Your hero can sob and scream and lose everything, and that scene might be the weakest moment in your entire story. Because big emotion doesn't necessarily make a scene better. In episode 18, I'm sharing my pro tip for diagnosing a boring, lifeless middle section of a romance book manuscript.

SPOILER WARNING: This episode reveals major moments in the book Hot Axe by May Archer. So if you hate spoilers and love reading May Archer, go buy Hot Axe first.

EPISODE UPDATED ON 8/24/26 (If you listened before this date, know that I've updated some of the details about the example story, Hot Axe, that were incorrect in the initial version.)

You'll learn:

• Why a big, flashy scene may not be the answer to a flagging midsection
• How your hero can make the same mistake over and over and still keep the story's energy flowing (there's one condition)
• What happens when you "James Bond" your romance plot, and why that's a mistake that can lead to critical story problems
• The pair of two ultra-important decision moments that can make or break your hero's journey (with an example from a published romance book)

This 30-minute episode is for romance writers who are struggling with a laggy Act 2 in your maunscript and just can't seem to figure out what the heck is going wrong.

By the end, you'll learn what specific scene element to look for to diagnose that messy middy and an insider trick to try on your own manuscript today.

Resources from this episode:

• The Root Fear Factor Replay Vault: The workshop that walks you through how to find the ultra-important Root Fear that drives your hero’s journey → podcast.suebrownmoore.com/RFF-course
• Liar, Liar, Plot on Fire: Take the workshop where I explain the 5 growth arc phases and demo an offset hero growth arc → podcast.suebrownmoore.com/liar-liar
• Workshop: Cake, Not Chaos: The Moment To Moment Method (replay inside E2E) → suebrownmoore.com/enemies-to-experts
• The Fear Fingerprint exercise (module inside Enemies To Experts) → suebrownmoore.com/enemies-to-experts
• The Turning Point Plot Milestone: Read this free article on the two-step framework for setting up a story arc → https://podcast.suebrownmoore.com/plot-milestones
• The Root Fear (CCV): Read this free article on the hero trait that anchors your entire story → podcast.suebrownmoore.com/root-fear
• Community: Join Enemies To Experts → suebrownmoore.com/enemies-to-experts
• Author Spotlight: May Archer: Visit May Archer’s website and check out her books → podcast.suebrownmoore.com/mayarcher
• More Resources: Learn from Sue at your own pace → podcast.suebrownmoore.com/learn

• The Root Fear Factor Replay Vault
• May Archer (author website)
• Write Without Resistance: Book your group’s private workshop with Sue
• Plot Milestones: The Opportunity & Turning Point
• Liar, Liar, Plot on Fire - Learn about my workshop course and the 5 questions to diagnose plot problems → podcast.suebrownmoore.com/liar-liar
• The Root Fear explained (CCV) - Free article: The hero trait that anchors your entire story → podcast.suebrownmoore.com/root-fear
• Enemies To Experts™ - Learn more about the Enemies To Experts™ program with Sue Brown-Moore. Because falling in love with your manuscript starts with understanding it.

Subscribe to the Story Sorcery® podcast with Sue Brown-Moore on your favorite podcast app to never miss an episode.