Bonus: Five Actionable Writing Lessons from Shrinking Season Two (Companion to Ep. 300)
Welcome back to Spun Today! In this bonus episode, Tony Ortiz explores what writers can learn from Season 2 of "Shrinking." Through a breakdown of five actionable takeaways, you'll discover how to craft flawed, believable characters, turn emotional growth into concrete action, and write conflicts where both sides feel justified. Whether you’re a seasoned storyteller or just getting started, this episode is packed with inspiration and practical tips to fuel your creative process—reminding you that the best writing comes from digging deep into the real, messy parts of being human.
Grab the free companion guide at spuntoday.com to follow along visually, and get ready to sharpen your storytelling craft.
Download the FREE guide here: The Shrinking S2 Companion Guide
The Spun Today Podcast is a Podcast that is anchored in Writing, but unlimited in scope. Give it a whirl.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/spuntoday
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spuntoday/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@spuntoday
Website: http://www.spuntoday.com/home
Newsletter: http://www.spuntoday.com/subscribe
Links referenced in this episode
Shrinking: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt15677150/?ref_=ttfc_ov_bk
Get your Podcast Started Today! https://signup.libsyn.com/?promo_code=SPUN
(Use Promo code SPUN and get up to 2-months of free service!)
Check out all the Spun Today Merch, and other ways to help support this show! https://www.spuntoday.com/support
Check out my Books
Make Way for You – Tips for getting out of your own way
ÁBRЕТЕ CAMINO: CONSEJOS PARA DEJAR DE SER TU PROPIO OBSTÁCULO (Spanish Edition)
Melted Cold – A Collection of Short Stories
http://www.spuntoday.com/books/ (e-Book, Paperback & Hardcover are now available).
Fill out my Spun Today Questionnaire if you’re passionate about your craft. I’ll share your insight and motivation on the Podcast: http://www.spuntoday.com/questionnaire/
Shop on Amazon using this link, to support the Podcast: https://amzn.to/4km592l
Shop on iTunes using this link, to support the Podcast: https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewTop?genreId=38&id=27820&popId=42&uo=10
Shop at the Spun Today store for Mugs, Notebooks, T-Shirts and more: https://spuntoday-shop.fourthwall.com/
Music: https://www.purple-planet.com
Outro Background Music: https://www.bensound.com
Spun Today Logo by: https://www.naveendhanalak.com/
Sound effects are credited to: http://www.freesfx.co.uk
Listen on: ApplePodcasts | Spotify | Pocket Casts | YouTube | Website
Transcript
〰️
Transcript 〰️
Tony Ortiz [00:00:02]:
Hey everyone. Welcome to another SPUN Today bonus episode. In this one, we're diving into Season two of Shrinking, which is teaching us about writing characters that feel real, messy and human. It's about confronting the parts of ourselves we'd rather avoid. This episode is all about unpacking five rapid fire, actionable writing takeaways from the series and how you can use them to sharpen your own storytelling craft. If you want to follow along visually, you can grab the free shrinking season two companion guide@spun today.com it's a quick breakdown designed to go hand in hand with what we'll be exploring here, and has a few extras as well. Let's get into it. 1.
Tony Ortiz [00:00:47]:
Give trauma a face Bringing the drunk driver into Jimmy's world transforms grief into confrontation. The writing takeaway for us there is that when you give trauma a face, you force your character into action. Pain becomes present, unavoidable, and morally complex. 2. Let your protagonist be wrong. Jimmy's flaws, like selfishness, avoidance, emotional absence, drive the story. The writing takeaway for us is real characters fail people. Growth only matters if there's something to answer for.
Tony Ortiz [00:01:27]:
3. Turn emotional growth into action. Paul's walk through the cloud metaphor gives Sean something tangible that he can use in his life. The writing takeaway for us is to show growth through behavior, not just explanation. The actual action of the thing makes change believable. 4. Let conflict hold two truths in the confrontation between Sean and his father, both of them feel justified and have valid points behind how they feel. The writing takeaway for us there is that the best conflict isn't right versus wrong, it's perspective versus perspective.
Tony Ortiz [00:02:14]:
And number five is the full circle transformation. Jimmy goes from rejection of that drunk driver to compassion and saving his life. The writing takeaway for us is character arcs are proven through changed behavior in similar situations. And that's my Bonus breakdown of shrinking season 2 if you'd like to listen to the full length episode, go check out episode 300 of the Sponsoreday podcast. If you want to see all five takeaways in an expanded layout and in a clean visual format, grab the free companion guide now@ sponsoreday.com it's designed to be a quick reference for your own creative process, has a bonus takeaway and a writing prompt to get you started. A direct link will be in the episode notes for the your convenience. And if you enjoyed this bonus episode, check out the other companion guides like the one I did for Daredevil, Succession and many more. These episodes are all about learning from great storytelling and applying those lessons to your own creative craft.
Tony Ortiz [00:03:22]:
Thanks for listening and keep writing.