Need help with your novel? Join the third annual Novel Boot Camp and whip your story into shape!

What is Novel Boot Camp?

Novel Boot Camp is a free writing course and workshop for aspiring novelists. It includes daily video lectures, discussion questions, a Q&A session, and two writing workshops with both professional and peer critiques.

This year I’ll be moving from text-based lectures to video lectures. You can view the videos by subscribing to my YouTube channel, but if you’d like to ask questions, answer the discussion questions, or participate in the workshops, please follow this blog so you receive updates to your email.

I’m really excited about this year’s topics, which include:

• Writing Strong Protagonists
• Novel Structure & Plot Points
• Scene Structure
• Active & Reactive Scenes
• And more!

The Schedule

July 1, Friday: Welcome Party & First Workshop

We’ll kick off Novel Boot Camp and submissions will open for the first workshop. During Workshop #1 I will be critiquing your novel openings and providing a brief paragraph of feedback. Last year, I critiqued 100 novel openings! You can check out last year’s version of this workshop here. I will be critiquing novel openings in the order they are submitted. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to get through all submissions.

July 4, Monday: No Activity Today!

If you’re in the states, please enjoy Independence Day!

July 5 – July 8, Tuesday – Friday: Protagonist Week & Workshop #1 Feedback

This week will be all about protagonists. I’m going to cover character flaws, goals, motivation, and realism. Workshop #1 will run throughout the week with daily posts of first-page critiques.

July 11-15, Monday – Friday:  Novel Structure & Workshop #1 Feedback Continued

The second full week of Novel Boot Camp will focus on novel structure. I will cover the first plot point, the midpoint, the second plot point, the climax, and the pinch points. Workshop #1 will continue with daily posts of first-page critiques.

July 15, Friday: Workshop #2 Submissions Open

Submissions for Workshop #2 will open Friday morning. This will be a peer critique session, but I will be offering my critiques as much as possible. Due to time limitations, I may not be able to include every participant in the critique session. Sorry for any inconvenience.

July 18 – 22, Monday – Friday:  Writing Great Scenes & Workshop #2 Peer Critique Sessions

This week will focus on the two different types of scenes (active and reactive) and the key components of each. The peer critique session will run throughout the week so please stop by and critique the work of the other participants!

July 22, Friday: Q&A Session Submissions Open

The submission form for the Q&A sessions will open Friday morning. You will be able to submit any questions you have about writing or editing.

July 25 – 29, Monday – Friday:  Tailored Topics & Q&A Sessions

This week the videos will be tailored to the specific needs and requests of this year’s Novel Boot Camp participants. I will choose the topics based on issues with your first pages as well as the most commonly asked Q&A questions.

How Do I Join Novel Boot Camp?

There is no sign-up form for Novel Boot Camp. Simply follow the blog (RSS feed and an email notification form are available in the sidebar) so you will receive notifications of the workshops and daily lessons.

I hope to see you all there!

If you’re planning to participate in Novel Boot Camp this year, what are you most excited to learn about?