A backlog of Hi Susan e-mails prompted me to respond to one. Nina send me this- I’ve been working on my story for a two weeks. Prior to that I spend months, outlining, plotting but now I feel I want to take it in another direction. Should I throw this one away and…
Tag: how to plot a novel
How I Plot My Novels with Joan Ramirez
Say hello to this week’s guest blogger, Joan Ramirez, who tells us how she plots her novels… I’m a great believer in exercise as stimulus for writing a novel. While doing yoga, I tune into my inner psyche to think about my protagonist and how I will introduce her to the reader in the first…
Do You Have a Plotting Problem?
I’m teaching a class on plotting a novel and while I was putting together notes for the first lesson, something dawned upon me. I shared it with the students and I thought maybe you’d like to hear it too. I always hear people say their biggest problem is plotting but I don’t think that’s always…
Come on Pantsers, Let’s Unite
Today’s guest blogger is J.J. DiBenedetto, he’s a pantser or is he? There are as many different ways to write a novel as there are writers, but I want to speak up for those of us who don’t outline, who don’t plot out in detail, who discover the story as it goes along. Yes, I’m…
Take Off Your Pants-An Interview with Libbie Hawker
Authors should never stop learning (at least that’s what I think). and last year I bought a copy of a book called Take Off Your Pants. Now if you’re puzzled by the title let me say it’s all about plotting and it’s one of the best I’ve ever read on the topic. I enjoyed…
Plotting Tips with Valerie Ullmer
Have trouble plotting your story? Author Valerie Ullmer has some easy tips to follow… Whenever I start plotting a new novel, I start at the beginning. Story Structure. Your story, whether a short story, novella, or a full-length novel should be told in three acts, with eight plot points specifically placed along the…