s website: Thanks4Listening.com [http://Thanks4Listening.com]