Beyond the Grammar

Jayden Jelso is an author and aspiring screenwriter/ filmmaker. His love of storytelling first stemmed from an obsession with the Star Wars franchise, The Lord of the Rings series, and all eight Harry Potter films. He started writing his debut novel, Talon, when he was only sixteen and published it at eighteen.

On today's episode, we'll cover the ins and outs of writing dystopia, from conceiving the idea to finalizing the cover art.

P.S. Patton is a speculative fiction author and songwriter based on the Central Coast of California.

He is a thirty-something husband and father who spent his early years reading superhero comics, writing and illustrating comics of his own, learning the secrets of the ooze, the balance of the force, the deeper magic from before the dawn of time, awakening the wind fish, shooting marbles and slamming pogs, collecting and trading Pokémon cards, rescuing Hyrule, becoming the Hero of Time, searching the scriptures, studying eschatology, and feeling just as—if not more—fascinated with the worlds of Shakespeare, Dickens, Melville, and Steinbeck; as with those of Rowling, King, Lewis, and Tolkien.

Enjoy today's episode of Beyond the Grammar!

Join me for a conversation with YA historical fiction writer Amanda McCrina. We'll cover the how-tos of researching for a book, what to expect during the publication process, and things to know before you start writing.

"Spicy" and "forest" aren't typically words you'd expect to see together. But John Milton thought it was a good pairing - and his books are still read hundreds of years after initial publication. What lessons can modern authors extract from his creative expressions?

Join me for a conversation with one of the writers behind the bestselling "gold standard for writers," The Emotion Thesaurus. We'll cover self vs. traditional publishing, avoiding the mistake of "telling" rather than "showing," and building a successful career as a writer in a saturated industry.

From Zaphod Beeblebrox in Hitchhiker's Guide to Sherlock Holmes in - you guessed it - Sherlock Holmes, archetypes have long been some of the world's favorite type of character. Learn how to avoid the common pitfalls of writing archetypal characters in today's episode of Beyond the Grammar, a sister podcast of Grammar Minute.

Have you ever dreamed about building a successful career as a writer? Join me for an interview with Victoria McCombs, author of Oathbound (& many more!), where we chat about how to break into the industry, mistakes to avoid as a new writer, and what makes a book truly great.

If you've been reading the news, you surely haven't missed the rising controversy between creative industries and artificial intelligence like ChatGPT. Join me for a conversation with the world's favorite bot, where we discus novel-writing, plans for taking over the world (okay, not really), and what writers can do to make themselves stand out over their robotic counterparts.