Reactive scenes focus on an issue or conundrum and how the character decides to move forward. In this video I use examples from published novels to demonstrate the structure of reactive scenes.
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Strong proactive scenes are an important element of an engaging novel. This video is mostly about demonstrating how proactive scenes play out in published novels. For more information about the details of how to write proactive scenes, check out my previous video series.
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Foreshadowing can be a great way to pull the reader through potentially boring scenes with the promise of something exciting on the horizon. In this video I go over published novels and how they use foreshadowing to keep the reader engaged.
This video is part of my annual Novel Boot Camp series. You can learn more and see the schedule here.
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Character descriptions can often feel boring or awkwardly inserted into the story. But describing both physical traits and personality traits can be done in a way that fits seamlessly into the story. In this video I use published novels to demonstrate how to make your character descriptions engaging.
This video is part of my annual Novel Boot Camp series. You can learn more and see the schedule here.
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Writers are often advised to use as little backstory as possible, but sometimes nonessential backstory can actually enhance a scene. Backstory can convey the novel’s themes, clarify the character’s feelings, or give a better sense of the character’s current actions.
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Writers are often advised to use as little backstory as possible, but sometimes nonessential backstory can actually enhance a scene. Backstory can convey the novel’s themes, clarify the character’s feelings, or give a better sense of the character’s current actions.
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Flashbacks can be an engaging way to convey backstory, but flashbacks must be both important to the story and entertaining.
In this video, I discuss flashbacks in published novels, why they work, and how you can apply the technique to your own fiction.
Take your first page for a test drive in this free workshop!
My hope is that the critiques will help you to avoid mistakes that get submissions deleted by agents and that cause readers to put the book down (or click away from the webpage) without buying.
Want to know what to expect from the critiques? Check out last year’s workshop.
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Prologues are notoriously hated by agents and editors, and in previous videos and blog posts I’ve advised against using them, but writers often still feel that a prologue is a good choice for their novel.
So today I want to go over a few published prologues to talk about why they work and how you can write a strong prologue for your own novel.
Don’t forget to polish your opening scenes. The submission form for the critique workshop will be open starting Monday!
Opening hooks can come from many different story elements: the setting, characters, situation, goal, or problem. Hooks should either engage the reader with something unique or raise an intriguing question.
In this video, I use published novels to demonstrate how authors use multiple hooks to suck the reader into the story.
I get asked a lot of questions about novel openings: Where should I start my novel? Should the inciting incident be on the first page? How can I keep the reader engaged if the inciting incident doesn’t happen for several scenes? Can a later inciting incident be a good thing?
In this video, I use published novels to demonstrate different ways you can structure your novel’s opening.
