The WriterDojo is different than most other writing advice podcasts out there- our primary purpose is to cut through all the bad advice and help you tell stories that people want to read (& get you paid in the process.) This is advice on becoming a Professional Writer from two very knowledgeable Professional Writers. Authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia discuss the ins and outs of writing for fun and profit. Readers will find plenty of interesting tidbits as well and may come away with new ...
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This week, hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia return to the studio to discuss 'Problematic Edits'. When it comes to editing, there are good and bad editors. What makes one or the other and can you work with an editor you don't see eye to eye with? When is editing out "problematic" no-no words a good idea and when is it a bad idea? What d…
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WriterDojo S7 Ep7: Overcoming Setbacks (w/ Michael Haspil)
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Another interview from this year's Writer's Cantina in Utah, hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia sat down with author/long time buddy Michael Haspil to talk about what not to do when getting started, writing for other people's IPs versus writing for your own, his experiences with trad pub versus indie, and the importance of picking yourse…
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WriterDojo S7 Ep6: the Dangers of Mary Sue
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This week hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia wanted to talk about Mary Sue. Who was she and why should you care? How do you know if a character qualifies for Mary Sue-dom or not? Do either of the hosts have any Mary Sues in their own works? All this and more in another thrilling episode of the WriterDojo! If you would like to join our su…
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WriterDojo S7 Ep5: First Time Novelist (w/ Josh Hill)
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Another interview from this year's Writer's Cantina in Utah, hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia sat down with author/close friend Josh Hill to talk about the challenges he faced going from aspiring author to published author, about the release of his new book, and about some of the trials and tribulations of doing so in this new age of p…
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WriterDojo S7 Ep4: A Rising Tide (w/ Jim Curtis)
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Another interview from this year's Writer's Cantina in Utah, hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia sat down with author/retired Naval Flight Officer, Jim Curtis (AKA J.L. Curtis). Jim currently has 47+ writing credits to his name, a rather unique view of the industry, and is part of the rising force that is Raconteur Press. If you would lik…
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WriterDojo S7 Ep3: Our Boy Rick (w/ Rick Cutler)
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At this year's Writer's Cantina in Utah, hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia got the chance to sit down with none other than our boy Rick Cutler. We've done interviews with multiple New York Times best selling authors, but this was a chance to chat with a future star who is just getting started, which is a unique take. How did Rick get st…
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WriterDojo S7 Ep2: Kindle Unlimited (with Jeffery H. Haskell)
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Recently hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia attended the Writer's Cantina in Utah and got the opportunity to sit down and talk about Kindle Unlimited with Jeffery H. Haskell. How is KU different than traditional publishing? What are the strengths and weaknesses of each? Who is the KU target audience and what are some of the most effectiv…
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WriterDojo S7 Ep1: Live From Writers Cantina 2024
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For the second year in a row, hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia did a live Q&A session with attendees at the Writer's Cantina. Attendees were all writers and they asked some great questions. (*This episode was recorded live Friday, June 28th, 2024 at the Writers Cantina in Utah) If you would like to join our supporters, you can support …
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Ever wonder what got our hosts, authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia, into the writing business to begin with? This week they share their initial motivations, what keeps them going, the origins of some of their first works (including the first novel Larry ever wrote!) AND as a bonus they share the one thing they won't write. All this and more on t…
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Last week our hosts, authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia, shared the story of learning to fight with swords and armor with Brandon Sanderson. This week they share how they repaid the favor... If you would like to join our supporters, you can support this podcast with a small monthly donation to help sustain future episodes at: https://anchor.fm/w…
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So did our hosts, authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia do anything else besides writing during the one month hiatus? Well since you ask, there's kind of a funny story there.... If you would like to join our supporters, you can support this podcast with a small monthly donation to help sustain future episodes at: https://anchor.fm/writerdojo ____…
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WriterDojo S6 Ep15: Back from the Deadlines
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Don't call it a comeback, we've been here for years! This week, our hosts authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia have risen from the dead(lines) to share with us just what they've been doing since last episode. They also discuss the differences between hard and soft deadlines, the art of ending a series, and some of the behind the scenes processes t…
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This week, hosts/authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia tackle a topic near and dear to Steve- Sports. How do the lessons learned in sports apply to writing? How can you incorporate sports into your stories, even if you don't like sports? Can writing people even understand sports people? All this and more on this week's episode of the WriterDojo! If…
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We love getting questions from our supporters, but sometimes the questions are so big they need their own full episode- this is one such question. This week hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia talk about having your character deaths mean something. How do you craft a death that has weight and value? And do all character deaths have to? Al…
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WriterDojo S6 Ep12: Supporter Spectacular XII
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"The important thing is not to stop questioning." - Albert Einstein This week hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia once again answer questions from our beloved supporters. If you would like to join our supporters, you can support this podcast with a small monthly donation to help sustain future episodes at: https://anchor.fm/writerdojo ___…
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What makes your characters tick? Heroes, villains, or just people standing on street corners, minding their own business, everyone has motivations that drives them. This week, hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia dive deep into the intricacies of crafting compelling character motivations that drive a story and discuss the key ingredients t…
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Sometimes we all need a little boost. This week, hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia took a moment to address a comment from one of the folks in the Facebook group, but their message is for everyone. What do you need to be a writer? Why keep going? What's the point? All this and more in this week's episode of the WriterDojo! If you would …
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WriterDojo: the Biggest Interview We've Ever Done
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We said we were going to get some big names this year, but even we didn't expect to get this lucky! Hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia were honored to do this interview (and producer Jack was very jealous that he couldn't be there.) Enjoy! If you would like to join the ranks of our supporters, you can support this nonsense with a small m…
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WriterDojo S6 Ep9: Your Job is to Entertain
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Recently an author on Twitter/X had some thoughts about the true responsibility of writers. This week our hosts, authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia sat down for a philosophical discussion about the duties and obligations of working as a professional author. (The original title of this episode was going to be 'Your Job is to Entertain, Not Lectur…
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After last week's episode about First Steps, several folks in the WriterDojo Facebook group had some questions about money for our hosts authors/accountants Steve Diamond and Larry Correia. How do you know when you're ready to quit the day job? At what point do you need to start paying taxes on your writing income? Can you write off your motorcycle…
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Hooray! My book got published! Ummm so what now? This week, hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia tackle this question submitted from members of the WriterDojo Facebook group. Artistically, what do you do after your first book is finally pushed out of the nest? Do you need to try to recapture the magic of the first one? What are the 'do's a…
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"All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players." So how do you make sure the players in your story have a stage to play on? This week, hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia do another 'nuts and bolts' episode to help listeners better craft a scene. How do they each go about starting a chapter? How do you avoid repetition…
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WriterDojo S6 Ep5: Musings on the Industry
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This week, host/authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia discuss some projects they're working on, including the rationale behind them and how the publishing industry has changed, and also weigh in with some personal opinions on some current events. (I believe the term is 'Spilling the tea' as the youngsters say.) If you would like to join our support…
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WriterDojo S6 Ep4: Writing to Your Audience
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Some topics are bigger than the Tweet Bashing format allows. This week, our hosts authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia tackle one such topic as they unpack a recent tweet. What qualifications should be required when you are handed the keys to one of the most profitable and (formerly) popular IPs in history? What is your responsibility to the Custo…
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WriterDojo S6 Ep3: Tweet Bashing (round 7)
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Just when we thought we were out, they pull us back in! Why is Xwitter so very full of bad writing advice? There's a lot of other things hosts Steve Diamond & Larry Correia could be doing, but the just awful advice keeps piling up and SOMEONE has to mock it! If you would like to join the ranks of our supporters, you can support this podcast with a …
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WriterDojo S6 Ep2: Interview w/ Steve Beaulieu
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The lost episode from the 2023 20BooksTo50K convention in Las Vegas! At said convention, Steve Diamond and Larry Correia sat down with Steve Beaulieu, co-founder of Aethon books to chat about starting and running a small publishing house. If you would like to join the ranks of our supporters, you can support this podcast with a small monthly donati…
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WriterDojo S6 Ep1: the State of the Dojo Address 2024
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We're back, baby! It's time once again for everyone's favorite writing based podcast that focuses on the fun (& profit) of writing. This week, hosts/Authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia reflect on the year just past, discuss what's currently going on, as well as what we're planning for Season Six of the WriterDojo. (Spoiler alert: it's gonna be …
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WriterDojo S5 Ep24: Tweet Bashing (round 6) w/ Jason Cordova
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This week, hosts/Authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia decided to that since they already had author/cohort/close friend Jason Cordova in the studio, they would let him join in making fun of the bad writing advice they recently saw online. This is the final episode of Season 5! We appreciate all of you and look forward to showing you what we have…
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Recently our hosts, authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia, got the opportunity to sit down with our good friend (& one of Larry's co-authors) Jason Cordova to chat about the Pros & Cons of co-authoring. If you would like to join our supporters and help support Steve's brisket habit, you can support this podcast with a small monthly donation to help…
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WriterDojo S5 Ep22: Editing (with Christine Nielson)
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At the 20Books Vegas 2023 conference our hosts, authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia, sat down to discuss something many authors have asked about and struggled with- editing. And who better to discuss the subject with than esteemed editor-for-hire Christine Nielson? What are the signs of a good editor, what should you look for, what should you a…
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WriterDojo S5 EP21: Michael A Rothman Exposé (round 2)
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At the 20Books Vegas 2023 conference our hosts, authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia, finally had the chance to sit down and record one of the more requested episodes- they got to talk about making it as an indy writer with Michael A. Rothman. The conversation went long enough that I split it into 2 episodes. This is part 2 (*Spoiler alert- it's…
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WriterDojo S5 EP20: Michael A Rothman Exposé (round 1)
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At the 20Books Vegas 2023 conference our hosts, authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia, finally had the chance to sit down and record one of the more requested episodes- they got to talk about making it as an indy writer with Michael A. Rothman. The conversation went long enough that I split it into 2 episodes. (*Spoiler alert- it's not a smooth s…
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Recently our hosts Steve Diamond and Larry Correia attended the 20Books Vegas 2023 conference where they took the opportunity to do a live interview with Indy superstar Rick Partlow who currently has 154 books on Goodreads with 106049 ratings. How does he put out so many books so quickly? How does he delight his readers? Where did he get his start?…
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WriterDojo S5 Ep18: Supporter Spectacular XI
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This week, hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia valiantly try once again to empty the inbox of questions submitted by our beloved supporters. If you would like to join the ranks of our supporters, you can support this podcast with a small monthly donation to help sustain future episodes at: https://anchor.fm/writerdojo "Word Mercenaries" (…
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WriterDojo S5 Ep17: the Characters of the Forbidden Topics
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Over the past month hosts/authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia have talked about 2 of the 3 big Forbidden topics. To close it off, this week they provide some examples and discuss various characters and how they relate to and are defined by Politics & Religion. (They're not talking about the third, though- maybe for April Fools Day some year...) I…
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WriterDojo S5 Ep16: the Elements of Horror
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'Tis the week before Halloween, so hosts/authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia wanted to take some time to discuss the elements of horror. The 3 key elements of horror don't belong in just horror stories- most stories can benefit from their addition. The trick is learning how to effectively use them for maximum impact. If you would like to join our…
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After recently tackling one of the three forbidden topics (Religion) WriterDojo hosts/Authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia decided to tackle another one of them- Politics. How important is it to inject politics into your work? Are politics important or should they be avoided? How do you go about creating fictional politics and should you bother …
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We've discussed Outlining vs Discovery writing in the past, but how exactly do you go about Outlining? What's the best method of creating an outline, how flexible can you be, and how do our author hosts Steve Diamond and Larry Correia work together with their differences in approaches? If you would like to join our supporters, you can support this …
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In polite conversation there are 3.5 topics you just don't discuss. This week hosts/Authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia tackle one of the big ones- religion. How to write about existing religions and how to create your own fictional ones are 2 of the big topics. If you would like to join our supporters, you can support this podcast with a small m…
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WriterDojo S5 Ep12: Short Story Nuts & Bolts
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Here in the dojo we've discussed writing short stories before, but there's way too much to the topic to cover in just one episode. This week hosts/Authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia take some time to get into the nuts & bolts of how to actually write a compelling short story that has impact and leaves the readers (and the editors) eager for your…
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WriterDojo S5 Ep11: Tweet Bashing (round 5) The Return of the Nitwits
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Can you believe our long-suffering Hosts/Authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia haven't waded into the muck of the Twitterverse to unearth even more bad writing advice to mock and ridicule for your amusement and edification since early in Season 3? Time flies when you're having fun... If you would like to join our supporters, you can support this …
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WriterDojo S5 Ep10: Supporter Spectacular (Round X)
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Although we've been enjoying all the interviews and live episodes, it has put us a bit behind on answering questions from our beloved Supporters so host/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia took the time to answer some of the backlog (that don't require an entire episode to answer.) (There's an unwritten law in Marketing that 'X' is objectively …
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WriterDojo S5 Ep9: Live from the Writer's Cantina
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Back ,in July hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia did a live Q&A session with attendees at the Writer's Cantina. Attendees were all writers and they asked some great questions. (*This episode was recorded live Saturday, July 8, 2023 at the Writers Cantina in Utah) If you would like to join the ranks of our supporters, you can supportthis …
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WriterDojo S5 Ep8: the Importance of Characters (w/ David Weber)
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WriterDojo hosts/Authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia had the opportunity to sit and chat with none other than writing legend David Weber to discuss the importance of building great characters. David is known worldwide for his strong characters and shares some practical advice for writing more realistic, compelling characters that people actuall…
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WriterDojo S5 Ep7: Writing for Video Games (w/ Brian Urbanek)
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Something a little different this week. The Black Bag Interviews recorded at LibertyCon 2023 continue with hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia sitting down to discuss/geek out about video game writing with a master of the craft- Brian Urbanek. (If you don't recognize the name, you'll probably recognize one of the FIFTEEN titles he's writt…
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WriterDojo S5 Ep6: Indy Publishing and Running a Small Press
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Another of the "LibertyCon 2023 Black Bag Interviews"- in this week's episode host/authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia sat down with our old pal the Lawdog himself to talk about the founding, running, and challenges of Raconteur Press. (*This episode was recorded live at LibertyCon 2023) If you would like to join the ranks of our supporters, you …
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WriterDojo S5 Ep5: Live From LibertyCon (2023)
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For our 100th episode hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia discuss the WriterDojo podcast in front of a studio audience! (Featuring a rare cameo appearance from the third part of the dojo, Jack Wylder) (*This episode was recorded live at LibertyCon 2023) If you would like to join the ranks of our supporters, you can support this podcast wi…
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WriterDojo S5 Ep4: Once More With Feeling (w/ Kacey Ezell)
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During LibertyCon this year, host/authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia politely asked Kacey to join them in recording an episode (black bags might work for some, but Kacey is best approached respectfully) to discuss adding emotional impact to your writing and the shape of words. (*This episode was recorded live at LibertyCon 2023) If you would lik…
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WriterDojo S5 Ep3: Swords and Sorcery (w/ Howard Andrews Jones)
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During the "Black Bag Interviews" at LibertyCon this year, Sword & Sorcery master Howard Andrew Jones found himself on an elevator with host/authors Steve Diamond & Larry Correia late at night. After a brief struggle, they got him into the makeshift WriterDojo studio and sat down to talk about the differences between Fantasy and Swords & Sorcery, t…
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WriterDojo S5 Ep2: Law Enforcement (w/ Griffin Barber)
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Law Enforcement has been covered in all forms of media pretty much as long as there has been media. What do people get right and what do people get wrong? How can you better understand and write about law enforcement characters? This week our hosts/authors Steve Diamond and Larry Correia discuss this topic with super cop (and popular author) Griffi…
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