On April 26, 2023, I was thrilled to welcome fantasy author Marshall J. Moore to the fourth episode of Fictionary‘s Scene It First series, in which we speak with bestselling, award-winning authors to talk about first scenes, share secrets of writing craft, and celebrate the stories that thrill and inspire us all.

In this episode, Marshall talks about an encounter with Jackie Chan and his approach to writing fantasy, including his strategy for world-building and his incorporation of setting elements. Later in the episode we look at the first scene from his novel The Pale City and take questions from the audience.

Upcoming interviews can be joined live by registered members of the Fictionary community, and it’s always free to register.

In addition to hosting the Scene It First series, James Gallagher is the owner of Castle Walls Editing, a Fictionary-Certified StoryCoach Editor, and the copy editor of more than 250 books.

About Marshall J. Moore

Marshall J. Moore is a writer and martial artist who was born and raised on Kwajalein, a tiny Pacific island. He has trained a professional mercenary in unarmed combat, sold a thousand dollars’ worth of teapots to Jackie Chan, and was once tracked down by a bounty hunter for owing $300 in overdue fees to the Los Angeles Public Library. An active member of SFWA, Marshall has been published by the Escape Artists podcast network, Air and Nothingness Press, Mysterion, and many others. His short story “Red Lanterns” won second place in the 2022 Baen Fantasy Adventure Award. He lives in Atlanta, Georgia, with his wife, Megan, and their two cats.

About Fictionary

Fictionary is a story-editing software that allows writers and editors to glean insights and perform developmental edits on their works using Fictionary’s 38 story elements for character, plot, and setting.

The software also provides attractive visual reports, including the story arc (showing location of the inciting incident, plot point 1, midpoint, plot point 2, and climax), as well as reports illustrating such items as the story map, character list, and word count per scene.

More information can be found at Fictionary.co.

The Fictionary community can be found here (free to register).