Writing with Friends

Hillary Barnes Martinez and BJ Williams
  • 5.0 (4)
  • HOW TO
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

We’re BJ and Hillary— college friends turned writing pals. This podcast is our quest for the best writing tips and tools for our own projects, and yours too! Let’s get started.

  1. 05/05/2025

    Tool Deep Dive: The Novelist Starter Pack

    Today we’ll discuss the novelist starter pack: five essential tools for your figurative writer’s knapsack as you make the journey from getting started with that novel to querying and hopefully publishing your work! Picks of the Week: BJ: Existence by David Brin H: The New Diary by Tristine Rainer Mentioned in the Episode: Brandon Sanderson’s BYU Writing Course Save the Cat! Writes a Novel by Jessica Brody S1E10: The Revision Spreadsheet S4E3 Fireside Chat: How Should I Use the Revision Spreadsheet? S1E1: Writers Workshops and Text to Speech Tools London Writers’ Salon Query with Confidence Course

    8 min

  2. 04/28/2025

    Fireside Chat: Our Writing Lives Lately

    Today, we’ll be gathering around our metaphorical fireplace for a fireside chat– an honest conversation about our own writing practices that we hope you’ll find helpful for your writing life as well. In this episode, we’ll be talking about our writing lives lately– what’s going well, what’s not, and what we’re learning along the way. Picks of the Week: BJ: The Best Science Fiction of Isaac Asimov by Isaac Asimov H: The Service of the Dead by Candace Robb Mentioned in the Episode: Sarah Ruhl Quote on Life Intruding on Writing

    15 min

  3. 04/21/2025

    Pitfalls of the Debut Novel

    We’ll be talking about the unique challenges of publishing a debut novel. Breaking into the literary world should be exciting and celebratory, and it definitely is! Still, there are a few considerations that debut authors should be aware of as they begin their publishing journeys, so we’re going to cover them here today! Picks of the Week:   BJ: Star Wars: Thrawn by Timothy Zahn H: We Solve Murders by Richard Osman Mentioned in the Episode: Bonnie Garmus Interview Bonnie Garmus and Felicity Blunt Interview S5E9 What’s a Commercial Hook and How do I write one? S6E2 Pacing the First Five Pages Brandon Sanderson’s BYU Writing Course

    8 min

  4. 04/13/2025

    Tool Deep Dive: Local Bookstores and Bookshop.org

    Today's episode is all about finding inspiration and support for your writing in places you might not expect. We’re diving into the world of local bookstores and Bookshop.org! Picks of the Week: BJ: The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin H: The Snowbirds by Christine Clancy Mentioned in the Episode: New York City Mystery Bookstore: The Mysterious Bookshop

    9 min

  5. 04/07/2025

    Tool Deep Dive: Notetaking For Writers

    Welcome to a tool deep dive episode, where we highlight the features and the challenges of a tool we think you’ll find helpful as a writer. Today, we’re going to give you a rundown of what note taking tools we’ve actually found helpful as writers, and hopefully give you some ideas about what tools might work well for you too! Picks of the Week: BJ: Feng Shui Modern by Cliff Tan H: Middlemarch by George Eliot Mentioned in the Episode: S1E4: Zettelkasten Notetaking Systems  S1E9: Zotero  S2E5: Notebooks S4Mini17: What’s in My Bag Writing Edition Gretchen Rubin: “Beautiful Tools Make Work a Joy!” Cal Newport: Single Subject Notebooks

    11 min

  6. 03/31/2025

    Deciding Not to Withhold a Big Reveal

    Today, we’ll be talking about deciding not to withhold a big reveal. Whether you're writing a novel, a screenplay, or even a short story, knowing when and how to reveal critical information to your audience can make or break your narrative. We'll be discussing the impact of timing, the balance between suspense and satisfaction, and how to make those big reveals resonate with your readers. Picks of the Week: BJ: My recommendation this week is a book of comics, not to be confused with traditional comic books. It’s called Hi, Just a Quick Question: Queries, Advice, and Figuring It All Out by Beth Evans H: Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman Mentioned in the Episode: The Other Valley by Scott Alexander Howard

    8 min

  7. 03/24/2025

    Fireside Chat: Scheduling and Protecting Your Writing Time

    Today we’ll be gathering around our metaphorical fireplace for a fireside chat– an honest conversation about how we’re applying a craft topic or tool to our own writing practices, and how you might incorporate this topic or tool into your writing life as well. And the tool we’ll be talking about today is…scheduling and protecting your writing time. Picks of the Week: BJ: Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie H: Textbook by Amy Krouse Rosenthal Mentioned in the Episode: Gretchen Rubin Quote: “Don’t Let the Perfect Be the Enemy of the Good” James Clear Quote: “It Only Takes Five Minutes” Cal Newport Video on Time Block Planning S4E8: How Can Body Doubling Improve My Writing Practice?

    12 min

  8. 03/17/2025

    When Writing Goals Hurt and When They Help

    Welcome to a tool deep dive episode, where we highlight the features and the challenges of a tool we think you’ll find helpful as a writer. And the tool we’ll be talking about today is writing goals! Specifically, we’ll cover when they hurt and when they help. Picks of the Week: H: The Other Valley by Scott Alexander Howard BJ: The Risen Empire by Scott Westerfeld Mentioned in the Episode: SMART goals

    9 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

We’re BJ and Hillary— college friends turned writing pals. This podcast is our quest for the best writing tips and tools for our own projects, and yours too! Let’s get started.

Information

  • Creator
    Hillary Barnes Martinez and BJ Williams
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2025
  • Episodes
    86
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Hillary Barnes Martinez and BJ Williams
  • Show Website
    Writing with Friends