Structure: The Building Blocks of Story
So you have your genius concept, your cast of characters, and a few dramatic scenes floating around in your head—now what? For this bundle, we pulled together our favorite OnDemand Webinars and Digital Issues that dive into the art of structuring your story (and the benefits of abandoning structure entirely!) Zoraida Córdova, Jordan Rosenfeld, and Rachel Howzell Hall are just a few of the voices that offer practical advice and secrets for plotting, structuring, and revising. In the journey from a bright idea to a completed novel, every author eventually encounters the challenge of structuring their writing; pantser or plotter, this bundle will help you in creating an unshakeable foundation to support your story.
Roadmap for Plotters and Pantsers (OnDemand Webinar): The great publishing debate tends to fall into two schools: Plotters and Pantsers. Plotters tirelessly map their way from start to finish. Pantsers write by the seat of their pants, or so they say. Zoraida Córdova used to write like this. Fifteen novels later, she's tried every outline she could get her hands on and settled on one that is a mixture of many. Outlines can range from detailed chapter-by-chapter breakdowns to a handful of bullet points in a simple three-act structure. Regardless of your writing style, there is a way to make an outline work for you. ($79.99 value)
Powerful Plotting (OnDemand Webinar): In this OnDemand webinar, Jordan Rosenfeld brings her experience as the author of six books on the craft of writing and three novels, to talk about how to conceive and execute your plot, regardless of whether you’re starting from the beginning or deep into revision. Jordan demystifies multiple types of plot structures, explores how to keep the stakes high and your plot pacing tight while keeping in mind turning points of character transformation, and how to break down your plot at the scene level. ($79.99 value)
The Murky Middle: How to Plot Your Way Out of Any Story (OnDemand Webinar): You're writing merrily along and then all of a sudden... You find yourself in the Swamps of Sadness, halfway to Mordor, or marooned on an alien planet with a broken dial-home device, and you don't know which way to go. You're in the murky middle of your novel. In this OnDemand Webinar, author Sarah Beth Durst discusses tips, tricks, and techniques for finding your way out of the morass of the middle and making your plot compelling from start to finish. ($79.99 value)
Abandon Your Outline and Elevate Your Novel Video Download (OnDemand Webinar): Award-winning, bestselling author Steven James is best known for his suspense novels and thrillers which have won wide critical acclaim from Publishers Weekly, RT Book Reviews, and many others. In this enlightening OnDemand Webinar, he shares the advantages of ditching outlines, why authors should stop trying to plot out their stories, how to trust the writing process, and how to develop their fiction organically rather than mechanically. ($79.99 value)
Build Solid Story Structure & Write Great Fiction (Tutorial): Story structure is like a suspension bridge: if the parts aren't working together, the entire bridge will collapse. If you structure correctly from the start, half of your work as a novelist is done. What does it take to structure a solid story? What elements are necessary in every solid story? This tutorial, taught by author James Scott Bell, will teach you what must be done for your story structure to be solid; and most importantly, what must be done for readers to relate to your story. ($39.99 value)
I Got This Idea...: How to Turn Ideas Into Stories (OnDemand Webinar): Where do ideas for mysteries and thrillers come from? How do you take an idea from napkin to novel? In this OnDemand Webinar, critically acclaimed author Rachel Howzell Hall teaches ways to move your good idea from your head onto the page as a full-realized story. ($79.99 value)
How to Plot and Structure Your Novel (OnDemand Webinar): The plot of your book is the underlying structure of its story,the specific order and selection of events that reveal information about the characters and their circumstances to create emotional effects and thematic resonance for the reader. But how do you know you're choosing the right events for your story, whether they're in the right order, or if they achieve the ends you have in mind? In this talk, editor Cheryl Klein teaches the principles that underlie traditional narrative plotting, a framework on which you can build all sorts of variations. ($79.99 value)
Writer's Digest Write Your Novel in 30 Days (Digital Issue): If you think writing a book in a month is an irrational pursuit, you're a little bit right. Sometimes we have to do crazy things to get headed down the right path. To stop the procrastination, you need a bold goal. A 30-day challenge can motivate you to do what you've put off for too long: dedicating yourself to your writing. This guide is helpful for any beginning-to-intermediate fiction writer. Even if you don't want to write a book in 30 days, this guide still offers essential milestones and worksheets that can help you no matter what. ($9.99 value)
Writer's Digest November/December 2020 (Digital Edition): In this 2020 edition, Writer's Digest officially turned 100! In a special double issue, WD celebrated 100 years of helping writers improve their craft and getting published with advice from some of the biggest industry professionals and authors publishing today. We looked back on how writing has changed over time, the founding of WD, and much more. ($8.99 value)
