Write the Future: Our Five Themes

by Kerry-Ann McDade · June 29, 2026

Write the Future: Our Five Themes – How To Write the Future podcast, episode 211

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“Writing craft is about meaning and the reader experience. I really don’t teach rigid rules because language is evolving constantly, and it’s all about choices.” – Beth Barany

In this How To Write the Future podcast episode, titled “Write the Future: Our Five Themes,” host Beth Barany shares the five themes often discussed on the podcast, which include writing craft tips, helpful advice, walkthroughs, and interviews.

Beth also explains why she believes our personal creativity can be used to reshape humanity and shares the one thing that she believes beats “the hustle” every time.

The five topic themes:

World building
Creative Process & Mindset
Publishing
Marketing
AI Ethics

Do you have a question on one of the topics above? Then Beth invites you to get in touch, and your question could be shared in an upcoming podcast episode.

Platforms the podcast is available on: Apple Podcasts | Buzzsprout | Spotify| YouTube

RESOURCES

JOIN: For fiction writers! You’ve finished your first draft! Congrats! Now what?

Join the Future-Ready Writer membership and get premium weekly lessons and a monthly Q&A on Zoom. Subscribe: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2012061/subscribe

FREE: Sign up here to get your World Building Workbook for Fiction Writers

Overwhelmed by world-building for your sci-fi/fantasy novel? Use these prompts to brainstorm your story’s world: https://writersfunzone.com/blog/world-building-resources/

SHOP**: Sci‑Fi & Fantasy 24 Writing Prompts:** https://ko-fi.com/s/4ac9160a74

Want to be interviewed on the podcast? => Email us!

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About the How To Write the Future podcast

The How To Write The Future podcast is for science fiction and fantasy writers who want to write positive futures and successfully bring those stories out into the marketplace. Hosted by Beth Barany, science fiction novelist and creativity coach for writers. We cover tips for fiction writers. This podcast is for readers too if you’re at all curious about the future of humanity.

This podcast is for you if you have questions like:

– How do I create a believable world for my science fiction story?

– How do I figure out what’s not working if my story feels flat?

– How do I make my story more interesting and alive?

This podcast is for readers, too, if you’re at all curious about the future of humanity.

Transcript for Write the Future: Our Five Themes

Introduction

BETH BARANY: Hi, everyone. Beth Barany here with How to Write the Future podcast. Today, I’m sick, so no camera.

All right, on to this week’s episode.

I wanna let you know some of the topics that we’ve been covering on How to Write the Future, for the last four years. I’m coming up on the fourth anniversary, so exciting, and there are five main topics that I have talked about, and of course can continue to talk about.

So if you have questions on these five topics, let me know. And of course, I accept questions on other topics as well.

[00:35] Podcast Focus and Optimism

My podcast is really for fiction writers. It is for fiction writers who write science fiction, fantasy, anything that falls under the speculative fiction umbrella.

I especially like genre mashups.

Also, my stance is one of obstinate… Can I say that again? Obstinate optimism.

Meaning I really believe that fiction and our creativity, can be tools for good and can be tools that can reshape humanity. and there’s some other core beliefs that I have.

Writing craft is about meaning and the reader experience. I really don’t teach rigid rules because language is evolving constantly, and it’s all about choices. Choices about your villains, the story structure or conflict or character motivation. It’s all in the service of aliveness, emotional resonance, clarity, and forward momentum.

What I care about and what I want you to care about is helping the reader be pulled through the story.

[01:44] Worldbuilding Through Character

The other stance that I have is that world-building is filtered through character.

We only wanna reveal what is important through your character’s perception in a way that it supports immersion and avoids info dumps. I have done a lot of episodes on world-building. And really culture and context belong in the foundation of your story, it’s not just decoration. I don’t care about adding more lore. What I care about is what your characters know and use and come from. That’s culture.

[02:17] Creative Process and Mindset

Thirdly, creative process.

I love talking about creative process. I believe that sustainable creativity comes from trust, compassion, and small doable steps.

Really my signature is around self-trust, being gentle with yourself around your messy first drafts, and practices that reduce shame or pressure on yourself. I treat mindset like a practical craft tool. How you write does affect what you can write, and in my mind, the sky’s the limit. You can write in a lot of different ways if your heart desires.

[02:54] Publishing and Marketing Values

Which brings me to publishing and marketing.

I have a heart-centered approach.

A heart-centered approach that’s values aligned, and that’s what I encourage you to have your focus on for your marketing. I think that beats hustle every single time, at least for me and people like me. Marketing and the business side of being an author is part of the creative path, not something outside of it, but part of it.

So the big question is, how can writers sell their books without selling their soul? And they can, because I think you can choose strategies that fit your strengths, build real relationships, and aim for long-term sustainability, not desperation.

It’s a whole other way of thinking about being in business, and I talk a lot about this in my creative entrepreneur incubator programs, and I bring it all here too as well.

[03:50] AI Ethics for Writers

And lastly, about AI and other technology.

I think we can be curious and ethical. I think we can use these tools without surrendering authorship.

In fact, I don’t think we want to surrender authorship. That’s what makes us unique. That’s what makes us human. We are not machines.

I really don’t take an all or nothing stance around AI. I really emphasize critical thinking, being aware of consent, being aware of rights, and really bringing your own human creativity and taking leadership.

Don’t cede your higher thinking skills to these machines.

I really encourage writers to understand the landscape of the AI and other tools coming and to respond intentionally. Not fearfully and not blindly. To really think about it for discernment.

[04:35] Wrap Up and Invitation

I thought I would tell you, the big buckets that I talk about, so you can ask me more questions about these.

The best way to ask me a question is to email me from howtowritethefuture.com and I will see your question. Also, you can @ bethbarany me on the socials. I’m on most of the socials. But really the best way is email. I could pull out some highlighted episodes that point to the things I listed here today, but there’s over 200, so I invite you to explore the backlog.

You can also see them all listed at howtowritethefuture.com, or if you’re looking for something specific, write me and ask me and I’ll help you find it.

So that’s it for this week, everyone. Write long and prosper.

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ABOUT BETH BARANY

Beth Barany is an award-winning fantasy and science fiction novelist and creativity coach for writers. They help novelists write, revise, and publish stories that matter—blending practical craft guidance with a big-picture commitment to imagination, meaning, and possibility.

Learn more about Beth Barany at these sites:

Author site / Coaching site / School of Fiction / Writer’s Fun Zone blog

CONNECT

Contact Beth: https://writersfunzone.com/blog/podcast/#tve-jump-185b4422580

Email: beth@bethbarany.com

LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/bethbarany/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/bethbarany/

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X: https://twitter.com/BethBarany

CREDITS

EDITED WITH DESCRIPT: https://www.descript.com?lmref=_w1WCA (Refer-a-Friend link)
MUSIC CREDITS : Music from Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/soundroll/fuzz-buzz License code: UMMKDRL02DFGKJ0L. “Fuzz buzz” by Soundroll. Commercial license: https://musicvine.com/track/soundroll/fuzz-buzz.
DISTRIBUTED BY BUZZSPROUT: https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=1994465 (Refer-a-Friend link)
SHOW PRODUCTION BY Beth Barany
SHOW CO-PRODUCTION + NOTES by Kerry-Ann McDade
EDITORIAL by Iman Llompart

c 2026 BETH BARANY

https://bethbarany.com/

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