S03EP08 - Scrittorio Magazine Winter 2023 Issue - Transcript

Before you read: Grab your free copy of Scrittorio Magazine here!

 

Hello again! You’re listening to season 3 episode 8, and today’s episode is all about Scrittorio Magazine’s second issue – the Winter 2023 issue! It was released on December 31^st, 2023, and it’s free to download and read. I wanted to make this episode to talk a little bit about what you can expect from Scrittorio in general, and what you can find in its latest issue.

Scrittorio is a free digital magazine that aims to provide fiction writers with practical lessons on the craft of writing fiction. That means that I try to focus on sharing techniques and lessons that you can then turn around and implement immediately in your story writing. As a fiction writer myself, I was very surprised to find that there are vast numbers of literary magazines out there, but not a lot of magazines dedicated to the actual craft of writing fiction. That, coupled with the fact that I feel quite isolated where I currently am, with no writing groups or circles to join, inspired me to create Scrittorio. I also loved the idea of having my own magazine, even if it is just a voluntary one-woman undertaking.

So, that’s Scrittorio in a nutshell. Let’s talk about the newest issue.

 

 

Back when I published the first and inaugural issue, I spoke about how I wanted Scrittorio to be a community-fueled magazine. I had submissions opened and was excited to get started! To be brief, I didn’t get any submissions. And, to be fair, I’m not the best about advertising. I closed submissions, and I moved on: I wrote and designed the issue myself, and I hoped that if I could share a template of what Scrittorio could look like, people would be more understanding of the vision I had for the magazine, and would want to submit their pieces, too.

But the issue was short, and looking back on it now I feel that it could have been much, much better. So, I decided that this time around, I would make sure Scrittorio could become the same community-centered magazine I wanted it to be. But there were the issues of rights. I’m not based in the US, and because I’m a cautious person by nature, I didn’t want to make any mistakes on that front. So, I did the whole thing myself, but I wanted it to remain a magazine that engaged with the community in some way.

It took a little trial and error, and I’m sure there will be even more trial and error, but the resulting issue is, I think, not too bad. In the Winter 2023 issue, I opened submissions for people to send in their Two Cents – their thoughts about a range of topics that I would be writing articles about and discussing in the magazine. This new segment would appear alongside the articles, in the margins, and of course nobody would be identified in any particular way, apart from a single name and an age. I received one submission, and I’m thankful for that submission, because it gave me the chance to include that segment and let my readers know what it would look like. Hopefully, more people out there will be willing to send in their Two Cents as a result.

Another thing I did that I hadn’t been able to do with the previous issue was interviewing fiction writers from around the web! I reached out to three talented writers – Etta Grace, Kit Riemer, and Underboss – and they all graciously agreed to allow me to interview them. I don’t mind telling you, I was ecstatic. I chose these writers because I enjoyed their writing, and because I admired what they had created.

Etta Grace, who is working on her novel, Runaways, spoke to me about her version of the Pied Piper, who is one of the main antagonists in her book, her mesmerizing worldbuilding, writing emotional scenes, and more.

Kit Riemer, who has created the interactive fiction Universal Hologram, among others, spoke to me about the philosophical underpinnings of these works, plotting interactive fictions, shared advice for writers interested in trying their hand at writing interactive fiction, and more.

Underboss, who writes and publishes the serial LitRPG fantasy comedy As Good As Dead on Royal Road, spoke to me about writing LitRPG, the challenges of publishing serial web fiction, his stylistic influences, and more.

I strongly urge you to pick up a copy of Scrittorio for the interviews alone, because they’re each rich with experience and good advice! And, while you’re at it, make sure to go check out each and every writer’s works!

At the core of Scrittorio, there were several articles that I included in this issue, based around trending topics from 2023. These include an article about AI in fiction-writing, writing horror, serial fiction podcasts, and more! If you’re interested in hearing my thoughts on these various topics, please head on over to the Scrittorio website and download your free copy of the magazine.

Of course, Scrittorio in my mind is not Scrittorio without the In The Margins segment. This is a section of the magazine where we take a short story or excerpts from a story or book and break them down to see what techniques the author has used to create a certain effect. In this issue, I chose to take a look at P.G. Wodehouse’s very funny collection of stories, Carry on, Jeeves. If you want to get some pointers about writing comedy, go ahead and grab that copy of Scrittorio – it’s all in there.

Finally, I also have a range of worksheets for you to make use of. There is a set of character development workheets, a few worksheets that help you plot out an interactive fiction, a writing exercise to accompany the In the Margins segment, and a large section at the end of the magazine with an 8-day writing journal and a set of 12 writing prompts of all genres.

Like I said, this is an issue that is jam-packed with goodies for the fiction writer. You can also subscribe to the magazine so that you will be the first to know when submissions open and when new issues come out.

I really hope that you’ll take a few moments to check out Scrittorio Magazine’s Winter 2023 issue, because it is certainly a labour of love that took many, many, many hours of writing and designing and planning and editing and decorating and so much more.

Thanks for tuning in! Until next time!