craft

Great is the art of beginning, but greater is the art of ending. ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow What best sells your next book? The ending of your previous book! A satisfying ending ties together all the pieces of your novel - the character arcs, the relationship arcs, the plot, the carefully...

This class focuses specifically on the middle of your story, the bulk of the action that takes place after the set-up and builds up until you reach your “disembarking point” and the book’s ending. How do you crank up conflict and emotion without writing yourself into a corner? How do you...

Your opening chapters are a book’s first date with a reader! They’re going to make decisions on if this is the right match for them based on their first impressions. So how do we write engaging, enticing, informative first chapters that set up your story, your characters and keep readers...

The Getting Your Manuscript Ready series is a comprehensive look at all the moving parts that make your manuscript the best it can be. We'll break down Beginnings, Middles, and Ends, discuss their unique challenges - and how to fix them! - as you create a book that flows from start to finish...

The basis of modern storytelling whether in print or on the screen, lies deeply rooted in the mythological tradition. Game of Thrones, Clash of the Titans, Thor, Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, Snow White and the Huntsman, Once Upon a Time, Grimm—all popular books, movies and TV series that have...

What is the function of a scene in a story? It can have many, but it must do something to drive the story forward. In this workshop, we’ll talk about how to write tighter scenes and ensure that each one is serving your larger story. We’ll look at different kinds of scenes, such as action scenes...

You’ve done it! You’ve finished your first draft. Maybe even you’ve gone over your draft a few times and had some beta reader feedback as well. But you’re either not sure it’s ready to send off to an editor, or if you’re if you’ve decided to edit it all on your own, you’re not sure if you’ve...

Have you received feedback that all of your characters sound the same, or that your characters aren’t distinct? There’s hope! In this workshop, we split the rendering of character into two parts: Development of character and dialogue/description. First, to craft your characters, you must...

You can get up close and personal with your characters by using deep third person POV. Deep POV can be used to create your character's voice and creates a connection with the reader. How to determine your character's "voice" What Deep POV is compared to other third person POVs Tips and...

Welcome to "Making The Scene: The Art of Writing Scenes in Works of Fiction"! Scenes are the fundamental components of a story, and as a fiction writer, mastering the art of scene creation is crucial. In this course, you will learn about the different types of scenes, their functions, and how...

Being a panster isn’t always easy. But if planning everything ahead of time isn’t your thing, then you’ll need to put methods in place to help you stay organized while you write. While you don’t need to plan your plot and characters out before you get started, you do need to keep track of...

A great Villain may kill your heroine - but nothing kills a story faster than a weak antagonist. In this course we will explore different types of Antagonists: anti-heroines, seducers, pirate queens and rebels, bumblers, psychos, vampires, ghosts and aliens, and more. Learn to use back-story...

Writing in first person is an exciting opportunity to explore one character’s deepest secrets and drives. But how do you create an interesting world, and other believable characters, if we’re trapped inside one head? We’ll explore successful authors’ use of first-person voice and identify...

Presenter: Beth Daniels, aka Beth Henderson, J.B. Dane, and Nied Darnell What gets a story talked about around the water cooler, over that latte or flavored coffee, over the milk shake or diet drink? For those who watched as well as those who read GAME OF THRONES, it was when George R. R...

Plotting and pantsing seem like two different ways of writing, but most of us actually use a combination of both. If your writing style veers toward being a pantser, you may still want some idea of where you're going before you start. How do you go about making a plan without stifling your...

Fairy tale retellings are very popular for a reason. They use tropes and characters that we're familiar with. For instance, the Cinderella story is a common one across cultures and centuries. Learn how to use these familiar and beloved characters in stories and give them a different twist. 1...

Are you seeking a coach and mentor who listens? Doesn't squash your writing style? And who provides positive, constructive feedback to meet your goals? As a certified coach with a background in education and over a decade of working with writers, my goal is to offer you an individualized...

Writing is transferring emotion onto the page to make a story come alive. Color sets the mood instantly without lengthy, detailed descriptions. Characters and setting become vivid when color is used to evoke primal physiological and emotional responses in readers. Individual colors have inherent...

Show Don’t Tell: The Writer’s Golden Rule looks at different techniques of putting your readers into your story, and how to use them. We will cover: · Show vs. Tell?—Examines the difference between telling a story and showing it. · The Five Senses—How to use the senses effectively. ·...

Have you ever finished the first draft of a book and thought it was missing something, but you weren't sure what? That "what" is probably layering - the process of adding details to your story, from character traits to body language to descriptions of the environment surrounding your story. Each...