character growth arc

An Assortment of Plotting Tips for You (Part Three)

Some more goodies for you–three more excerpts from the series of live trainings I did in October about plotting methods for both plotters and pantsers (From Premise to Plot: Easy Story Structure for Plotters and Pantsers).

Romance brainstorming questions, illustrated with a romance story’s inciting incident:

Weaving multiple inciting incidents together in a multi-plotline story:

How to turn plot events into specific scenes that move your story forward:

Of course, we covered so much more in From Premise to Plot, which ended up generating more than 9 hours of video training!

If you missed it and would like to learn more about the replays (and how you can get them), go here: http://jvz1.com/c/257231/184347

An Assortment of Plotting Tips for You (Part Two)

Yesterday, I shared some excerpts from a series of live trainings I did in October about plotting methods for both plotters and pantsers (From Premise to Plot: Easy Story Structure for Plotters and Pantsers).

The result was more than 9 hours of video, covering an array of plotting techniques for all types of writers, both organic writers (pantsers) and outliners who love traditional story structure (plotters).

Here are some more excerpts from this training with you.

A couple of the “rules of thumb” for escalating conflict in fiction (applies to both outliners and intuitive writers, but each of you will use them a little differently):

How understanding power shifts in traditional plot structure can help organic or intuitive writers:

Why romance fiction is so tricky to do well:

Of course, we covered so much more in From Premise to Plot!

If you missed it and would like to learn more about the replays (and how you can get them), go here:  http://jvz1.com/c/257231/184347

An Assortment of Plotting Tips for You (Part One)

In October, I taught a series of live trainings on plotting methods for both plotters and pantsers (From Premise to Plot: Easy Story Structure for Plotters and Pantsers).

It was a ton of fun, and so many of you who attended asked great questions that spurred me to add extra content beyond what I’d planned.

The result was more than 9 hours of video, covering an array of plotting techniques for all types of writers, both organic writers (pantsers) and outliners who love traditional story structure (plotters).

I’d like to share some excerpts from this training with you.

Functional definitions of “plot” and “plot point” (it’s not the same ones you learned in your high school English class):

Brainstorming questions for plotting, using the first pinch point as an example:

Plotters vs. pantsers – why you shouldn’t think of it as a “versus”:

Of course, we covered so much more in From Premise to Plot!

If you missed it and would like to learn more about the replays (and how you can get them), go here:  http://jvz1.com/c/257231/184347

The 8 Steps of the Character Growth Arc

For easy reference, here are the eight steps of the character growth arc (from my workshop, Dynamic Characterization: A No-Inspiration Required System for Creating Unforgettable Characters).

character arc tip graphic-300 wide 100 dpi

The 30 Day Novel: NaNoWriMo Series, Day 13

Welcome to NaNoWriMo Day 13!

Today we’re talking about character growth and finding new sources of conflict after the first pinch point–so you can avoid the dreaded “sagging middle!”

Thanks for stopping in. Come back tomorrow for Day 14 tips!

The 30 Day Novel: NaNoWriMo Series, Day 12

Welcome to Day 12 of NaNoWriMo!

Today we’re going to dig into the aftermath of the first pinch point and how your character’s growth arc influences your story.

Thanks for stopping by–come back tomorrow for some Day 13 tips!

The 30 Day Novel: NaNoWriMo Series, Day 11

Welcome to Day 11 of NaNoWriMo!

Today we’re talking about how the first pinch point is also the second major event in the protagonist’s growth arc, and how that shapes what you’ll write next.

Looking forward to seeing you again tomorrow!

Your Voice Isn’t Lost, You’re Just Ignoring It

You hear it at conferences, in forums and on email lists–writers talking about finding their authentic voice.

Some writers find it quickly.  Others may take years to discover it.

Why so long?

Because when we talk about a writer’s voice, we often don’t really define it as clearly as we should.

Your authentic voice is whatever comes out when you write exactly what you want to write, the way you want to write it. 

Without caring what anyone else is going to think when they read it.

Don’t like that stuff that comes out when you write without editing yourself?  It’s not because you’ve “lost your voice.”  It’s because you think you’re supposed to be someone else.

We all have an image of the perfect person we’re supposed to be.  Smart.  Witty.  Lyrical.  Profound.  Or whatever other qualities we’ve been raised to value in other people.

When someone tells you it took them years to find their authentic voice, they’re really saying one of two things:

  • It took them years to get comfortable with who they really are, or
  • It took them years to transform themselves into the person they wanted to be

Probably some of each.

And good for them.  Either endeavor requires sacrifice, self-awareness, and the courage to grapple with one’s inner demons.  I highly recommend demon-wrestling as a way of making yourself (and your life) better. The unexamined life really isn’t worth living.

But let’s call it what it is.  It has nothing to do with looking under the couch cushions and finding a misplaced ability to write like Kurt Vonnegut or Stephen King or <insert your favorite author here>.

When we write from the heart, we are forced to confront who we really are, right now, in this very moment.  And that person isn’t perfect.

So we have a choice.  We can say, “I must not have found my voice, because I don’t sound funny and poignant and philosophical when I write.”

Or we can say, “Hmmm, it looks like I’m a little sarcastic and kind of abrupt and down-to-earth.  What can I do with that?”

The world doesn’t need us to be clones of our favorite authors.  The world needs us to write honestly and share our real selves on the page–even if we’re sharing ourselves through characters living in a completely made up world.  The world needs fresh blood.  New ways of seeing.  New ways of being.

So…how do we get to a place where we’re writing exactly what we want to write, the way we want to write it?

How do we start sharing our true selves with our readers?

We write fast.

We write so fast that we don’t have time to agonize over the phrasing of any particular sentence.

We write so fast that we don’t have time to stop ourselves from blurting out all those truths that have been festering in our hearts for years.

We write like our story is an out-of-control train about to leap the rails and hurtle over a cliff.

One of the best reasons for writing a first draft fast is that the story comes out in your authentic voice.  Sure, there’ll be some things you’ll have to fix later, to make the story publishable.  But you’ll be starting with a story that speaks your truth, in your authentic voice.

“Writing fast is a lot of work,” you point out.  “I get tired.  Discouraged.  Lost.  Sometimes I don’t finish the draft.”

Yeah.  Me too.

If only there was a group of writers who were doing the same thing, in some sort of massive event where everyone comes together to write like maniacs and encourage each other for a whole month.

Oh, wait a minute, there is!  NaNoWriMo’s little sister, JulNoWriMo–July Novel Writing Month–starts a mere five days from now.  It costs…nothing.  The only obstacle between you and a breathless month of passionate noveling is the sign-up form that gets you into the forums.

Well, that and the courage to let your true self come out to play.

P.S. Don’t forget to go to the Downloads page on this blog and get the free Progress Tracker for Writing a Novel in 30 Days.  Keeping track of your word count helps you stay motivated!


The 30 Day Novel Success Journal

Thinking about participating in JulNoWriMo, but don’t have your story figured out yet?  The story blueprint in The 30 Day Novel Success Journal shows you how to figure out what to write each day using a combination of the hero’s journey, three-act structure, and the character growth arc.  Just follow the brainstorming prompts to figure out what happens next!

Available at Amazon: PaperbackKindle