HeyJaredStory Deep Dive
Join editor and USA Today bestselling author Dana Pittman and developmental editor Rachel Arsenault for a weekly deep dive into great novels.
- Indexed issues, last 90 days
- 13
- Latest publication
- Sep 27, 2026
- Audience
- Checking…
- Earliest in this view
- Jul 5, 2026
Latest issues
Episode 91: Genre Rules, Setting, and Backstory in Louisiana Longshot (opens the original)
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Welcome to Story Deep Dive!In this episode, Dana and Rachel close their month on Louisiana Longshot by Jana DeLeon with their editor’s takeaways, built around a single argument: knowing your genre cold is what makes breaking it possible. They also hand back two portable tools, conflict buckets and the POV levers, and work out how much backstory a first book owes a twenty-book series.Whether you’re a romance writer, paranormal author, or story strategist, you’ll gain valuable insights on innovati
Episode 90: Point of View, Comic Timing, and Character Foils in Louisiana Longshot (opens the original)
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Welcome to Story Deep Dive!In this episode, Dana and Rachel take on the cast of Louisiana Longshot by Jana DeLeon, including the argument that Ida Belle and Gertie are not Fortune’s opposites but a preview of who she is becoming. They also break down how point of view builds character through the gap between what someone says and what they think, and why identical small-town details become opposite books depending on tone.Whether you’re a romance writer, paranormal author, or story strategist, y
Episode 89: Inciting Incidents, Red Herrings, and Conflict in Louisiana Longshot (opens the original)
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Welcome to Story Deep Dive!In this episode, Dana and Rachel take apart the plot machinery of Louisiana Longshot by Jana DeLeon, from a hide-or-die opening that plants thriller stakes inside a cozy to a climax where every thread collides at once. They also hand over two tools you can use on your own manuscript this week: buckets of conflict and a working definition of the red herring.Whether you’re a romance writer, paranormal author, or story strategist, you’ll gain valuable insights on placing
Episode 88: Genre Rules, Layered Mysteries, and Book Ones in Louisiana Longshot (opens the original)
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Welcome to Story Deep Dive! In this episode, Dana and Rachel open their month on Louisiana Longshot by Jana DeLeon by mapping where cozy mystery actually sits on the crime spectrum and what that position asks of your protagonist. They then take apart how a book one seeds twenty sequels without overloading the reader. Whether you’re a romance writer, paranormal author, or story strategist, you’ll gain valuable insights on layering a mystery without stacking bodies, sizing a cast for a long-runnin
Episode 87: Writing Paths, Time Horizons, and Why Your Goals Change Everything (opens the original)
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Welcome to Story Deep Dive! In this bonus episode, Dana and Rachel dig into one of the most important questions a writer can ask: what do you actually want your writing to do? The answer to that question determines your publishing path, your timeline, your research priorities, your team, and how you build an audience. Whether you’re writing toward a traditional deal, planning to self-publish, or still figuring out which way you’re going, this episode gives you the real trade-offs, the timelines
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