Table Of ContentCrafting Novels
Short Stories
The Complete Guide to Writing Great Fiction
From the editors of Writer’s Digest
Foreword by James Scott Bell
Cincinnati, Ohio
www.writersdigest.com
Contents
Foreword
Introduction
Focus on the Writing Life:
GETTING STARTED
GET OFF YOUR BUTT & WRITE by the Editors of Writer’s Digest YOUR NOVEL
BLUEPRINT by Karen S. Wiesner
Part 1. CHARACTERS:
The Stakeholders in Your Story
Chapter 1. DRAW CHARACTERS FROM THE STRONGEST
SOURCES
by Nancy Kress Chapter 2. EMOTION-DRIVEN CHARACTERS
by David Corbett Chapter 3. DEPICTING CONVINCING
RELATIONSHIPS
by Elizabeth Sims Chapter 4. CREATE THE (IM)PERFECT HEROIC
COUPLE
by Leigh Michaels Chapter 5. CHOOSING YOUR CHARACTER
by Michael J. Vaughn Chapter 6. THREE TECHNIQUES FOR
CRAFTING YOUR VILLAIN
by Hallie Ephron Chapter 7. CREATE VICIOUS VILLAINS
by Charles Atkins
Focus on the Writing Life:
FEEDING YOUR CREATIVITY
CREATIVE LOLLYGAGGING. WORK HARDER AT WORKING LESS by Michael J.
Vaughn
Part 2. PLOT & CONFLICT:
Your Story’s Action & Suspense
Chapter 8. STORY TRUMPS STRUCTURE
by Steven James Chapter 9. MAP YOUR NOVEL WITH A REVERSE
OUTLINE
by N.M. Kelby Chapter 10. WRITE WELL-CRAFTED SCENES TO
SUPPORT YOUR STORY
by James Scott Bell Chapter 11. USE BRAIDING TO LAYER YOUR
STORY LINE
by Heather Sellers Chapter 12. CRAFT AN OPENING SCENE THAT
LURES READERS INTO Chapter TWO
by Les Edgerton Chapter 13. WRITE A FIVE-STAR Chapter ONE
by Elizabeth Sims Chapter 14. STRENGTHEN YOUR SCENES
by James Scott Bell Chapter 15. RESCUE YOUR STORY FROM PLOT
PITFALLS
by Laura Whitcomb
Focus on the Writing Life:
BEATING WRITER’S BLOCK
START ME UP by Elizabeth Sims
Part 3. POINT OF VIEW:
The Voice of Your Story
Chapter 16. UNDERSTANDING DIFFERENCES IN POV
by James V. Smith, Jr.
Chapter 17. USING PERCEPTION TO ENHANCE YOUR POV
by Alicia Rasley Chapter 18. POV CHARACTERS WHO OVERSTEP
THEIR BOUNDS
by Kristen Johnson Ingram Chapter 19. MASTERING MULTIPLE
POINTS OF VIEW
by Simon Wood
Focus on the Writing Life:
USING YOUR MUSE
MAKE YOUR OWN MUSE by N.M. Kelby
FUELING YOUR MUSE WITH COMPOST by Heather Sellers
Part 4. SETTING & BACKSTORY:
The Context for Your Story
Chapter 20. CREATING YOUR STORY’S TIME & PLACE
by Donald Maass Chapter 21. REFINE YOUR SETTING SKILL SET
by Brian Kiteley Chapter 22. WHY BACKSTORY IS ESSENTIAL
by Larry Brooks Chapter 23. SIX WAYS TO LAYER IN BACKSTORY
by Hallie Ephron Chapter 24. WEAVE IN BACKSTORY TO REVEAL
CHARACTER
by Rachel Ballon Chapter 25. HOW TO BUILD SUSPENSE WITH
BACKSTORY
by Leigh Michaels
Focus on the Writing Life:
BALANCING WRITING WITH THE REST OF LIFE
MARRY YOUR LIFE TO YOUR WRITING by Sheila Bender
THE WRITE-AT-HOME MOM by Christina Katz
Part 5. DIALOGUE:
What Your Characters Say to Each Other
Chapter 26. AMP UP DIALOGUE WITH EMOTIONAL BEATS
by Todd A. Stone Chapter 27. WEAVE ACTION, NARRATIVE, &
DIALOGUE
by Gloria Kempton Chapter 28. AVOID WRITING SAME-OLD, SAME-
OLD CONVERSATIONS
by Michael Levin
Focus on the Writing Life:
MAXIMIZING YOUR PRODUCTIVITY
REINVENTING YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH TIME by Sage Cohen
Part 6. DESCRIPTION & WORD CHOICE:
What You Tell Readers
Chapter 29. BALANCING DESCRIPTION & SUMMARY
by Ron Rozelle Chapter 30. FOLLOW THE RULES FOR STRONGER
WRITING
by Nancy Lamb Chapter 31. KEEP YOUR STORY LEAN
by Nancy Kress Chapter 32. MAKE YOUR TONE PITCH-PERFECT
by Adair Lara Chapter 33. UNDERSTANDING GENDER
DIFFERENCES
by Leigh Anne Jasheway
Focus on the Writing Life:
RESEARCHING YOUR WORK
RESEARCHING YOUR IDEAS by the Editors of Writer’s Digest
Part 7. REVISION:
How Your Story Comes Together
Chapter 34. HOW TO GAIN PERSPECTIVE ON YOUR WORK
by Elizabeth Sims Chapter 35. FIRE UP YOUR FICTION. FOUR
TECHNIQUES
by Donald Maass Chapter 36. WHAT TO DO WHEN YOUR NOVEL
STALLS
by John Dufresne Chapter 37. KEEP YOUR STORY MOVING AT THE
RIGHT PACE
by Jessica Page Morrell Chapter 38. PUT YOUR FICTION TO THE
PLAUSIBILITY TEST
by Steve Almond Chapter 39. TRANSFORM THAT OUT-OF-SHAPE
FIRST DRAFT
by Lin Enger
Focus on the Writing Life:
GETTING PUBLISHED
SELLING YOUR FICTION by the Editors of Writer’s Digest
Appendix A. FICTION GENRE DESCRIPTIONS
Appendix B. RESOURCES
Permissions
Copyright Page
Foreword
BY JAMES SCOTT BELL
When I was a freshly scrubbed law school graduate I went to work for a big civil
litigation firm in Beverly Hills. I wanted to be a trial lawyer and, having won my
law school’s coveted trial advocacy award, I was raring to go. Thought I knew it
all right out of the gate.
So the day came when one of the senior associates had a dinky little trial
coming up and didn’t want to be bothered. He asked me if I wanted to take it.
Take it? This was my big moment!
It was indeed a relatively small bench trial (one judge, no jury) but I treated
it like the Trial of the Century. When I showed up at the courthouse the other
attorney met me, shook my hand, and suggested in collegial tones that perhaps
we could settle this thing here and now. He asked to see the new evidence I was
going to present, which consisted of a few letters, and I showed him. He
conferred with his client and came back and made a settlement offer that was
way too low. The lawyer actually said he was now going to take this to trial. He
obviously didn’t know I was the second coming of Clarence Darrow.
When the trial got under way there was a moment when the opposing lawyer
stood up and addressed the judge. He told the judge I was withholding evidence
from the court. “I have seen this evidence and Mr. Bell is trying to deceive you,
Your Honor,” he said.
I was furious. I babbled incoherently. It threw me off my game. And even
though I won this one-day trial, the amount gained for my client was less than
what I thought it should be.
I complained angrily to the senior associate about how I was treated. He
snorted and sat me down. “Don’t you know the first rule of trial work? Don’t
ever trust the other lawyer.”
So simple. So pithy. It was advice I needed to hear before I walked into a
courtroom.
There is nothing so instructive in any endeavor of life as having an
experienced hand give you the benefit of his wisdom. Which is why I appreciate
the writing instruction presented in a good craft book like this one. It’s like
having that seasoned professional sit down with you and tell you things you
could only learn on your own after lots of trial and error, if you learn them at all.
When I was first trying to figure out how to write, I devoured the fiction
column in Writer’s Digest, then inked by the great Lawrence Block. I read it
every month as if it were a sacred page, underlining what jumped out at me. I
still have binders full of those back issues and have turned to them nostalgically
on occasion, always picking up a fresh tip or being reminded of one that I’d first
read there.
Likewise, I have an entire floor to ceiling bookcase with nothing but writing
books, all of them highlighted to one degree or another.
My philosophy has always been if I can learn just one thing from an article
or book on writing, it’s worth it. If there is one tip or technique that will lift my
writing to another level, I want to know it. I don’t ever want to rest as a writer.
Books like the one you are holding your hand are your friends in that regard.
The fact that it is a collection from a number of brilliant teachers of the craft
is a huge benefit. It’s like you get to sit at a large table for coffee with a group of
skilled instructors and listen to their insights while you take notes. In fact, it’s
better. You don’t have to pause and ask them to repeat something. You can linger
over a section of the book as long as you want.
But you must do more than that. You must put into practice what you learn.
When you read something that strikes you as relevant to your own writing
journey, figure out a way to practice it. Make up a writing exercise for yourself.
You’ll find many exercises already in the book, waiting for you. Don’t know
what to write? Try Elizabeth Sims’s “Random Sentence Kick-Start”.
Are your characters not coming to life as you’d like? Give them dreams, as
suggested by Nancy Kress.
If time to write is a problem, drink in Sage Cohen’s essay on how to be most
productive.
In fact, drink in this whole book. Linger over it. Keep it handy. You’ll find
yourself turning to it when you need to, and even before you need to. What you
have here is instructional gold. Mine it, refine it, use it. And follow three simple
rules:
1. Keep learning.
2. Keep writing.
3. Never trust the other lawyer.
—James Scott Bell
