Richard is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Overstory, one of the most praised novels of the decade. His writing absolutely explodes with life. But perhaps Richard’s most impressive skill is his character development. And we’re not talking about the stodgy character arc you learned in English class.

In about an hour and a half, Richard shares 40+ years and 14 novels worth of insight on how to write characters that readers can’t get out of their head. This episode is a deep dive into the psychoanalytical complexities of character: drama and tension, thinking and feeling, motivation and suspense. Plus, we dive into the three different types of character-driven drama: People against People, People against Themselves, and People against the Environment. In a nutshell, this episode is a novel-writing masterclass that you don’t want to miss.