Story Fix: Transform Your Novel from Broken to Brilliant

282 Pages·2015·1.18 MB·English

by  Larry Brooks

Story Fix
Transform Your Novel from Broken to Brilliant
Larry Brooks
WritersDigest.com
Cincinnati, Ohio
STORY FIX. Copyright © 2015 by Larry Brooks. Manufactured in the United States of America. All
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For Laura, for always.
Acknowledgments
No author is alone with his work, which is a good thing for writers and readers
alike. I’d like to thank Phil Sexton and the team at F+W and Writer’s Digest
Books for their steadfast support and consistently stellar design work, with
special thanks to Rachel Randall for the incredible value-add imbued by her
editing, vision, and advocacy. Thanks to Art Holcomb for modeling what a real
pro looks like in this business, and for the inspiration while having my back.
And thanks to Joel Canfield for his big brain and willingness to help, to Jim Frey
for the best book blurb ever, and to the many Storyfix.com writer-readers who
keep me motivated and in the right lane as I balance teaching and coaching work
with my own fiction and nonfiction projects.
About the Author
Larry Brooks is the author of three books on writing fiction, including the
bestseller Story Engineering: Mastering the Six Core Competencies of
Successful Writing and the award-winning Story Physics: Harnessing the
Underlying Forces of Storytelling. He is also the USA Today bestselling author
of six critically acclaimed thrillers and the creator of the award-winning website
Storyfix.com, named six years running by Writer’s Digest magazine in their
annual “101 Best Websites for Writers” list. Brooks lives in Scottsdale, Arizona,
and travels frequently as a speaker and workshop teacher at conferences and at
the behest of writing groups who like their instruction served hot and straight up.
Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Foreword
Introduction
The Power of Instinct
Part One: The Raw Grist of Story Fixing
Chapter 1: What You Need to Know About Story Fixing
Before You Revise
Two Major Reasons Why a Story Doesn’t Work
Story and Execution
Chapter 2: The Story-Fixing Mind-Set
The Virtue of Aiming High
The Challenge of Embracing Greatness
Chapter 3: What Went Wrong
Acknowledgment Is Always the First Step
Maybe You’re One of the Lucky Ones
Evaluating the Twelve Specific Story Elements and
Essences
The Value of Knowing Where You Stand
Part Two: Repair
Chapter 4: Strengthen Your Concept
What Is Concept?
The Criteria for Concept
What Is Your Concept?
Examples from Stories You Know
Let There Be Superman
What Is Conceptual About Your Story?
Chapter 5: Empower Your Premise
The Goal of Premise
The Big Mistakes with Premise
Examples of Premise
Revise Your Premise
The Complication of Premise
A Second Pass at Grading Your Story
The Value of Your Self-Assessment
Chapter 6: The Key to Everything
The Search for Story
How to Screw Up Your Premise Within a Draft
Chapter 7: Narrative Bodybuilding Part One
It’s All in Your Head
Dramatic Tension
Vicarious Reader Experience
Compelling Characterization
Reader Empathy
Thematic Weight
Chapter 8: Narrative Bodybuilding Part Two
Story Architecture
Optimal Pacing
Scene Execution
Writing Voice
Narrative Strategy
An Invitation to Determine What Has Sunk In
Part Three: Resurrection
Chapter 9: Welcome to the Suck
Nobody Likes to Talk About Revision
Revision Is an Inevitability
Chapter 10: Is Your Story Worth Saving?
Rejection ... Let Us Count the Ways
The First Decision Point of Revision
Vetting the Feedback That Brought You Here
The Bearer of Bad News
Returning to Your Dramatic Question
Chapter 11: Spinning Hope from Rejection
Welcome to the Bermuda Triangle of Storytelling