Veteran game writer and Netflix Find Your Voice Award winner Max Doty joins us to discuss his debut horror novel, The House that Eats the Dead. Max shares how his viral short stories on the r/NoSleep subreddit caught the eye of a literary agent and led to a two-book publishing deal. He also details his transition from writing interactive mobile game narratives to traditional publishing, and why learning to take collaborative feedback is essential for a long writing career.

In This Episode, We Cover:

  • The genesis of The House that Eats the Dead, a story about a house that consumes dead things and erases them from existence, and how it evolved from a Reddit post into a full-length novel.
  • Max's background writing interactive narratives for mobile games like Surviving High School and Choices, and his surreal experience winning a Netflix screenwriting contest.
  • The differences between the immediate validation of posting on internet forums versus the long, solitary process of traditional publishing.
  • Actionable writing advice, including how to use spreadsheet gamification to hit a 2,000-word daily goal and why you should never be "Dr. No" in a creative brainstorm.

Episode Chapters:

00:00 - Introduction & The Premise of The House that Eats the Dead

05:37 - Going Viral on Reddit's NoSleep & Landing an Agent

14:55 - Winning a Netflix Screenwriting Contest

20:53 - Writing Advice: Collaboration and Taking Feedback

25:42 - The Cabin Book Choice: House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski

31:00 - Writing for EA, Surviving High School, and Mobile Games

36:30 - The Rules of r/NoSleep and the Psychology of Internet Publishing

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