Archive for Ditch Diggers

Ditch Diggers, Podcasts, Projects

[DD] Resolutions, Ducks, and That Elephant Is Back

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 47:37 — 49.2MB)

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Ditch Diggers Season 11 logo featuring ursula illustrated

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“Try to make the world a better place. You personally are not on the hook to fix everything.” – Ursula Vernon

(This post went live for supporters on January 17, 2025. If you want early, ad-free, and sometimes expanded episodes, support at Patreon or Substack!)

Transcript

S.11 Ep.1
Welcome to Season 11 of Ditch Diggers with Mur Lafferty and Ursula Vernon! We try to be positive and funny in this episode, but stuff happens. We cover the Neil Gaiman controversy, touch on Ursula’s move, and what our goals are this year.

Also there’s a duck game in the background.

We explore the challenges of self-promotion in a post-Twitter world, the art of balancing work with personal life, and the importance of setting achievable goals.

Highlights include:

  • Ursula’s new life in New Mexico and the joys of mountain views
  • The fallout from the Neil Gaiman scandal and its ripple effects
  • Resolutions for 2025: from organizing Magic cards to self-promotion strategies
  • The challenges of social media and finding new ways to connect with readers
  • The enduring appeal of escapism and the role of storytelling in turbulent times

Evergreen Links:

Support Local Book Stores!

Ditch Diggers credits:
theme song by Devo Spice, art by Numbers Ninja,
site hosted by Libsyn (or Patreon).
January 13, 2024 | Season 11 Ep 1 | murverse.com
“Resolutions, Ducks, and That Elephant Is Back” by Mur Lafferty and Ursula Vernon
is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
Ditch Diggers, Podcasts, Projects

[DD] How Mur and Ursula Edit

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:03:45 — 47.5MB)

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“Editing is where you leave the craft behind and start thinking like a business.” – Mur Lafferty

“I am the person with the hat.” – Ursula Vernon

Transcript

(This post went live for supporters on January 13, 2025. If you want early, ad-free, and sometimes expanded episodes, support at Patreon or Substack!)

In this final episode of season six of Ditch Diggers, Mur Lafferty and Ursula Vernon dive deep into the world of editing. From the trials and tribulations of editing passes to the nuances of hat confidence, Mur and Ursula share their personal experiences and industry insights.

Mur shares her recent adventures at World Fantasy Con, including a surprise upgrade experience, while Ursula reflects on the significance of hats in her identity as a writer.

Highlights include:

  • The stages and emotional journey of editing a manuscript
  • Hat confidence and its unexpected perks
  • World Fantasy Con experiences and the allure of fabulous hats
  • The intricacies of balancing writing with editing and personal life
  • Community alternatives to NaNoWriMo

Links: 

Evergreen Links:

Support Local Book Stores!

Ditch Diggers credits:
theme song by Devo Spice, art by Numbers Ninja,
site hosted by Libsyn (or Patreon).
December 30, 2024 | Season 10 Ep 6 | murverse.com
“Our Book Editing Process” by Mur Lafferty and Ursula Vernon
is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
Ditch Diggers, Podcasts, Projects

[DD] Elephants in the Room: NaNoWriMo, Burnout, and More

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 45:11 — 40.1MB)

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“Sometimes you just need to chase the inspiration, even if it means working on a project nobody asked for.” – Ursula

Transcript

(This post went live for supporters on October 4, 2024. If you want early, ad-free, and sometimes expanded episodes, support at Patreon or Substack!)

In this episode, Mur Lafferty and Ursula Vernon tackle the complexities of burnout, the writing hustle, and the latest controversies in the literary world. Ursula shares her battle with mortgage woes, while Mur discusses the challenges of juggling multiple podcasts and writing projects.

The duo also delves into the fallout from NaNoWriMo’s recent controversies and the implications of AI in the writing community. They ponder the impact of fallen idols in the literary world and the importance of making good choices in public-facing careers.

Recorded on Twitch every other Monday at 3pm Eastern time.

Highlights include:

  • The struggles of balancing writing and personal life
  • NaNoWriMo’s AI controversy and community backlash
  • Fallen idols and the consequences of public misconduct
  • The importance of community in writing challenges

Links:

Evergreen Links:

Support Local Book Stores!

Ditch Diggers credits:
theme song by Devo Spice, art by Numbers Ninja,
site hosted by Libsyn (or Patreon).
October 9, 2024 | Season 10 Ep 5 | murverse.com
“Elephants in the Room: NaNoWriMo, Burnout, and More” by Mur Lafferty and Ursula Vernon
is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
Ditch Diggers, Podcasts, Projects

[DD] WorldCon 2024 Debrief [AKA HOLY CRAP I HAVEN’T POSTED THIS?]

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:14:35 — 58.6MB)

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“Networking is just meeting people and having them remember you exist.” – Ursula Vernon

Transcript

(This post went live for supporters on October 2, 2024. If you want early, ad-free, and sometimes expanded episodes, support at Patreon or Substack!)

In this (LONG OVERDUE) episode of Ditch Diggers, Mur Lafferty and Ursula Vernon return from their adventures in Scotland and dive into the art of networking. They explore the nuances of making connections in the writing world, share tales from Worldcon, and discuss the challenges and joys of upcoming conventions.

The duo also tackles the importance of maintaining a presence in the ever-shifting landscape of social media and the significance of in-person networking at conventions. From the intricacies of interactive fiction to the recent developments at SFWA, Mur and Ursula cover a wide range of topics with the wisdom you have come to expect from them.

Highlights include:

  • Networking strategies and the importance of being present
  • Worldcon reflections and Ursula’s Hugo win
  • Upcoming conventions and the art of balancing work with travel
  • Social media alternatives in a post-Twitter world
  • Interactive fiction and the joy of hidden Easter eggs

Links:

Evergreen Links:

Support Local Book Stores!

Ditch Diggers credits:
theme song by Devo Spice, art by Numbers Ninja,
site hosted by Libsyn (or Patreon).
October 2, 2024 | Season 10 Ep 4 | murverse.com
“Recorded back when Mur still had a Gallbladder” by Mur Lafferty and Ursula Vernon
is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
Ditch Diggers, Podcasts, Projects

[DD] Recorded back when Mur still had a Gallbladder

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 43:37 — 34.9MB)

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“If you, you know, give ten writers an idea, you get eleven different books.” – Ursula

Transcript

(This post went live for supporters on July 30, 2024. If you want early, ad-free, and sometimes expanded episodes, support at Patreon or Substack!)

In this episode of Ditch Diggers, Mur Lafferty and Ursula Vernon dive into the gritty realities of the writing world. From the anxiety of upcoming surgeries to the chaos of travel and illness, they share their personal and professional struggles.

The episode takes a critical look at the pitfalls of online behavior, especially concerning agents making inappropriate comments on social media. They discuss the importance of professionalism, the fear of idea theft, and the phenomenon of simultaneous similar ideas emerging in the literary world.

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Ditch Diggers, Podcasts, Projects

[DD] Ursula Vernon Takes Over: New Beginnings and No More Cancer

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 55:55 — 46.2MB)

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Ditch Diggers logo, illustrated with Mur and Ursula images.
Ep 01: Ursula Vernon Takes Over New Beginnings and No More Cancer
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“If you want to make money, you have to think about it like a job.”– Mur

Transcript

(This post went live for supporters on June 26, 2024. If you want early, ad-free, and sometimes expanded episodes, support at Patreon or Substack!)

Welcome back to Ditch Diggers! In this episode, we kick things off with a fresh start and a new co-host. The mighty Mur Lafferty is joined by the fabulous Ursula Vernon (aka T. Kingfisher) as they dive into the nitty-gritty of the writing business.

Ursula shares her personal journey of overcoming cancer and getting back into the writing groove, while Mur talks about the realities of making deadlines and the business side of writing. They also discuss the recent Hugo Awards controversy and the implications for authors involved.

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Ditch Diggers, Podcasts, Projects

[DD] Gail Carriger returns with more wisdom!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:17:39 — 51.8MB)

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This was recorded back in July, but time and things and travel got away with me.

Actually what happened was the fact that I can’t spread podcast production across more than one day. If I do, I will forget it needs to be finished. It’s not great spending 4+ hours to produce and upload 2 shows, but if I don’t, one will fall by the wayside. ADHD brain for the win.

We will be back in september, hopefully with lots of amazing ditch digging.

Shirts suggested this episode:

Ditch Diggers, Podcasts, Projects, Transcript

[DD] Data Wonking with Podmother Gail Carriger

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 59:23 — 39.2MB)

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Ditch Diggers Seasons Nine logo with illustrated tiny Mur and tiny Matt
Ep 8: Data Wonking with Podmother Gail Carriger

Ditch Diggers episode 8, “Data Wonking with Podmother Gail Carriger”  is brought to you in large part by my patrons, who received an early version of this episode. You can join our Fabulist community with a pledge on Patreon or Substack! You can get the entire archive and bonus episodes!

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Streamed live, July 10, 2023
Below are some affiliate links that support indie bookstores and may benefit me financially with no cost to you.

S9 Ep8
Horny chaotic god energy is what we’re all about in today’s Ditch Diggers, “Data Wonking with Podmother Gail Carriger” where Gail joins us to talk about sifting through data in self publishing. It is some heady stuff, and we discuss tying your self worth to “bad” data and more!

Gail Carriger: 30:30 (ish): My sense of failure will kick in when a reader says I love Gail Carriger. And I didn’t know she had a new book out, that’s when I feel like I failed at my job. I am an author, that’s the one job I had is to make sure that people who liked me can read my new books, right? That’s it.

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Ditch Diggers, Podcasts, Projects, Transcript

[DD] Author/Agent Seth Fishman Answers Our Questions

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 53:01 — 33.1MB)

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Ditch Diggers episode 7, “Author/Agent Seth Fishman Answers Our Questions”  is brought to you in large part by my patrons, who received an early version of this episode. You can join our Fabulist community with a pledge on Patreon as low as $3 a month! You can get the entire archive and bonus episodes!

Subscribe/Follow here! (All apps)

Streamed live, June 19, 2023
Below are some affiliate links that support indie bookstores and may benefit me financially with no cost to you.

S9 Ep7

Mur’s agent Seth Fishman joins us to take your questions about agents and children’s publishing, and we fill up an hour FAST.

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