# Story Nerd Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719 Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719.md RSS feed: https://feed.podbean.com/valerie3v/feed.xml Official site: https://valerie3v.podbean.com Author: Valerie Francis Episodes: 100 ## Resource For novelists, memoirists and screenwriters who want to write stories readers will love, and who want to work with a literary agent. Each week, editors Valerie Francis and Melanie Hill use films to explain how to craft a story that hooks the reader on page one and holds their attention all the way to the end. On alternate weeks, Valerie and literary agent Kathleen Foxx offer their professional feedback on query letters and writing samples submitted by Story Nerd listeners. The goal is simple: to help writers realize their dreams of becoming published authors. If you love to write, and you love to tell stories, and you want to see your book out in the world, this podcast is for you! ”The only thing that matters, and that ever will matter, is the story. That’s it.” - Tom Hanks (Oxford Union 2024) ## Machine-readable JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/story-nerd-5321719 Markdown: https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719.md ## Episodes - [Vertigo: does it live up to the hype?](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/vertigo-does-it-live-up-to-the-hype) — 2026-07-29T07:00:00+00:00 - [Knowing When to Query (this is a BIG deal)](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/knowing-when-to-query-this-is-a-big-deal) — 2026-07-24T07:00:00+00:00 - [What Went Wrong: jason bourne](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/what-went-wrong-jason-bourne) — 2026-07-22T07:00:00+00:00 - [How do agents see genre?](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/how-do-agents-see-genre) — 2026-07-17T15:40:00+00:00 - [Best Advice: protagonist types and premises](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/best-advice-protagonist-types-and-premises) — 2026-07-15T07:00:00+00:00 - [Spielberg listens to Story Nerd](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/spielberg-listens-to-story-nerd) — 2026-07-10T21:40:00+00:00 - [Serenity: object of desire MIA](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/serenity-object-of-desire-mia) — 2026-07-08T07:00:00+00:00 - [What Agents Wish Authors Knew BEFORE They Query](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/what-agents-wish-authors-knew-before-they-query) — 2026-07-05T21:35:00+00:00 - [Choosing Comp Titles (it’s an art!)](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/choosing-comp-titles-it-s-an-art) — 2026-07-03T10:45:00+00:00 - [Birds of Prey: writing unlikeable characters](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/birds-of-prey-writing-unlikeable-characters) — 2026-07-01T14:00:00+00:00 - [Ronin: what is an antihero?](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/ronin-what-is-an-antihero) — 2026-06-24T07:00:00+00:00 - [Identifying Genre is Trickier than You Think!](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/identifying-genre-is-trickier-than-you-think) — 2026-06-19T12:15:00+00:00 - [Hidden Figures: your reader’s expectations?](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/hidden-figures-your-reader-s-expectations) — 2026-06-17T07:00:00+00:00 - [Notting Hill: why we love it](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/notting-hill-why-we-love-it) — 2026-06-10T07:00:00+00:00 - [Is this a mystery?](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/is-this-a-mystery) — 2026-06-05T13:50:00+00:00 - [Mrs.Harris Goes to Paris: toothless antagonists](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/mrs-harris-goes-to-paris-toothless-antagonists) — 2026-06-03T07:00:00+00:00 - [Sicario: not what we expected](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/sicario-not-what-we-expected) — 2026-05-27T07:00:00+00:00 - [Killer Opening Lines](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/killer-opening-lines) — 2026-05-22T07:00:00+00:00 - [Murder She Said: sex or murder?](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/murder-she-said-sex-or-murder) — 2026-05-20T10:40:00+00:00 - [What Went Right: anora](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/what-went-right-anora) — 2026-05-13T07:00:00+00:00 - [The best time to send a query](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/the-best-time-to-send-a-query) — 2026-05-08T07:00:00+00:00 - [What Went Wrong: 80 for Brady](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/what-went-wrong-80-for-brady) — 2026-05-06T11:05:00+00:00 - [Best Advice: heroes and villains](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/best-advice-heroes-and-villains) — 2026-04-29T07:00:00+00:00 - [AI in Writing and Publishing](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/ai-in-writing-and-publishing) — 2026-04-24T07:00:00+00:00 - [We have news! And it benefits you.](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/we-have-news-and-it-benefits-you) — 2026-04-23T07:00:00+00:00 - [Thunderbolts: 2 surprising twists](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/thunderbolts-2-surprising-twists) — 2026-04-22T13:00:00+00:00 - [Men In Black (archive)](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/men-in-black-archive) — 2026-04-15T07:30:00+00:00 - [The Devil Wears Prada (archive)](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/the-devil-wears-prada-archive) — 2026-04-08T07:30:00+00:00 - [Dirty Dancing (archive)](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/dirty-dancing-archive) — 2026-04-01T07:30:00+00:00 - [Conclave: a masterclass in nuanced characters](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/conclave-a-masterclass-in-nuanced-characters) — 2026-03-25T07:30:00+00:00 - [Do this to Hook an Agent - Interview with Kathleen Foxx](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/do-this-to-hook-an-agent-interview-with-kathleen-foxx) — 2026-03-20T07:30:00+00:00 - [Mulholland Drive: trippy](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/mulholland-drive-trippy) — 2026-03-18T07:30:00+00:00 - [Darkest Hour: darkest villain](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/darkest-hour-darkest-villain) — 2026-03-11T13:30:00+00:00 - [Amour: looks easy, but isn't!](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/amour-looks-easy-but-isn-t-2) — 2026-03-04T08:30:00+00:00 - [Amour: looks easy, but isn't](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/amour-looks-easy-but-isn-t) — 2026-03-04T08:30:00+00:00 - [Invitation to a Murder: there's no plot!](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/invitation-to-a-murder-there-s-no-plot) — 2026-02-25T08:30:00+00:00 - [Erin Brockovich: writing underdogs](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/erin-brockovich-writing-underdogs) — 2026-02-18T17:45:00+00:00 - [The Man Who Knew too Much: honestly, kinda weird](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/the-man-who-knew-too-much-honestly-kinda-weird) — 2026-02-11T08:30:00+00:00 - [What Went Right: the princess bride](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/what-went-right-the-princess-bride) — 2026-02-04T08:30:00+00:00 - [What Went Wrong: the golden compass](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/what-went-wrong-the-golden-compass) — 2026-01-28T08:30:00+00:00 - [Our Best Advice: hero's monologue + the shadow](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/our-best-advice-hero-s-monologue-the-shadow) — 2026-01-21T08:30:00+00:00 - [Rebecca: character shadows](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/rebecca-character-shadows) — 2026-01-14T08:30:00+00:00 - [The Invisible Man (archive)](https://stenobird.com/podcast/story-nerd-5321719/the-invisible-man-archive) — 2026-01-07T08:30:00+00:00 ## Actions Episode pages expose an explicit `request_transcript` action. 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