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The First Draft Club

A podcast to help you overcome resistance and write with more joy, clarity, and confidence. If you’re working on a novel or memoir, stick around.

Podcast · By By Mary Adkins | Author & Book Writing Coach · English · Official site

Indexed episodes, last 90 days
10
Latest publication
Sep 9, 2026
Audience
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Earliest in this view
Jul 8, 2026

Latest episodes

  1. Episode · Sep 9, 2026

    S11 E10 What is Publishers Marketplace, and Why is it a Writer’s Best Untapped Resource? (opens the original)

    Episode notes · Positive tone

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    Register for my free workshop, How Much Money Can You Make On Your Book?, at workshop.thebookincubator.com. Live on Sep 10th or register to get the replay! Publishing is a black box for aspiring authors. You don't know what you don't know about the industry. But Publishers Marketplace is an aspiring author's best untapped resource — the most useful resource you don't know you're missing until you have it. In this episode, I'm showing you what it is, how to use it, and why this website where publ

  2. Episode · Sep 2, 2026

    S11 E09 6 Ways to Make Writing Easier and Less Painful (opens the original)

    Episode notes · Positive tone

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    In this episode, I'm sharing six ways I've found to make my own writing more pleasurable—the actual habits that get me into the story faster and with less friction. Some are practical (like why I don't write sitting at a desk). One of them has been the single biggest game-changer for my writing life recently. Interested in dictation for your writing process? Here's the podcast episode I mention, How I'm Using Dictation to Write My Next Novel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aB8d5vF0AVg Love the

  3. Episode · Aug 26, 2026

    S11 E08 You Like Your Outline but Now You Don't Want to Write the Book (opens the original)

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    For years I've said the reason I'm not an outliner is that once I've outlined a story, I feel like I've already written it—and it stops being fun. But a writer in the Book Incubator recently brought me a more specific version of this problem: what happens when you love your outline, don't want to change a single thing about it, and you've still lost all your excitement to actually sit down and write it? In this episode: + Why losing interest in your own outline doesn't always mean the story itse

  4. Episode · Aug 19, 2026

    S11 E07 How to Fix a Character’s Arc Without Rewriting Your Whole Plot: A Revision Lesson from My General Contractor (opens the original)

    Episode notes · Neutral tone

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    I was talking recently with a writer in The Book Incubator who'd hit a very specific kind of revision fear, and that conversation (along with being mid-remodel and thinking about load-bearing walls) led to today's podcast episode. I walk through a quick exercise for how to revise character arc in your own manuscript without unraveling the whole plot — and how to tell when it's actually a sign you need the bigger structural rewrite after all. In this episode:+ Why deepening your character's arc c

  5. Episode · Aug 12, 2026

    S11 E06 Beware of These Common Publishing Scams Everywhere Right Now (opens the original)

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    There's a scam going around publishing right now, and I couldn't stop thinking about it until I made an episode about it. A few months ago I got targeted. Then three different writers emailed me asking if an email they'd received was real. Then I got targeted again—and that time I actually clicked the link. Here's the shape of it: an email lands from someone who sounds exactly like a real editor, agent, or fellow author—real name, real title, sometimes even a real-looking corporate signature. Th

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