The Book I Haven't Finished | The M. Gardner Show

What happens to the stories we never finish telling? Are they failures, or are they simply waiting for us to become the writers we're meant to be?

In this episode of The M. Gardner Show, M. Gardner opens up about the challenges of unfinished manuscripts, drawing from his experience writing six books and struggling with stories that refuse to come together. From the fading excitement of a new idea to perfectionism, fear of criticism, and the demands of everyday life, we explore why so many stories are left unfinished.

We'll also look at the beauty of incompleteness, the lessons hidden in abandoned manuscripts, and the literary works that remind us that a story doesn't have to be finished to have meaning. Sometimes, the projects we leave behind are the very things that teach us how to become better writers.

In this week's Writer's Corner, M. Gardner shares his personal collection of unfinished manuscripts and offers a challenge: revisit an old story, not to judge yourself for leaving it behind, but to discover what it taught you.

Whether you're a writer with a novel gathering digital dust or someone who has ever left a dream unfinished, this episode is a reminder that you haven't necessarily failed. You might just need more time.

Because there's a difference between a book you couldn't finish and a book you haven't finished.

Some stories aren't dead. They're patient.

📧 Questions or comments? Email m.gardnerbooks@gmail.com.

Thanks for pulling up a chair around my campfire.

Keep questioning. Keep telling stories. Keep creating.

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Every writer knows the feeling: you sit down in front of a blank page, you want to write, you know what you want to say—and somehow, nothing comes out.

But what if "writer's block" isn't really one problem?

In this episode of The M. Gardner Show, M. Gardner takes an honest look at writer's block through his own experiences as a novelist. From struggling with Epic of L to stepping away from writing for an entire year and eventually pouring 180,000 words into Anrith: The Tale of a Bear and His Guns, M. Gardner explores what he learned about creativity, fear, perfectionism, burnout, rest, and creative resistance.

The episode breaks writer's block into several different forms, including emotional blocks, fear, exhaustion, structural problems, resistance, burnout, and skill gaps. It also explores why sometimes the answer isn't to force yourself to keep writing—but to step away, rest, learn something new, or follow another story.

The central question becomes:

What if resistance isn't a sign that you're failing as a writer, but information about what your creativity actually needs?

M. Gardner also discusses the experiences and perspectives of writers including Stephen King, Maya Angelou, Anne Lamott, Margaret Atwood, Haruki Murakami, and Virginia Woolf.

In Writer's Corner, M. Gardner shares the practical approach he now uses when he gets stuck: instead of immediately trying to overcome resistance, he asks, "Why don't I want to write this right now?"

So pull up a chair around the campfire and join the conversation.

Keep questioning. Keep telling stories. Keep creating.

📧 Questions or comments: m.gardnerbooks@gmail.com

The M. Gardner Show — Episode: “When Did Angels Get Wings?”

When you picture an angel, what do you see?

A beautiful figure in flowing white robes? A glowing halo? Giant feathered wings?

What if I told you that some of the oldest descriptions of heavenly beings look nothing like that?

In this episode of The M. Gardner Show, M. Gardner explores the fascinating history of angels—from the messengers described in ancient religious texts to the winged, beautiful figures that eventually became the dominant image in Western culture.

We explore:

👼 What the word “angel” actually means
📖 How angels are described in biblical texts
🌍 How different cultures and religions have imagined celestial beings
🔥 The bizarre and terrifying descriptions of cherubim and seraphim
👁️ The mysterious wheels covered in eyes from Ezekiel's vision
⚔️ The evolution of angels, fallen angels, demons, and warriors
🎨 How medieval and Renaissance art helped create the angel we recognize today
🪽 Where the familiar wings and halos came from
😨 Why “biblically accurate angels” have become associated with horror
🧠 The connection between angels and the psychological concept of the uncanny valley
📚 Seven major angel archetypes that storytellers continue to use

But this episode isn't just about religious history.

It's about storytelling.

Why do we keep reinventing angels? Why do different generations imagine them differently? And what does the way we portray supernatural beings reveal about what we want them to represent?

In the Writer's Corner, M. Gardner goes behind the scenes of his own novel Epic of L, discussing his portrayal of angels, Uriel, Nephilim, black wings, blue eyes, prophecy, and the idea of beings caught between the human and divine worlds.

Because sometimes the best way to create fantasy is to look backward at the oldest stories we have—and ask:

What if we took them seriously?

So pull up a chair around the campfire.

We're going back to the beginning to ask one deceptively simple question:

When did angels get wings?

🎙️ The M. Gardner Show
📖 Keep questioning. Keep telling stories. Keep creating.