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The Complete Handbook of Novel Writing: Everything You Need to Know to Create & Sell Your Work PDF

723 Pages·2017·3 MB·English
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The Complete Handbook of Novel Writing Third Edition Everything You Need to Know to Create and Sell Your Work The Editors of Writer’s Digest Cincinnati, Ohio The COMPLETE HANDBOOK OF NOVEL WRITING THIRD EDITION. Copyright © 2016 by the Editors of Writer’s Digest. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in a review. Published by Writer’s Digest Books, an imprint of F+W Media, Inc., 10151 Carver Road, Suite # 200, Blue Ash, OH 45242. (800) 289-0963. Third edition. Contents Title Page Copyright Page Part One: The Art and Craft of a Strong Narrative Best-Selling Advice: Inspiration and Ideas Chapter One: Training Your Ideas ESTABLISH A CALM, CENTERED MIND STUDY YOUR BREED TRAIN YOUR FOCUS WALK YOUR INNER DOG Chapter Two: Bend It, Amp It, Drive It, Strip It BEND IT AMP IT DRIVE IT STRIP IT Chapter Three: The Taming of the Muse FEEDING THE BEAST STORMING YOUR BRAIN SEDUCING YOUR SUBCONSCIOUS INSPIRATION ON DEMAND “INSPIRATION MEETS CRAFT” EQUALS “PRACTICE MEETS PLAY” Chapter Four: Testing the Strength of Your Story Ideas 1. DOES YOUR IDEA INVOLVE STRONG CONFLICT? 2. ARE YOUR CHARACTERS TRUE TO LIFE? 3. IS THE SETTING DISTINCTIVE? 4. DOES THE IDEA FULFILL A CLEAR PURPOSE? Chapter Five: Fire Up Your Fiction FIND THE UNCOMMON IN COMMON EXPERIENCE FIND THE COMMON IN UNCOMMON EXPERIENCE DEVELOP THE MORAL OF THE STORY BUILD THE FIRE IN FICTION Best-Selling Advice: Plot and Structure Chapter Six: The Hero’s Journey EXPLORING THE THREE-ACT STRUCTURE REFINING THE THREE-ACT STRUCTURE THE HERO’S JOURNEY, STEP BY STEP Chapter Seven: The Two Pillars of Novel Structure A BRIDGE TO SOMEWHERE THE FIRST PILLAR THE SECOND PILLAR THE OTHER SIDE Chapter Eight: Weaving In a Seamless Backstory TOO MUCH, TOO SOON TIMING IS EVERYTHING THE RIGHT BALANCE WHEN IN DOUBT Chapter Nine: The Essential Endgame Structure THE FOUR PARTS OF EFFECTIVE STORYTELLING GUIDELINES FOR A COMPELLING ENDING A PLAN FOR PART FOUR’S EXECUTION WHY STRUCTURE MATTERS Chapter Ten: Supporting Stories REASONS FOR USING SUBPLOTS CREATING COMPLICATIONS ENLARGING THE STORY WORLD CONNECTING CHARACTERS CREATING SUBPLOTS THAT MATTER Chapter Eleven: Behind the Scene 1. MAKE YOUR DIALOGUE FLOW 2. CUT OR HIDE EXPOSITION 3. FLIP THE OBVIOUS 4. APPLY THE CLOSED-EYES TECHNIQUE 5. KNOW WHAT YOU’RE AIMING FOR Best-Selling Advice: Characters Chapter Twelve: Character Study Chapter Thirteen: Mining for Character GETTING TO THE HEART OF THE MATTER CORE PERSONALITY TEMPERAMENTS SELECTING YOUR CHARACTER’S TEMPERAMENT USING YOUR OWN TEMPERAMENT COMMENCE LAYERING Chapter Fourteen: The Outer Limits CHARACTER IN CONTEXT CONFLICT: I WOULDN’T DO THIS IF I DIDN’T HAVE TO PERMISSION: AS LONG AS YOU SAY IT’S OKAY DECEIT OR DISCLOSURE: THAT WASN’T REALLY ME IF I DID THIS MORE OFTEN I’D BE BETTER AT IT THE ROLE OF CONTRADICTIONS EMOTION, INTUITION, AND TRUST Chapter Fifteen: Complicating Your Characters DEEPENING THE PROTAGONIST’S CHARACTER DEEPENING THE ANTAGONIST’S CHARACTER DEEPENING CHARACTER THROUGH BACKSTORY UPPING THE READER’S EMOTIONAL INVESTMENT Chapter Sixteen: Status 1. VARIABLE STATUS IS THE KEY TO DIMENSIONALITY 2. WORD CHOICE DETERMINES CHARACTERIZATION 3. PROTAGONISTS NEED OPPORTUNITIES TO BE HEROIC 4. STATUS CRYSTALLIZES AS THE STORY ESCALATES Chapter Seventeen: The Main Introduction INVOLVEMENT THE STAKES DESIRES FEARS MOTIVATION CHALLENGES Best-Selling Advice: Craft and Style Chapter Eighteen: Transform Your Novel into a Symphony THEME: YOUR NOVEL’S MELODY YOUR ENSEMBLE: A STAGE FULL OF VOICES TEMPO, DYNAMICS, AND MOOD: POWERFUL TOOLS YOUR FINALE: EMOTION AMPLIFIED Chapter Nineteen: Something to Say HAVING SOMETHING TO SAY BUILDING A THEME STEP-BY-STEP PRESENTING INESCAPABLE MORAL DILEMMAS DEVELOPING A UNIVERSAL THEME Chapter Twenty: Six Powerful Ways to Maintain Suspense 1. PUT CHARACTERS THAT READERS CARE ABOUT IN JEOPARDY 2. INCLUDE MORE PROMISES AND LESS ACTION 3. KEEP EVERY PROMISE YOU MAKE 4. LET THE CHARACTERS TELL READERS THEIR PLANS 5. CUT DOWN ON THE VIOLENCE 6. BE ONE STEP AHEAD OF YOUR READERS Chapter Twenty-One: Make Your Setting a Character LINK DETAILS AND EMOTIONS MEASURE CHANGE OVER TIME REALIZE THAT HISTORY IS PERSONAL SEE THROUGH CHARACTERS’ EYES Chapter Twenty-Two: Strengthening the Conflict RAISING THE STAKES MATCHING THE PROTAGONIST WITH A WORTHY OPPONENT BUILDING THE CONFLICT MAKING CONFLICT SUBTLE AND COMPLEX MAKING ABSTRACT CONFLICTS CONCRETE RESOLVING THE CONFLICT BELIEVABLY Chapter Twenty-Three: Seven Tools for Talk 1. LET IT FLOW 2. ACT IT OUT 3. SIDESTEP THE OBVIOUS 4. CULTIVATE SILENCE 5. POLISH A GEM 6. EMPLOY CONFRONTATION 7. DROP WORDS Chapter Twenty-Four: Choosing the Best POV for Your Story PROTAGONIST VERSUS POV CHARACTER POV CHARACTER SELECTION DIFFERENT EYES, DIFFERENT STORY CASTS OF THOUSANDS Part Two: The Writing Process Best-Selling Advice: Getting Started Chapter Twenty-Five: Write Like Poe THE COPYCAT THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE SAY WHAT? Chapter Twenty-Six: Break the Blocks to Creative Flow ASSESS YOUR STAGE MAKE WRITING A PRIORITY TRY MICROWRITING SET A WORD COUNT GOAL FIND AN ACCOUNTABILIBUDDY GET TO THE HEART CREATE CLIFF-HANGERS FINISH THE UNFINISHED MOVE IT MEDITATE DAYDREAM OR LET YOUR MIND WANDER Best-Selling Advice: Rituals and Methods Chapter Twenty-Seven: Mining for Diamonds CONSIDER THE ROLE OF FACT IN FICTION KNOW WHEN TO STEP AWAY DEFINE THE EDGES AND THE SHAPE OF THE UNIVERSE BEWARE OF FUSSING OVER THE FUSSY INTERVIEW AND OBSERVE Chapter Twenty-Eight: Map Your Novel with a Reverse Outline KNOW YOUR ENDING BEFORE YOU START OUTLINE YOUR STORY SIMPLY AND BRIEFLY Chapter Twenty-Nine: Creating a Flexible Outline for Any Kind of Story 1. CRAFT YOUR PREMISE 2. ROUGHLY SKETCH SCENE IDEAS 3. INTERVIEW YOUR CHARACTERS 4. EXPLORE YOUR SETTINGS 5. WRITE YOUR COMPLETE OUTLINE 6. CONDENSE YOUR OUTLINE 7. PUT YOUR OUTLINE INTO ACTION Chapter Thirty: Plantsing ANIMAL INSTINCTS PLOTTING AND PANTSING THE HYBRID APPROACH PLANTSING IN REAL LIFE Chapter Thirty-One: Rough It Up BE HONEST LEARN TO LOVE ANARCHY GET LOOSE FACE YOUR SECOND DRAFT Chapter Thirty-Two: Titling Your Story Best-Selling Advice: Revision and Editing Chapter Thirty-Three: The Geyser Approach to Revision TAKE ADVANTAGE OF LOW TIDE INVITE THE FLOW TO RETURN CHANNEL THE POWER AS IT BUILDS LET THE GEYSER LOOSE USE THE BEST OF BOTH TIDES Chapter Thirty-Four: Your Revision Checklist PLOT CHARACTER SETTING POV VOICE, ATTITUDE, AND HUMOR TIMING DIALOGUE AND SCENE DESCRIPTION AND DICTION THE POLISH Chapter Thirty-Five: The Great Revision Pyramid LAYER 1: THE NARRATION LAYER 2: THE CHARACTERS LAYER 3: THE STORY LAYER 4: THE SCENES ACCIDENT-FREE FINAL DRAFTS Part Three: Exploring Novel Genres Chapter Thirty-Six: Literary Lust Versus Commercial Cash Chapter Thirty-Seven: Understanding the Elements of Literary Fiction STYLE AND RESTRAINT SYMBOLISM POINT OF VIEW AND CHARACTER EXPERIMENTAL APPROACHES PUTTING IT TOGETHER Chapter Thirty-Eight: World Creation in Science Fiction RULES OF STARFLIGHT THE PROBLEM OF INTERSTELLAR FLIGHT WHAT THE RULES CAN DO FOR YOU TIME TRAVEL Chapter Thirty-Nine: What "High Concept" Means in Any Genre Seven Qualities of High-Concept Stories Chapter Forty: Write This, Not That 1. COINCIDENCES 2. DYNAMIC DESCRIPTIONS 3. FALSE CLUES 4. ACTION-PACKED DIALOGUE 5. CHARACTER MOTIVATIONS Chapter Forty-One: The Stuff Series Are Made Of TIES STORY ARCS AND SERIES ARCS C-S-P SERIES POTENTIAL ORGANIZATION OF DETAILS Chapter Forty-Two: Writing Investigation INVESTIGATING: OBSERVING AND INTERROGATING PLAYING FAIR CONFUSION: INTEREST KILLER COINCIDENCE: CREDIBILITY KILLER Chapter Forty-Three: Blurred Lines THREE KEYS TO WRITING THE CROSS-GENRE NOVEL PITCHING YOUR CROSS-GENRE NOVEL

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