Welcome to the Helping Writers Become Authors podcast. I'm K.M. Weiland, and I am here to take you

deep with story theory, writing techniques, and the incredible wisdom of story. I believe story is the

greatest power on this earth, and that as writers, we carry the torch of wielding that power with responsibility, passion, and skill.

There is no such thing as just a story.

Today, it is my honor and my purpose to help you write your best story, astound the world, and maybe change your life.

Hello and welcome.

You are listening to Season 17, Episode 18, of the Helping Writers Become Authors Podcast.

In a world flooded with stories, books, shows, films, and endless social content, it's easy to fall into passive

consumption. But as writers and creatives, what we take in matters just as much as what we put out.

To be able to write with depth and clarity and resonance, we must first learn to read and watch more intentionally and with greater awareness.

Intentional consumption isn't about being rigid or highbrow.

Rather, it's about choosing stories that challenge us, feed us, and reflect the kind of storytelling

we want in turn to create.

Earlier this month, I offered an episode about why intentional storytelling matters in an era

of AI and algorithm-driven content.

It was an exploration of all the reasons intentional storytelling has always mattered,

and perhaps matters more than ever in our modern era of ultra-speed and convenient shortcuts.

The first comment on that post on my website, amongst many in a wonderfully rich discussion,

was from Heather J. Bennett who wrote,

it's also a problem with lazy readers who aren't taking the time to slow down and read

the story as it's written. Their attention spans for reading for the nuance of the storytelling

is shorter with understandable life priorities and needing to get things done.

...