- Level
- Mixed
- Basic and Premium Members Prices
- Premium Members $40 & Basic Members $50
Register by April 29th and save $5, use code ROMANCECASTKNIGHT2024 at checkout!
- Category
- Characters
- Description/Setting
- GMC
- $5 off Early Registration Coupon-expires 1 week before class starts
- ROMANCECASTKNIGHT2024
- Class Length
- 4 Weeks
In this brand-new month-long online class, New York Times bestselling author Angela Knight discusses the importance of creating the perfect cast for the kind of romance you’re trying to write.
A memorable romance cast is more than the sum of its parts. To create an effective book, all the characters – protagonists, antagonists, and minor characters – must work together as a unit. And each must fit the kind of book you’re trying to write. Leatherface of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre does not belong in a Rom Com. Nor do you want minor characters to steal the book.
But how do you create a good cast for this particular book and the audience you’re aiming for?
Angela discusses how to design your heroic couple for each other, along with the minor characters and sidekicks who help make the protagonists three-dimensional.
She’ll also talk antagonists and their henchmen, and how to use them to create tension and excitement.
Next, she’ll explore dialogue, humor and arguments as a way to develop character and conflict.
The result will be a firm foundation for your book so you won’t be flailing in the dark, trying to figure out why the heck your book isn’t working.
A memorable romance cast is more than the sum of its parts. To create an effective book, all the characters – protagonists, antagonists, and minor characters – must work together as a unit. And each must fit the kind of book you’re trying to write. Leatherface of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre does not belong in a Rom Com. Nor do you want minor characters to steal the book.
But how do you create a good cast for this particular book and the audience you’re aiming for?
Angela discusses how to design your heroic couple for each other, along with the minor characters and sidekicks who help make the protagonists three-dimensional.
She’ll also talk antagonists and their henchmen, and how to use them to create tension and excitement.
Next, she’ll explore dialogue, humor and arguments as a way to develop character and conflict.
The result will be a firm foundation for your book so you won’t be flailing in the dark, trying to figure out why the heck your book isn’t working.
- Outline
- Lessons in this month-long online class will be posted on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, students may email scenes to Angela for her private critique and suggestions.
- Introduction – How a good romance cast functions as a unit.
- What’s the big idea? – What kind of story do you want to tell? How do you make sure it would make a good book? Is it novel or novella, and how can you tell?
- From Rom-coms to Game of Thrones: What’s the subgenre for this kind of book, and why does it matter? What’s the audience for that subgenre, and what are they looking for?
- Brave New Worlds – Designing the prefect world for this story – even if it’s a contemporary.
- Perfect for Each Other -- Creating a heroic couple who’ll drive each other crazy… in and out of bed.
- A Match Made in Hell – Creating the perfect antagonist to make your couple’s lives miserable … and keep readers up all night turning pages.
- Sidekicks – Supporting characters who bring your protagonists to life and make them question what the hell they’re doing.
- Henchmen – The importance of a good flunky with bad intentions.
- Perfect Pitch – How to give each character a realistic “voice.”
- Snark, Sarcasm and malice – Using humor to make readers laugh … or scare the daylights out of them.
- A Good Row – Writing a knock-down-drag-argument without making your characters sound like jerks.
- All Together Now – How to put everybody through their paces on the page.
- Class Format
- Savvy Authors' workshops are held on a forum: a bulletin board based system. You will receive a reminder notice one day prior to the start of the workshop that includes instructions on how to access the workshop forum. If you have not received instructions by the day the workshop begins, please check your spam filter.
The forum will be available the morning (EST) of the day the workshop starts and will remain accessible to all participants thereafter. You will also be given simple instructions on how to create a PDF of all your discussions along with our privacy and data retention policy.
