Between the Drafts | CITY FILES // 003 Companion Episode — What Your Fictional City Believes

Between the Drafts | File 009 - The Version of the Story That Scares Me

This week, I’m talking about a different kind of fear. Not the fear of a blank page.Not the fear of rejection.Not even the fear of publishing. The fear of finally creating something you genuinely love. After revisiting and rewriting a thirteen-year-old vampire story, I found myself confronting a truth I wasn’t prepared for: I actually liked what I’d written. And somehow, that felt terrifying. In this episode, I’m sharing what this latest round of rewrites has taught me about self-editing, creative growth, perfectionism, and the emotional truths that keep surfacing as I build the world of Talo. I also share updates on the Talo anthology, new lore, exciting visual developments for the city, and a glimpse at a darker project quietly taking shape in the background. If you’ve ever questioned your voice, worried about getting the details wrong, or felt pressured to create at someone else’s pace, this conversation is for you. Inside this file: ✦ Why liking my own work felt scarier than criticism✦ The surprising joy of self-editing✦ Creative fears that emerge when your universe expands✦ The emotional truths I’m learning as a writer✦ Anthology updates and worldbuilding news from Talo✦ A sneak peek at a new project currently known as Project Twice Pour your coffee, open your notebook, and settle in. Let’s talk about the version of the story that scares us the most—the one that’s finally becoming what we always hoped it could be. — P. Rose This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whoisprose.substack.com [https://whoisprose.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Between the Drafts | CITY FILES // 003 Companion Episode — What Your Fictional City Believes

I used to think setting simply meant location. A coffee shop.A skyline.A neighborhood.A house with enough rooms to move my characters through. And honestly? That mindset kept my stories emotionally small. Because while drafting the City Files series and continuing to expand Creswell County, I realized I’m not just creating locations. I’m creating emotional ecosystems. That realization became the center of this companion episode. In this file, I dive deeper into: * emotional architecture * fictional cities as belief systems * why setting should pressure your characters emotionally * and how The Greenhouse Effect quietly became one of the earliest emotional blueprints for Cascade City. While revisiting the short story, I realized the greenhouse itself symbolized everything I was trying to emotionally communicate about Cascade City: Controlled warmth.Fragility.Beauty under pressure.Emotional preservation. And once I understood that? I started realizing that every fictional world quietly teaches its people how to survive. Some worlds reward ambition. Some reward silence. Some reward violence. And some cities convince people that love might actually save them. Even while they’re breaking. In this episode, I also discuss: * Stephen King’s Derry, Maine * The Continental from John Wick * Hogwarts’ emotional atmosphere * and how setting becomes more powerful when it emotionally shapes behavior instead of simply housing characters. Because maybe the question isn’t: “Where does my story take place?” Maybe the real question is: “What does my world believe?” And once we begin answering that question, our settings stop feeling like backgrounds. They become living systems. They become emotional pressure. They become memory. And maybe that’s the difference between a readable story and an unforgettable one. Thank you for listening to another file. And welcome back to Cascade City. — P. Rose This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whoisprose.substack.com [https://whoisprose.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Between the Drafts | File 08 - The Stories I Keep Running To

Some stories follow us. They linger in the back of our minds. They shape the way we see love, loneliness, danger, power, desire, grief, survival… and eventually, they begin shaping the stories we tell ourselves. In this episode of Between the Drafts, I found myself reflecting on the fiction that built me, not just books, but films, television, music, atmosphere, emotional tension, and the kinds of worlds I keep returning to again and again. This episode became a conversation about creative obsession. About vampires and hidden worlds.About cities that feel alive after dark.About found families, emotional ecosystems, supernatural intimacy, and characters trying to survive their own unraveling. I talk about the stories that shaped the way I write: * Interview with the Vampire * Fledgling * Chronos * The Strain * Living Single * The Fifth Element * Stephen King’s Bill Hodges trilogy * and so many others that taught me something about atmosphere, longing, symbolism, setting, and emotional depth. But somewhere in the middle of this episode, I realized this conversation wasn’t only about the media I love. It was about permission. Permission to stop writing what I think people want from me.Permission to stop shrinking the supernatural elements that naturally call to me.Permission to embrace the darker, stranger, more emotionally layered stories that have always lived at the center of my imagination. And honestly? I think this episode marks a turning point for me creatively. Because for a long time, I tried to write what sounded impressive instead of writing what haunted me. But the stories that stay with us, the ones we keep revisiting, usually reveal something deeper. Maybe they’re mirrors. Maybe they’re maps. Maybe they’re trying to tell us who we are before we’re ready to say it out loud. So this episode is for: * the writers obsessed with atmosphere * the creatives haunted by unfinished worlds * the readers who love hidden cities, dangerous love stories, and morally gray characters * the artists trying to reconnect with what actually inspires them And maybe most importantly… This episode is for anyone learning how to trust their own creative instincts again. Listen to Between the Drafts // File 008: The Stories I Keep Running To And afterward, tell me: What stories do you keep returning to — and what do you think they say about you? — P. Rose This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whoisprose.substack.com [https://whoisprose.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Between the Drafts | File 07 -The Beautiful Chaos of Story Ideas

Not the chaos of deadlines.Not the chaos of edits.Not even the chaos of trying to finish a draft while balancing a real life. I mean the chaos of waking up with another story idea. The kind that arrives uninvited.The kind that whispers “what if?” while you’re already juggling three other projects and makes you question your loyalty to your current work in progress. That’s what this week’s episode of Between the Drafts is about. In File 07, I’m talking about: * why idea generation is actually a gift * the myth that new ideas mean you’re procrastinating * how writers overwhelm themselves trying to act on every idea immediately * why I keep journals, crates, sticky notes, and mood boards full of unfinished concepts * and how to nurture your creativity without abandoning your current work Because honestly? I don’t think writers are meant to have just one story inside of them. I think some of us are archives. This episode is part encouragement, part creative intervention, and part permission slip for the writers whose brains never stop generating worlds, characters, dialogue, and possibilities. And if you’ve ever felt guilty for having “too many ideas” while still trying to finish your current project… This file is for you. In This Episode: * “Story idea generation is not procrastination.” * Why every idea deserves to be logged somewhere * My favorite ways to organize story concepts * Mood boarding as a storytelling tool * Why creative overflow can actually protect your writing career My Favorite Line From This Episode… “As long as we’re generating ideas, we’ll always have stories to tell.” And honestly?I love that for us. Listen to Between the Drafts — File 07 now. —P. Rose This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whoisprose.substack.com [https://whoisprose.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Between the Drafts | CITY FILES // 002 Companion Episode — Setting Isn’t Place. It’s Belief

Most writers are taught that setting is where the story happens. A city.A house.A coffee shop.A bedroom at 2 a.m. while rain hits the windows. But what if that’s only the surface? In this companion episode for CITY FILES // 002, I’m digging into the idea that setting isn’t really about location at all. It’s about belief. Because the worlds that stay with us, the ones that feel immersive, addictive, impossible to leave behind, aren’t memorable because of architecture alone. They’re memorable because the world itself believes something. Darkness is expected.Power always demands consequence.Love changes people.Ambition is rewarded.Secrets survive because everyone agrees not to look too closely. From the eerie tension of Stephen King’s worlds to the seductive hierarchy of Anne Rice’s vampires, to the unspoken rules of John Wick and the MCU… we’re talking about how fictional worlds quietly train characters how to behave. In this episode, I also talk about: * Why “white rooms” happen in fiction * The difference between describing a place vs. understanding its demands * How setting shapes dialogue, conflict, and emotional choices * The hidden psychology behind romantic spaces in A Seat At the Table * Questions you can ask yourself to deepen your own worldbuilding And yes… there’s homework. Because you know I can’t help myself. Reflection Questions from This Episode: * If your setting had a belief system, what would it be? * What gets rewarded there? * What gets punished? * What do people pretend not to see? * What is your world quietly teaching your characters? * Are they obeying… or resisting? This episode pairs with:CITY FILES // 002 — Setting Isn’t Place. It’s Belief. So grab your notebook, your draft, your coffee, and let your world start talking back to you. — P. Rose This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whoisprose.substack.com [https://whoisprose.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]