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    Word Docs

    Alex, Amy and Sean (aka Dr Alex Vickery-Howe, Dr Amy T Matthews and Dr Sean Williams) are professional writers who also lecture full-time at Flinders University, South Australia. They’ve joined forces to cover topics of interest to new writers in a lively, conversational style that frequently segues to areas far from where they started. If you’ve ever wondered what writers talk about beyond the lecture theatre or festival circuit, here’s your chance to find out. Bios Dr Alex Vickery-Howe is an award-winning playwright and screenwriter. In 2008 he made his writing debut with a bilingual, bicultural horror rock musical in Okinawa, Japan, where it opened the Kijimuna Festival (now Ricca Ricca Festival) and played to rave reviews and full houses, before selling out again at the Adelaide OzAsia Festival. He has subsequently written and published works for a number of Australian theatre companies. On screen, Alex has written and directed short films which have played to a variety of international festivals. He holds a PhD from Flinders University, where he specialises in writing internationally for younger audiences. Links: https://www.flinders.edu.au/people/alex.vickeryhowe Dr Amy Matthews is an award-winning novelist who publishes literary fiction under the name Amy T Matthews and historical fiction under the name Tess LeSue. She's published short stories in collections including Best Australian Stories and co-edited three anthologies of short fiction and poetry. Amy is a past chair and current board member of Writers SA and teaches creative writing at Flinders University. Her current research focusses on writing colonial historical fiction and the intersections of gender, race and power in romance. This makes it all sound very serious. It's actually ridiculously fun. Links: https://amytmatthews.com https://www.flinders.edu.au/people/amy.t.matthews https://tesslesue.com   Dr Sean Williams is an award-winning, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of forty-nine novels and over one hundred and twenty short stories for adults, young adults and children. As well as his original fiction, he has contributed to shared universes such as Star Wars and Doctor Who, collaborated with authors like Garth Nix, and lived on an Antarctica base in the name of research. His latest novel is Impossible Music, about a young heavy metal guitarist who loses his hearing. He teaches creative writing at Flinders University and writes music under the monicker “theadelaidean”. Links: www.seanwilliams.com https://www.flinders.edu.au/people/sean.williams
    en71 Episodes

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    Episodes (71)

    Episode 68: ‘Spam’ (Collaboration)

    Episode 68: ‘Spam’ (Collaboration)

    Three writers walk into a room...and somehow manage to work together. Not these three writers, necessarily. But in theory, that's how collaboration works. Welcome to the final Word Docs of the season, where Sean, Alex and Amy are in fizzy spirits thanks to acute cases of over-caffeination (or in Sean's case, too much hot chocolate). What's the secret to a good collaboration? Talk talk talk. Pizza. Precious puppet masks. And the supreme act of Veto. Unfortunately, none of the Word Docs have veto power, so there will be tangents, including a charming little story about Alex the Ungovernable Daisy, a call for spam recipes, and a trip down memory lane to when Pizza Hut was an actual restaurant. Those were the days. But these are also days and we're serving them up with a steaming hot spam pizza of knowledge.  Seriously, we really do talk about collaboration. And a lot of it is very useful stuff. Besides, you'll miss us next week, so why not put up with us this week? Spam for all!

     

    #Word Docs #writing #WritingPodcast #AmWriting #WritingLife #FlindersCreative Writing #FlindersCreativeArts #FlindersCreativeWriting #CreativeWriting #SeanWilliams #AmyTMatthews #AmyBarry #AlexVickeryHowe #AssemblageCentreForCreativeArts #SpamSpamSpamSpam #Collaboration #ShaneDix #GarthNix #PizzaHut #WellMissYou #WeKnowYoullMissUsToo #HappyWriting

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    Word Docs
    enFebruary 04, 2024

    Episode 67: ‘Protect Your Groin’ (Action & Pacing)

    Episode 67: ‘Protect Your Groin’ (Action & Pacing)

    Sean tests Alex and Amy's knowledge of action and pacing this week (ding ding ding!). What are the pitfalls of pacing an action sequence? We've got all the answers - get your fast bits right and your slow bits even righter. Is righter a word? It is now! Get some classic Word Docs wisdom about character, theme, and how to control the story. There may also be a lot of references to John Wick and some random sportsball chatter that contains no wisdom at all. But stick with it until the reversal, when all will snap into focus. (Don't hold us to that).

     

    #Word Docs #writing #WritingPodcast #AmWriting #WritingLife #FlindersCreative Writing #FlindersCreativeArts #FlindersCreativeWriting #CreativeWriting #SeanWilliams #AmyTMatthews #AmyBarry #AlexVickeryHowe #AssemblageCentreForCreativeArts #ActionScenes #Pacing #JohnWick #AmericanPsycho #ShaneDix #StarWars #TheWookieEdition #CatrionaWard #LastHouseOnNeedlesStreet #SimoneStJames #InsertActionFilm Here #TriplePenis #ThanksAlex #TheSlugInTheSky #FixItInPost #AmyGame #HappyWriting

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    Word Docs
    enJanuary 28, 2024

    Episode 66: ‘There Definitely Is Such A Thing As A Stupid Question’ (What People Ask Writers)

    Episode 66: ‘There Definitely Is Such A Thing As A Stupid Question’ (What People Ask Writers)

    Hello from the sickbed...

    Alex is calling in from home, where he's down with COVID; Sean is suffering from post-COVID brain fog; and Amy is infuriatingly healthy. Today the Word Docs are answering the most annoying questions people ask writers: Will you read my manuscript? If I give you an idea, will you write it, and we can split the profits? Can I have a free book? The answers range from 'No', to 'Hell, no', with the odd 'Amy is not a mule' thrown in, to spice things up. There's also some consideration of the stupid questions people must ask dentists... 

    #WordDocs #Writing #SeanWilliams #AmyBarry #AmyTMatthews #AlexVickeryHowe #FlindersUniversity #FlindersCreativeArts #FlindersCreativeWriting #AssemblageCentreForCreativeArts #WritingCommunity #StupidQuestions #NotSoStupidQuestions #COVID #HappyWriting

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    Word Docs
    enJanuary 21, 2024

    Episode 65: ‘The Substitute Alex’ (Satire with Alex Cothren)

    Episode 65: ‘The Substitute Alex’ (Satire with Alex Cothren)

    Join Sean, Amy and...uh...Alex?...for this week's episode of Word Docs. Our usual Alex is out with COVID so this week we're welcoming a substitute Alex, in the form of our friend and colleague Dr Alex Cothren, who sidles up to the mic to talk satire, short stories and writing challenges. By the end of this one we'll all love Alex Cothren, fear Sean, and wonder if Amy might be missing next week...

     

    #WordDocs #Writing #SeanWilliams #AmyBarry #AmyTMatthews #AlexCothren #FlindersUniversity #FlindersCreativeArts #FlindersCreativeWriting #WritingCommunity #AssemblageCentreForCreativeArts #LetsTalkTrojanBee #Satire #ShortStory #Meanjin #StephenColbert #SamanthaBee #ItsAlwaysSunny #BlackMirror #SomeoneElsesBucketList #FearSean #WeMissYouAlexVickeryHowe #HappyWriting

     

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    enJanuary 14, 2024

    Episode 64: ‘Don’t Touch My Dad’ (Instant Stories)

    Episode 64: ‘Don’t Touch My Dad’ (Instant Stories)

    The Word Docs have written a masterpiece. No, really...it’s great. It’s alright. Look, it’s not bad. Together, Amy, Sean and Alex have devised the ultimate romance. Don’t Touch My Dad should be coming to a bookshop near you, but probably won’t be.

     

    #MorePeccable #ImmanuelCollege #Style #Plot #TheCorpseofanAuthor #Audience #JumpingAhead #MalandJeanette #Genre #HappilyEverAfterAgain #SomeoneElsesBucketList #MadFather #SaneSon #FathersandDaughters #ExtendedFamilies #AlexHasSpoken #Tropes #WickedQueen #SuziQuatro #RiverPhoenix #Nala #Grimhilde #SecondChance #Incesty #Ageism #Longing #ActivelyCovering #Cheater #Secrets #FatheroftheBride #EmpathyandCompassion #ParentYourParent #FindingHappiness #ScrewupinaDifferentWay #Chances #GoldenIdea #UncleBill  

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    enJanuary 07, 2024

    Episode 63: ‘The Alex Challenge’ (Dialectic Writing)

    Episode 63: ‘The Alex Challenge’ (Dialectic Writing)

    He has finally done his homework! Alex has come to the table with trees to shake and pots to stir. Can Sean and Amy handle their sugar addled friend? Will they withstand his jittery scrutiny? The host is juiced up...and he has calories to burn.

    #AlexVickeryHowe #SeanWilliams #AmyTMatthews #PinkDrink #Caffeine #DifficultMaterial #MassagingTricks #EndoftheNightGirl #TheBookofMormon #JeanetteVickeryHowe #Tone #PostColonialism #MattandTrey #PunchingUp #Comedy #Metafiction #Simon&Schuster #ItsAlwaysSunnyinPhiladelphia #HolidayInn #BreakfastatTiffanys #NavigatingtheKingdomofNight #Goodness #AmandaNettelbeck #FraughtHistories #AnitaHeiss #ImpossibleMusic #TheBoyintheStripedPajamas #VoteYes #TheTrumpYears #JodiPicoult #CulturalBaggage #BookTokBurns #Junebug #SupremeDickhead

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    Word Docs
    enDecember 31, 2023

    Episode 62: ‘More Has to be Going On’ (Bad Sex Awards)

    Episode 62: ‘More Has to be Going On’ (Bad Sex Awards)

    And the golden statue goes to...

    There are some trophies you don’t mount on your bookshelf (pun intended) but they colour your career nonetheless. The Word Docs have gleefully unearthed the worst of the Bad Sex Awards to explore the act of love in print. With lots of laughter and a little light vomit, Amy, Sean and Alex will discuss the whos, the whys, and the oh-dear-god-nos of these explicit encounters.

     

    Warning: This episode contains weird swearing, confusing anatomy and icky metaphors. Not to be played in public.

     

    #AmyTMatthews #SeanWilliams #AlexVickeryHowe #TheSlugintheSky #LoveandDeath #MarryingOffMorganMcBride #SkinnyDipping #Beards #ShesAllThat #TheWildMan #HelmsDeep #TessLeSue #DefinitionsofSex #JulianGough #NippleSucking #Bleep #MaryCostello #TwistyPigPenis #DidierDecoin #SpiderArms #HannibalLecter #PleasureCave #MichaelBay #Blank #MyDadWroteaPorno #TabA #SlotB #CliveBarker #TheCentralZone #HaroldandMadge #BambiTits #SportsBall #HarryPotterandtheGiantSquid #TheOddKids #Haruki Murakami #AMedicalProblem #OhGloriousPubes! #AnyoneForBillards? #PornistheProblem #SanitisedBodies #LongerHarderMore

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    Word Docs
    enDecember 24, 2023

    Episode 61: ‘Writing Tips, The Sequel’ (More Advice)

    Episode 61: ‘Writing Tips, The Sequel’ (More Advice)

    The Word Docs are perusing expert recommendations and dissecting them at length. Amy is unwell and trying to keep the train moving, Alex is stuck on a constant delay...and Sean wants to kidnap a dog. This week we learn about Einstein’s epic battle with Hitler, the importance of supportive desk chairs and the dark secret of Mount Everest.

     

    #HiPluto #Limp #ZooCam #JoanneHarris #FiveThoughts #WorkSpace #AReallyGoodDeskChair #ClimbingMountains #ThePhysio #VoidofMyOwnMind #JohnMajor #AffectEffect #Clutter #Walking #NaturalLight #Reminders #PlanYourSnacks #HydroHomie
    #EinsteinvsHitler #GoodStory #GoodCharacters #Succession #HouseofCards #TurkeysWithFirearms #MountEverest #Feelings #MakePeopleCry #BeingAuthentic #JudiDench #ArchiveofEmotionalMemory #DogThreats #AMelancholyPerspective #HavingaGoodNight #MoreDogThreats #TedLasso #PointofView #Traps! #FirstPerson #LarryDavid #LionelShriver #Empathy #JurassicPark #TheSlugintheSky #ReadReadRead #SneakyThoughts #TiffanyLyndallKnight #FrozenAlex #GhostAlex #Loose&Sick 

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    Word Docs
    enDecember 17, 2023

    Episode 60: ‘Inside the Giant Spiders’ (Immortality)

    Episode 60: ‘Inside the Giant Spiders’ (Immortality)

    This week the Word Docs are responding to a listener question and exploring immortality. Would you want to live forever? Would you want your work to live forever? Would you want to spend eternity inside a giant spider? Is that even an option? Sugared up on chocolate, this is Word Docs at their most rambunctious. Sean reads palms, and Amy finds she doesn't seem to have a lifeline, while Alex frets that he might be taken to a farm up state when his time is up. By the end of this one you'll feel you've lived many lives, and you'll be able to use 'heretofore' in a sentence.

     

    #WordDocs #Writing #SeanWilliams #AmyBarry #AmyTMatthews #AlexVickeryHowe #FlindersUniversity #FlindersCreativeArts #FlindersCreativeWriting #AssemblageCentreForCreativeArts #WritingCommunity #Immortality #WhoWantsToLiveForever #NotMe #MaybeMe #OnlyIfICanLiveInAGiantSpider #Lifelines #WordDocVampire #SciFiWriter #ThoughtExperiment #GiantSpiders #FarmUpState #Heretofore #HappyWriting

     

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    Word Docs
    enDecember 10, 2023

    Episode 59: ‘The Ambivalent Casanova’ (Types of Writers, Part Two)

    Episode 59: ‘The Ambivalent Casanova’ (Types of Writers, Part Two)

    Sean and Alex are sickly and disgusting (in that order), but Amy is here to save the day with research and cogent thoughts. This week, the Docs explore the wisdom of Betsy Lerner and unpack the various writer archetypes Lerner describes. Who among them is the Natural? The Ambivalent Writer? The Wicked Child? Well, some things are painfully obvious... join the gang as they embark on free, unqualified therapy!

     

    #FeelingGood #OnTheCouch #BetsyLerner #PostGrads #ComplexProblems #Research #TheForestForTheTrees #AmbivalentWriter #LarryMcMurtry #Slog #ThePerfectThing
    #RomanticDream #MessyPeople #Love #Hate #CoreValues #SharedVision #ImaginaryCaleb
    #Motivation #YoungPadawan #Frozen #Risk #SlingsandArrows #Haunted #Bothered #Otherness #Paradox #TheNatural #LimpBooks #TooEasy #SecondBookSyndrome #OvernightSuccess #Grit #PoorAlex #Hunger #ComingBack #GrowthMindset #SupernaturalWriters #WickedChild #Family #Community #Watchlist #GordonLish
    #JeanetteVickeryHowe #EvaHornung #SomeoneElsesBucketList #FascinatingGrandmothers #Marriage #PrinceHarry #ToBeContinued

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    Word Docs
    enDecember 03, 2023

    Episode 58: ‘The Ambivalent Casanova’ (Types of Writers, Part One)

    Episode 58: ‘The Ambivalent Casanova’ (Types of Writers, Part One)

    A promise delivered! Bookmark this. The Word Docs are back with the second half of their self-diagnoses, once again working from Betsy Lerner’s examples to whittle away at their artistry and categorise their quirky habits. Maybe this week they’ll each discover what kind of writers they really are. Along the way they’ll explore rejections, chutzpah, sportsball and poor old Missus Heartwig...

     

    #LonelyCorner #CancelledPilot #SixKindsofWriters #TheForestFortheTrees #BetsyLerner #TheAmbivalentTheNatural&Me #Detention #MissusHeartwig #StupidDeadBoy #TheSelfPromotor #TheNeurotic #TouchingFire #NewYork #Chutzpah   #ShyandWeird #Moxie #RomanticIdeals #IvoryTower #WeNeedtoTalkAboutKevin 

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    Word Docs
    enNovember 26, 2023

    Episode 57: ‘Alex's Manly Clap’ (Playlists and Musical Musings)

    Episode 57: ‘Alex's Manly Clap’ (Playlists and Musical Musings)

    The doctors are in the house. Or rather two of the doctors are sick and stuck at home. This week the Word Docs are recording from home and everything's a bit looser than normal (which is saying something). But on the plus side, they get to practice clapping again, preferably in time to Amy's playlist for Someone Else's Bucket List. Sean boycotts clapping to The Cranberries and Alex is determined to flirt with copyright infringements as he sings along. This episode is about playlists, soundtracks, music and silence - and they get off track in the best possible way, exploring how writers use and abuse music.

     

    #WordDocs #AmyTMatthews #AmyBarry #SeanWilliams #AlexVickeryHowe #AFL #Watchlist #SomeoneElsesBucketList #Hyperaurea #SomeoneElsesBucketListThePlaylist #WritingPlaylist #BookPlaylist #BookSoundtrack #SpotifyPlaylist #TheCranberries #DaisyJonesAndTheSix #TaylorJenkinsReid #Elbow #TheWaterboys #StuckInTheMiddleWithYou #ReservoirDogs #TheSingingDetective #FUMA #ShaneDix #NineInchNails #ACDC #BinauralBeats #TheSoapBubble #TheIronicPoseur #ImpossiibleMusic #GlamGong #ScrotePunch #AnalTwin #Hufflepuff #DuaLipa #Physical #OliviaNewtonJohn #Antarctica #ClappingAgain #HappyWriting

     

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    Word Docs
    enNovember 19, 2023

    Episode 56: ‘Every Human Being Has A Pinch Point’ (Beat Sheets)

    Episode 56: ‘Every Human Being Has A Pinch Point’ (Beat Sheets)

    This week Amy leads us through using beat sheets to plan and/or fix a story. Alex and Sean join in from where they recline eating salty gold Irish chocolate. It's the middle of teaching and everyone's pinch points are more pinchy than usual, but it's nothing gold-plated chocolate can't fix. If you're curious about how story experts like Michael Hauge, Blake Snyder, Larry Brooks and Jami Gold deal with planning Acts One to Three, this is the ep for you. There are sportsball metaphors, car metaphors, and the word 'blue' gets bandied about, especially when the monkey elbows get a mention - but despite it all, you'll still come away with a good idea of how to use a beat sheet to get your acts together. (And yes, there are many silly jokes about the term beat sheet - insert word 'blue' here). 

     

    #Word Docs #writing #WritingPodcast #AmWriting #WritingLife #FlindersCreative Writing #FlindersCreativeArts #FlindersCreativeWriting #CreativeWriting #SeanWilliams #AmyTMatthews #AmyBarry #AlexVickeryHowe #AssemblageCentreForCreativeArts #MichaelHauge #DebDixon #JamiGold #LarryBrooks #BlakeSnyder #TheBear #PassTheChocolate #HappyWriting

     

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    Word Docs
    enNovember 12, 2023

    Episode 55: ‘The Secret is...’ (Dead Blokey Gasbags)

    Episode 55: ‘The Secret is...’ (Dead Blokey Gasbags)

    There is a secret to writing a bestseller and it is...nah, kidding...nobody knows. But the Word Docs will keep asking people anyway. This week, the dysfunctional trio bend their knees at the altar of the great men who...nah, kidding...Sean has sorted through the rules of the blokey gasbags who’ve come before and now Amy and Alex are trying to decide who wrote what. Join the party as Vonnegut, Heinlein, Leonard and Lewis are meticulously poked, prodded and dissected for the edification of emerging generations. Rules are made to be splintered, but it’s wise to mock them first. 

    #Aspiring #SeanWilliams #AmyTMatthews #AlexVickeryHowe #Nightmarish #BlokeyLists#KurtVonnegut #RobertHeinlein #ElmoreLeonard #CSLewis #TalkingAboutIt #GarthNix#PeterBeaglehole #CruelSegue #RecreationalSadism #NoCreditForAlex #ChasingTrends#BUYSOMEMILK! #OldOldMan #JustLikeToffee #Succession #Veep #Seinfeld #ItsAlwaysSunnyinPhiladelphia #Macbeth #GailJones #SixtyLights #ThePerfectSentence#SarahWaters #IanMcEwan #AStylishSean #TheMightyBoosh #WriterlyvsReaderly#PlayDregs #RandomBits #WhatAboutBob #OffloadingResponsibility#ThrowMommafromtheTrain #LeonardCohen #Suddenly #WheresWally #WheresWaldo#BirdBox #EnoughButNotTooMuch #JustOnePerson

     

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    enNovember 05, 2023

    ‘It’s Good to be Back’ (All About Us)

    ‘It’s Good to be Back’ (All About Us)

    They’ve emerged from the marking void! Alive and insane, the Word Docs discuss activities, opportunities, Nic Cage, scientology, chaotic planning, Nosferatu, spiders, inch ants and hungry catfish... Eventually, they may also get around to discussing their books. You never know.

     

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    Word Docs
    enJune 19, 2023

    ‘Shades of Great’ (Interculturalism)

    ‘Shades of Great’ (Interculturalism)

    Alex is in the Mastermind hot seat! Many years after writing Japanese/Australian rock musical Once Upon a Midnight, Alex is trying to remember what he was on about and why it was interesting. Luckily the Word Docs are on hand to tease all the shades of grey out of the process. Join us as we travel the world from our studio and explore the cultural conundrums that arise when mythology, nationality and generational identity intersect.

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    Word Docs
    enJune 12, 2023

    ‘Happily Never After’ (Tropes)

    ‘Happily Never After’ (Tropes)

    The Word Docs are slowly catching up with this mysterious invention called BookTok where all the young people are. Together, the intrepid geriatrics will sort through the virtual shelves and explore their favourite tropes with the usual blend of light-hearted humour, emotional pain and existential despair. If you’re a morally grey villain, a soul in search of a mate or a grump with a heart of gold, this episode is all about you.

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    Word Docs
    enJune 05, 2023

    ‘Beware the Broccoli’ (Someone Else’s Advice)

    ‘Beware the Broccoli’ (Someone Else’s Advice)

    We’re off the rails again! Amy is trying her best to keep the troops under control, but the troops are idiots. The sage advice of Anne Lamott is pearls before bewildered swine as Sean’s eerie chanting and Alex’s fear of naked cults turns a perfectly reasonable vegetable metaphor into something chilling. In this episode we will wonder... why did Sean give up meditation? Why the hell can’t Alex remember going to France? And what’s up with Amy and purple sharkskin suits?

     

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    Word Docs
    enMay 29, 2023

    ‘All the Feels’ (Popular Romance Studies)

    ‘All the Feels’ (Popular Romance Studies)

    This week it's Amy's turn to sit in the Mastermind hot seat and the topic is Popular Romance Studies. Join us for love, sex, happy endings, trauma porn, happy for nows, and all the feels. Does Amy have the answers? Has Alex done his homework? Will Sean write a romance novel? And who is killing all the butterflies? If you ever wanted to know the not-so-secret intellectual life of a romance author, now's your chance! 

     

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    Word Docs
    enMay 22, 2023

    ‘Of Course It's a Sex Romp’ (Dead Tomes)

    ‘Of Course It's a Sex Romp’ (Dead Tomes)

    Got any dead books lying around? Manuscripts that didn't work, or didn't sell, or are just dead in the water for reasons you can't quite put your finger on? The Word Docs sure do. Alex is curious to pry into Sean and Amy's literary closets, looking for dusty old relics of the past. There must be something to be learned from books that didn't work? Was it all a waste? Or are dead tomes valuable things? In response to Alex shining a light into their closets, Amy and Sean drag out Alex's juvenilia, discovering the glory that is Jimmy and the Wizard and King Mean Man. By the end of this episode, you'll be grateful for the books that never made it, and you may also be wishing that you were at the Proscenium in the 90s, pretending to be a Goth. 

     

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    Word Docs
    enMay 15, 2023