Bookcast Episode 77: Reading, Writing & The Downhill Slide: How I Write Pt 4

On Episode 77, I update you on my Goodreads challenge process, I give a writing update on THE PEARL at Black Diamond, and I am continuing my HOW I WRITE series on the climax of your novel and bringing it on home.

Full show notes, including the books I discussed today and the resources I shared will be on my website at booksbydlwhite.com/bookcast. Look for episode 77.

Thank you so much for joining me for today's chat. Follow me on the socials- I am author DL White in most places and shout me out a holler!

Don’t forget to share the podcast if you enjoyed this episode and if you listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, give a girl a rating! I’d really appreciate it. Do not forget that you can support this podcast with your book purchases, by spreading the good word, or by throwing some coins in the hat at bookcast.buzzsprout.com. Every little bit helps.

I'll be back next week with a reading and writing update and we will talk about epilogues and bonus chaps! 

Enjoy your  weekend, have a superlative week and we'll chat again soon... 

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome
• 2:14 Check Books by DL White for monthly sales
• 4:19 Book Report + Goodreads Challenge Update
• 11:53 Writing Update- The Pearl at Black Diamond
• 14:09 How I Write Series Pt 4: The HighPoint
• 23:56 How Do I Turn This Thing Off? Writing great endings
• 31:14 Ending + Close

Transcript

DL White [00:00:14]:
Hello everyone, and welcome back to the BookCast, my platform for sharing short fiction and updates on what I'm reading and writing. This is episode 77. We are barreling quickly toward episode 100. Do I know what I'm doing for episode 100? Not not a clue. I don't even know when I'm going to reach episode 100. But, yeah, it's probably gonna be just a regular old episode. I am DL White. I am an author of contemporary southern and romantic fiction novels that center black love and relationships.

DL White [00:00:51]:
I'm also a big fan of books. So we usually begin with the book report, and then we talk about writing and topics of the day. I am doing a series called how I write, which is, I'm talking about the beginning, your first act, the soggy, boring middle, and how to avoid that. Today, I'm talking about your climax and sliding on downhill to the end of your novel. And those are things I kinda struggle with because I don't I don't want the book to be boring. I don't want people to hit the midpoint and be like, put it down and never pick it back up. Also don't want the ending to be bad and I feel like I struggle with endings. I've I'm vexed the most about the middle and the end.

DL White [00:01:35]:
So we're gonna talk about it today. We're gonna talk about it and hopefully, the tips that I bring up today will help me as I am writing the pearl at black diamond black diamond romance number 3. And, I'll go over that a little bit of detail in the writing update. The book cast is a production of books by DL White written, edited, produced, and supported by me. If you'd love to back me up, I'd be most grateful, and the best way to do that is to buy my books. Booksbydlwhite.com/books has all of the good stuff in ebook or audio. I have been putting ebooks and audiobooks on sale monthly, so do pay attention to my blog on my website atbooksbydlwhite. Com.

DL White [00:02:14]:
I have some good stuff coming up for March, which is the anniversary of my debut novel, brunch at Ruby's. All of my titles are available in ebook at my store and online retailers in addition to wherever ebooks and audiobooks are sold and subscription sites like Everand and Kobo Plus. You can purchase print editions of my books at bookshop.org. I do have a shop there. Resist Booksellers has a shop there, or you can request print copies at Resist Booksellers. They're also available to request at your local library through Libby or Hoopla. Today, we will start with the book report as always, and then we'll chat about writing the climax and the ending of a novel. 2 really big but sometimes difficult pieces.

DL White [00:02:53]:
Let's let's dissect it together. Today is Saturday, February 24th. It is 9:0:7 AM. It's sunny and bright in the ATL. Like, there's a shard of sunlight stabbing me in the eye right now, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I have a mic, and I am ready to dig in. But first, let's have some coffee. And we're back.

DL White [00:03:29]:
The Bustelo is hitting today. I'm a try to get through this episode. I've got it on this little warmer thing I got. It's in a Yeti, and I'm closing it up, and it's sitting on my little warmer. And I just pray that it is remotely warm when I am done recording so I can enjoy the coffee while I, update buzzsprout with my podcast details and then my blog and do all my social media. Hopefully, I will be done by 12 o'clock today, so let's get going. We begin as always with the book report because I am a book head. New year, new challenge.

DL White [00:04:05]:
I have read 25 books of my challenge to read 150 books this year. I am 2 books ahead on my Goodreads challenge, and that feels good because I think I was a few books behind last week or the week before. This week, I read 4 books. 2 of them were audio. Candidly Yours by Reese Ryan. You know, I y'all know I love love love a Reese Ryan novel. This one is a carnival set. So this couple, they, meet and they agree to go to a bunch of these, carnivals together.

DL White [00:04:36]:
Of course, now I forget, like, pertinent details, but I believe one of them is a journalist, and she is covering these carnivals and ends up meeting the sky, and they decide to, like, go to all these carnivals together. And, it's a romance, so, duh, guess what happens? But it was just lovely. Reese can write her tail off. I'm always always betting on a Reese Ryan novel. Very enjoyable. Love and Hot Chicken by Mary Eliza Hartung. I really thought this was gonna be a super cute southern novel. The premise is really heartwarming and quite delicious if you love hot chicken.

DL White [00:05:09]:
It just did not really work for me. It was slow moving. It's just one of those books that's like slice of life, and then it drags on and on for chapters and chapters. The crux of the story surrounds a pageant, and I just immediately know this is not this is not the book for me. So I also saw that the publisher is really trying to push this as a spicy romcom, and it is neither spicy nor is it a romcom. It's literally about, the main character loses her father and stays with her mother to help her with her grief. She leaves a good job in Nashville to stay in this little town and works at a chicken shack. So, you know, if that's your thing, pick up Love and Hot Chicken.

DL White [00:05:59]:
It just was not it just was not my thing at all. I listened to fallen grace by Sadika Johnson. It's part of the Blaze collection, which is, one of those Amazon original series. It's just a collection of short stories. I may listen to the other ones, but 2 of caught my eye because the characters were, black that I could tell from the cover. Sadika Johnson, love love love love love her. If I could say love a million more times, I would absolutely love her. Fallen grace is a short it's a short story offshoot from the house of Eve.

DL White [00:06:32]:
1 of the characters, had managed to escape this home that the ladies were in, and it's her story really, like, gripping emotional story about her return home. Very well done, Sadika. And then Fires to Come by Asha Lemmy. I really, really enjoyed this. I don't I have never heard of Asha Lemmy before, but I'm definitely going to be looking up more of her work. This was really so good. If you're interested in that, the books are in ebook and audio only at Amazon. These exclusives are why I keep my Audible subscription.

DL White [00:07:04]:
I get audiobooks everywhere else, but I I hoard my credits for these type of situations where the book is only available at Audible, and y'all can't keep me from books. Put them on exclusive if you want to, but y'all can't keep me from books. So, also, if you're a member of Kindle Unlimited, you can grab the ebook and the audio, with your Kindle Unlimited subscription. Both are very good. I may listen to the rest of the collection. I may not, but these were, darn good. On the reading list this week, the rumor game by Thomas Mullen and the American daughters both published on 27th. I am not going to get to both of them.

DL White [00:07:42]:
I'm thinking about saving the American daughters until it comes out so I can listen to it in audio. Some books, I just know it's just gonna be a different experience in audio. I do wanna get the rumor game by Thomas Mullen under my belt. I'm he's gonna be at the wrecking ball in Atlanta. I'm thinking about going because I really enjoy him. I also I have all of his books signed except for his first one, dark town. The last time I saw him, he was with SA Cosby at the wrecking ball, and they were out of dark town. So I do wanna go at least to pick up dark town and maybe get a print copy of the rumor game.

DL White [00:08:19]:
I don't know. I I may I don't know. It's a weeknight. You know? It's a school night. So and then This Could Be Us publishes March 5th by Kennedy Ryan. This is the follow-up to Before I Let Go. Is this is this a safe space? I hope so because it's my podcast. I did not finish before I let go.

DL White [00:08:41]:
I just I was reading it. I was out of town. I couldn't concentrate on it. I just could not get into it. And sometimes I read like, Kennedy can write her tail off, but sometimes I read her books, and I'm like, are these are these people black? I can't tell. So I may read this could be us. I may wait for the audio, but it is definitely on my list. I have an advanced reader copy of it, so I should give it a shot.

DL White [00:09:06]:
Yes. Yes. I should. It's also one of those situations where I'm writing and the way that Kennedy is so skilled with the written word, sometimes I get to I get in my feelings about my writing. And then I feel like, okay, I can't write. I'm never gonna write this good. And, so we'll see. I'm gonna give it a shot.

DL White [00:09:27]:
I'm gonna I'm gonna give it a shot. So remember game is going on the American daughters. I may wait for audio for that one. This could be us. We're gonna put it into our face sometime this week or, perhaps next weekend before it publishes on March 5th. I cannot believe we are already talking about March. And if you know me, you know my birthday is coming up soon. I have great plans for my birthday, and, I'll talk about that.

DL White [00:09:50]:
I'll talk about that later. I didn't put down any books this week because I just barely got time to read. If it wasn't for audiobooks, I would have put nothing into my brain, so thankful for audiobooks. So tonight, I have great plans. I'm gonna be seeing Wanda Morris and Tayari Jones. I'm so excited because they are 2 of my faves. Wanda m Morris will be in conversation with author Tayari Jones about her book anywhere you won, which was a fabulous, fabulous novel. A book about 2 sisters on the run, one from the law, the other from social shame.

DL White [00:10:20]:
Anywhere You Run by Wanda m Morris takes place in the summer of 1964 in Jackson, Mississippi, and 3 innocent men are brutally murdered for trying to help black Mississippians secure the right to vote. Against this back drop, 21 year old Violet Richards finds herself in more trouble than she's ever been in her life. Marigold, Violet's older sister, has dreams of attending law school and works for the Mississippi Summer Project, but finds herself in a different kind of trouble than her sister. With both sisters having no other choice but to flee Jackson, they head in different directions to find safety. What You Leave Behind by Wanda m Morris is coming in June. I have an advanced copy and I'm very excited to read it. Tayari Jones is a New York Times bestselling author and is the author of 4 novels most recently An American Marriage published in 2018, and American Marriage is an Oprah's book club selection and has also appeared on Barack Obama's summer reading list. She is also one of my favorite favorite, favorite people, and I am delighted to be seeing her again.

DL White [00:11:19]:
I am so tempted to wear Spellman blue tonight because I know she is a daughter of Spellman. She also teaches at Spellman, no, she teaches at Emory, she did teach at Spellman, she attended Spellman. I'm gonna find some Blue. I I I I am I'm gonna do I'm gonna find some blue. Writing updates, slow, slow, slow. I really, really thought I would have time to write this week, but it was a busy one. I think I posted earlier this week that I always tell myself I am too busy to write Monday through Wednesday, but I'm also always disappointed that I'm too busy to write Monday through Wednesday. Then Thursday rolled around, and I thought I would have more time to write.

DL White [00:11:59]:
I just could not I just could not get to it. Then yesterday was way busier than I anticipated, and I sat down to write and instead took a nap. And then I watched YouTube all night. I gotta get it together. I gotta get it together. I am at 31,789 of 75,000 words written, and a lot of that is words I already wrote. I am going through the 9 chapters I had previously. I am revising.

DL White [00:12:26]:
I'm cutting. I'm moving. I'm adding The chapter I just recently finished, I just realized it's way too long. So I gotta move a big chunk from this chapter to another a shorter chapter. I can fluff that out a bit. So I'm working. This week and next week are crunch time. I will have lots of pockets of writing time during the week due to low deliverables at the day job, so we will see what I can get done.

DL White [00:12:49]:
My goal is to work through the chapters I had before to refine them, get myself on solid footing so I can move forward with new words. And then I spend March and the first half of April just pounding out the story, and then a couple of weeks revising and perfecting before I send them to my editor in early May. Wish me luck. Moving on to the topic of the week, we are at part 4 of my how I write series, hit the high points and then bring it down. Masterclass says, the climax of a story is a decisive moment that may linger with your reader long after they have finished your book. The climax is a dramatic turning point in a narrative, a pivotal moment at the peak of a story arc that pits the protagonist against opposing against an opposing force in order to resolve the main conflict once and for all. The climax is one of the most important literary devices in plot structure. It's the moment when rising action culminates and the story arc bends and begins its descent known as the falling action.

DL White [00:13:55]:
Today, I wanna talk about the high point of our novel and the falling action or downward slide to a satisfying ending. Often, this part is where we insert the last twist of your action or crime novel or that black slash all is lost slash 3rd act breakup in your romantic fiction novel. Aside from your beginning, this is the point where you wanna have your reader by the eyeballs and the heartstrings. If this piece doesn't work, your book really falls flat. We talk a lot about the soggy middle, but if your climax is not climaxing, this is where people put down your book and don't pick it back up. Five tips for improving your story's climax from masterclass.com. Number 1, write the end first. I mean, if this works for you, this works for you.

DL White [00:14:39]:
If you know if you know where you're going, then you can figure out how to get there. I always before I sit down to write, I need to know how the story begins and how the story ends. I I know how I want it to end. I know what I want to have happen in the ending. I don't quite know how I'm gonna get there. When I say I'm a discovery writer, everything in between, here's how our story starts, and here's how our story ends is what I'm discovering. Tip 2, use a prologue to hint at your clump climax. This week on Twitter, there's been a lot of discourse about whether or not people read prologues, and the important important part of reading a prologue is it gives you a hint at the height, the midpoint of the story.

DL White [00:15:23]:
Sometimes it's a clue. I mean, skip it at your own peril, but if you get to the climax, you don't get it, you might wanna tip on back to that prologue and read it. Tip 3, think of your storyline as a path. And this is something I do a lot. I need lily pads. I don't extensively plan because as I said, I'm a discovery writer. So but if I have a path this and then this and then this and then this, I have lily pads to jump to from this to this to this to this. Now all I have to do is figure out how to get from 1 lily pad to another, but I am looking at the endpoint, which is my end, and that's where I'm trying to get to.

DL White [00:16:10]:
I I have a direction. I know where I'm going. I just need to get there. Tip 4, use a crucible. The crucible effect is when an environment or situation becomes inescapable for your characters and forces them toward a story's climax. This crucible usually comes about as a result of a character's decisions, which is a result of the pressures put upon them. I don't have an example of this, but it sounds good to me. Number 5, remember genre.

DL White [00:16:37]:
The details of your story's climax will depend on your story elements, but genre will often determine whether that climax turns out well for your characters. Romance novels generally have happy endings for example, while tragedies do not. So your climax needs to absolutely point toward genre. Now I feel like it's a romance, it's a mystery, it's a crime fiction novel, so you know how that mug is gonna end. I feel like at your climax, you can be wild. You can, like, outside of things you shouldn't put at a climax, which we'll talk about do's and don'ts, I feel like people say romance is predictable because you know how it's going to end, but what you don't know is that middle part. You don't know what happens between partner a meets partner b, and partner a and partner b ride off into the sunset. That is what makes every romance book different.

DL White [00:17:32]:
I feel like a climax that is absolutely out of like you didn't see that coming at all. I love that. I actually love that. Do remember your genre though. Remember, like, what makes sense for the genre that you're writing and, like, fold it into the rest your story. In a romance novel, this could also be where your grand gesture comes in. Your characters are meant to be, and one of your characters proves it. In a thriller, this would be hero at the mercy of a villain scene.

DL White [00:18:01]:
In a mystery novel, this is where the detective explains how the murder happened like Will Trent. If you're a fan, I'm a big big fan of the Will Trent series. It's Will Trent playing out the entire crime for everyone else who is much much slower because he is of course a genius. It's if you watch Monk, it's Monk saying here's how it happened, right? In an adventure tale it's the final life versus death battle. Your climax is all action, conflicts, things happening, it is not the time for slow nothings. So what makes a good climax? Storyflint.com says a good climax is one that's unexpected but still makes sense. It should be something that changes everything but is still believable. A good climax is also emotionally impactful, it should pack a punch and be memorable.

DL White [00:18:45]:
The most important thing about a good climax, the protagonist needs to make a choice. This choice needs to be the hardest choice they've ever had to made in the entire story, and to show how much the character has grown. When I think of a story climax, I think about a thin line. If you haven't read that book, I'm gonna I'm I'm gonna spoil a little bit of it, but I it's been out for years. So get it together, buy a thin line, read it, Love it. Tell me all about it. In this book, you have 2 former sweethearts. They broke up in high school.

DL White [00:19:18]:
They had a very, very petty argument, and Angie has basically hated Preston since they broke up in high school. Both of them still in live in their hometown. They both have, you know, good jobs. They are up upwardly mobile. They are middle class ish. Preston is more upper upper middle class than Angie is. Angie is pretty much middle class, and these 2 have been roped into planning a destination for their their their best friends are engaged. Preston's best friend and Angie's best friend are engaged to each other.

DL White [00:19:50]:
They have roped Angie and Preston into planning their destination wedding. These 2 bicker like nobody's business, like an old married couple. They just nip at each other all the time. And we all know why. We all know why. We all know what pushing these 2 together to plan this wedding is supposed to do and so do Preston and Angie and they have determined that this is not gonna work because after they are done planning this wedding, they are done with each other, they never have to talk to each other again. Mhmm. Sure.

DL White [00:20:23]:
Sure. That's gonna work. To me, I think the climax of this story is the point where Preston realizes, I am not gonna get what I want by acting the way that I have acted in the past. I am not gonna turn Angie's head until I stop being this man that she is used to me being. I gotta take off this hard rough exterior. I gotta take off this piece of me that is always picking at her, this piece of me that follows her when she goes to run, this piece of me that feels like I just need to pick and poke at her all the time, and I have gotta shed that veneer, and I've gotta be me, and I've gotta be vulnerable, and I've gotta open my heart and hope that she will take me back. The story arc were actually the the Preston's arc from the beginning to the end of the book, if you're paying attention, is very different. Like, he's still the same person, but Preston, after he becomes vulnerable, Preston, after he is real and opens his heart and confesses his feelings to Angie is a much different person.

DL White [00:21:34]:
To me, I feel like the climax of that story is like is really the feel good part of the story. It's like it's to me it was like breathing a sigh of relief once they made it past that point and that is the emotion that I am looking to bring throughout my stories. Mistakes to avoid when writing a climax. Don't make it too predictable. If you ever read a crime fiction novel that just isn't twisty enough like you if the reader can see what's coming it will take away from the impact of that moment. So I feel like authors should breadcrumb, but not be too obvious and predictable. I think everybody knows that I would really love to write, like, a crime novel or a romantic suspense, but the ideas I have, a, aren't suspenseful enough, and I am I'm not good enough at the bread crumbing and making the twists twisty so that it's not a predictable novel. Like, I'm I just I'm not my brain doesn't work in that way, and I don't know how to make it work that way, and that's why I haven't written that that novel yet.

DL White [00:22:41]:
When I write a story, it automatically goes toward romance, and that's just where that's just where my mind goes. I wish I could make it go elsewhere, but it just doesn't. Another mistake is to makes the climax too unbelievable. Like, if the twist seems come out of nowhere, it's gonna frustrate the reader. It should make sense and be believable. This this can be anything from something that's physically impossible to something that goes against the laws of the world you have built. I also personally cannot stand a too convenient answer. He's rich, so he just pays for it.

DL White [00:23:17]:
What's that about? Make it hard to resolve without a bag of money or if he resolves the issue with a bag of money, talk about how difficult it is for that to be the answer. Lastly, making your climax too quick and dirty. Take your time, tell your story, let it hit, and then bring it down. A good climax should be long enough to give the reader time to process what's happening and feel all of the the emotions involved. So then what? Okay. How do how do I turn this thing off? The beginning of the book is a promise to your reader. The middle of your book is a marathon, so let's talk about ending your novel something I really struggle with so let's work it out. A great ending always completes your story arc, shows a change in your main character, and satisfies your reader.

DL White [00:24:04]:
Let's look at some do's and don'ts of endings. Don't introduce any new characters or subplots unless you're writing a series. If you're writing a series or you're going to have a cliffhanger, you want to wrap up the story, like the main story of this book. The only reason to introduce new characters or subplot at the end of your book is if that new character and that new subplot is going to continue into the next book. Other than that, any appearances within the last 50 pages should have been foreshadowed earlier even if mysteriously. Do create that sense of, oh wow, your best novelties and biggest surprises should go here. Readers love it when some early trivial detail plays a part in the final chapters. 1 or more of these things can show up here as decisive elements.

DL White [00:24:53]:
Don't work in an artificial twist or a surprise in the end unless the story justifies it, do make sure the story feels as if it is finished. Don't like like when a story just ends. What what what is that about? Don't describe muse, explain or philosophize. Don't preach. This is not a sermon. It's a novel. Keep description to a minimum, but maximize action and conflict. You've placed all your charges now, light the fuse and run.

DL White [00:25:23]:
Do enmesh your readers deeply in the outcome. Get them so involved that they cannot put down your novel to go to bed, to work, or to the bathroom until they see how it turns out. I remember distinctly reading the first Rachel Kaye nove novel, Stillhouse Lake. Somebody recommended this book to me. I believe it was Soleica Snyder. Hey. Read Stillhouse Lake. It's really good.

DL White [00:25:45]:
So I picked it up, and I started reading it, and I could not stop reading. I had to get out of bed to pace while I was reading that novel climax and the ending of that book is so much. It's so gripping. It's so good. Rest in peace, Rachel Caine. You did your thing. Other novel I'm thinking of is 2nd House from the Corner by Sadika Johnson. There are parts in that novel where I was just yelling at the text, like the main character in that book made some wild decisions.

DL White [00:26:16]:
Wild, like when I talk about a climax where you can just be wild because you know how it's gonna end, wild. Don't change voice, tone, or attitude, it should not feel like a different person ended this book, an ending will feel tacked on if the voice of the narrator suddenly sounds alien to the voice that's been consistent for the previous 60 to 80,000 words. Do resolve the central conflict. You don't have to have a happily ever after ending, but do try to uplift. Readers wanna be uplifted, and editors wanna give readers what they want. So this is a little bit controversial. Sometimes a book doesn't end on an up note. Sometimes a book ends where you don't get what you wanted as a reader, but you understand why.

DL White [00:27:02]:
Maybe I'm a little Pollyanna, but I feel like a book in which a character dies, I just feel like that is just for, like, heartstrings and the emotional like, did the character really have to die? Yeah. Putting death in your book is just such an easy it it's just such an easy plot point to grab at, and it does pull the heartstring. It does bring out emotion. It does make people feel like, oh, that's so unfair. Then you end that book and you're sad. I don't I don't wanna end a book being sad. Even if it's a crime novel, I wanna feel like justice was served. I wanna feel like there's there's an ending.

DL White [00:27:37]:
So if you have a book and you end it and you don't actually, in words, dictate how this book ends, I'm so frustrated. And then that makes me not wanna read the your next book. Do afford redemption to your heroic character. No matter how many mistakes they've made along the way, allow the reader and the character to realize that in the end, they have done the right thing. Don't resort to gimmicks. No quirky twists, no trick endings. You're at the end of your story, and if your reader has stuck with you the whole time, it's because you've engaged to them because they have participated. The final impression you wanna create is a positive one.

DL White [00:28:15]:
Don't leave your reader feeling tricked or cheated. Do tie up loose ends of significance. Every question you planted in a reader's mind should be addressed even if the answer is to say that a character will address that issue later after the book ends. Do mirror your final words to events in your opener. When you reach the ending, go back to ensure some element in each of your complications will point to it. This is a tie back tactic in which writer creates a feeling that the final words bring you to an earlier moment in the story. I love a good tieback, and I do try to put this in every novel where the ending ties back to the beginning. This reminds me that every word, every scene, every action means that something in your story.

DL White [00:28:59]:
Your beginning should matter when it comes to your ending. So much of this comes with practice, with doing, with finding out what works and what doesn't, and with remembering your story elements and how they work no matter what genre you're writing. Concept, character, voice, plot, theme, scene construction, and style, all of these combine to create your narrative and to tell your story. And that do and don't list came from, writersdigest.com. I'm gonna put links to all of the resources that I used to pull together today's chat in the show notes at books by dlwhite.com/bookcast. Look for episode 77. If you would like to read further because I really just picked out the high points to expound on, so if you would like to do more research and I encourage you to because remember, I am not an expert. I will put those in the show notes.

DL White [00:29:52]:
Just as a reminder, I write to an audience, a genre, a construct. If I'm writing a mystery or a crime fiction, that book is not over until the whodunit is resolved. If I'm writing a romance, the story has not ended, if my couple has not been made whole. One thing I haven't ever discovered is why some books seem to end without ending. Grapes of Wrath, for instance. Have you ever read Grapes of Wrath? I feel like it ends mid sentence almost, like, what the heck? So many years later, the ending of that book infuriates me because it does not end, it just stops. Don't just stop, end. So this certainly helped me, it gave me some things to remember as I draw a story to a close, what to remember, what not to worry about.

DL White [00:30:34]:
Throw some words out there, try them out, then engage some close trusted partners that will tell you the truth with tact about your work, and we'll let you know if you're pulling it off or if it's not hitting. As I am getting through the first few chapters of the pearl, I am nearing my midpoint and my climax, and I know now certain things that have to happen certain things I have to keep in mind as I am building a story. I am excited about bringing it to you. I am tired, but I am excited about bringing it to you so, fingers crossed and wish me good luck. That brings us to the end of today's episode. We did some good work. We did some good work today. Thank you so much for joining me for today's chat.

DL White [00:31:20]:
Follow me on all the socials. I'm author Dale White in most places and shout me out a holler. I would love to hear from you. Don't forget to share the podcast if you enjoyed this episode, and if you listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, give a girl a rating. I would really, really appreciate it. Don't forget you support this podcast with your book purchases by spreading the good word or by throwing some coins in the hat at bookcast.bussproutdot com. Every little bit helps. If you hear that tapping, that's me tapping on my desk.

DL White [00:31:47]:
I'm enunciating every point. I'm very serious about it. Hopefully, that doesn't come through. I will be back next week with a reading update and a writing update, and I'm gonna have maybe a little bonus tip on epilogues and bonus chapters. I think I can maybe pull that together. Please enjoy your weekend. Have a superlative week. We'll chat again soon.

DL White [00:32:11]:
Bye bye.