Writing Essentials for Novelists with Philip Athans

What separates good authors from the rest? Philip Athans covers all the bases in the Writing Essentials for Novelists Collection. Learn the importance of starting your novel strong, controlling your plot's pace, connecting emotionally with your readers, creating a great antagonist, and so much more. From writing sword and sorcery fantasy to fast-paced action thrillers, these resources will help you keep your readers breathlessly turning pages!

Six Strategies for Breaking Through Writer's Block
TUTORIAL

Your writing comes from your imagination, and so does your writer's block. All you have to do is imagine your way out! In this 95-minute tutorial video, you'll learn six easy exercises to help you take control of how you approach your own writing and find ways around any "block" your own head can put in the way.

Engaging Your Readers Part 1: Through Emotion and Description
TUTORIAL

"Show, don't tell," might be the single most common piece of advice authors of fiction both give and receive. What separates good authors from bad is that good authors bring us into the story, keep us there for as long as they wish, then return us to our own world feeling (not knowing-and there is a difference) as if we've actually traveled to some remote place and become some other person.

Engaging Your Readers Part 2: With The Five Senses
TUTORIAL

Though we may be primarily visual creatures, appealing to all five senses can help bring your writing alive by keeping it deeply rooted in the visceral experience of your point-of-view character. Don't just tell us what's happening, show us what it's like to be in that moment, including the sounds, the smells, and feel of it.

Keeping Pace Part 1: The Big Picture
TUTORIAL

The pacing of a novel is where you determine and control the speed of how your story unfolds. We'll go beyond the traditional three act, two act, or rising action/arc story structure and see how controlling the speed of your storytelling can-and should-break that up into smaller curves of rising and falling action.

Keeping Pace Part 2: Pacing an Action Scene
TUTORIAL

From sword fights to car chases, arguments to cataclysms, readers love it when you "cut to the chase" and get things moving. With examples as far ranging as Alistair McLean and Jackie Chan, we'll look at how to write in close up, how to change the way your readers are breathing, and how to choreograph action to use every bit of the scene you've set

Why Here? Creating a Sense of Place
TUTORIAL

Nothing should be there "just because," so how do you decide the setting for any particular scene and how does that affect the characters involved? How much description is too much, and how much is not enough? We'll dive into description and setting in ways you may not have considered before.

Your Novel's First Pages: Learn How Make an Excellent Initial Impression
TUTORIAL

You only get one chance to make a first impression. Does your novel start with a bang? In this tutorial you will gain a deep understanding of what must (and must not!) happen in your first ten pages. I it doesn't start strong, you could find your audience moving on to the next best thing.

Breathing Life Into Your Antagonist - The Act of Villainy
TUTORIAL

This tutorial provides an in-depth look at what makes a great antagonist. Just being an evil genius bent on world domination isn't enough. What makes someone a villain, what might cause an otherwise normal person to commit acts of murder or thievery, or just plain back-stabbing and conniving, is as important as what drives your protagonist to be a hero.