Novel Writing Made Simple Tools, rules and notions that’ll show you how to start, how to finish and where to send your manuscript. * * * by Gordon A. Kessler - Copyright 2012 by Gordon A. Kessler Kindle Edition This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. It may not be resold or given away. If you did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, please go to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions thereof, in any form. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical without the express written permission of the author. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content. For information email: [email protected] Library of Congress Control Number: 2004092341 Print version ISBN: 978-0-578-05165-9 Cover Designed by: Gordon Kessler. Copyright © 2012 Gordon A Kessler http://GordonKessler.com Version 02-08-13 Previous editions copyrighted 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010, and 2012 First edition printing in 2004. Second edition printing in April, 2005. Third edition printing in May, 2006. Fourth edition printing in October, 2006. Fifth edition printing in July 2007. Sixth edition printing in March 2010. Seventh edition (EBook Version) published in July 2012. A Personal Message from Gordon A Kessler to the Reader: I've been teaching novel writing for nearly twenty years, and I’ve written thriller novels for longer. I enjoy writing them almost as much as I like talking about the process. If you enjoy this compilation of my thoughts and focus on the craft, and if this little eBook helps you hone your skills — or if you have been entertained by my fiction — please drop me a quick email. Let me know who you are and what you enjoyed the most. I promise that I will personally respond. Email me and say hi at: [email protected] Please stop by my website and blog at: http://gordonkessler.com It's fun and you'll be glad you did. On my website you'll find my blogs as well as info on not only my past work but also on novels to come. And there's a special section for my new “The E Z Knight Reports” series novels. These are fast reads; a sexy, humorous and irreverent series as well as a somewhat realistic and poignant look at the darker side of life, crime and the human condition. With a modern-day, ramped up “The Rockford Files” / “Magnum PI” feel, it consists of page- turning, episodic novels. Within this section you'll find brief bios on all the “The E Z Knight Reports” major characters. Be forewarned: you'll find a page of Oz's colorful witticisms, as well — adult readers only, please. My Jazzy Brass has her very own fan pages on the website, complete with photos, blog and “Jazzy Brass's Missing Scenes”. You'll love her, if you don't already! Also, you'll discover a special section on the site highlighting the "Knight's Girls" (a little risqué) in a gallery showing the different Knight Girl for each current “E Z Knight Reports” novel covers, as well as some that are coming up. And don't forget I have other thriller novels besides Brainstorm. You'll learn more about them here: Thrillers. Enjoy! Please check out Gordon Kessler's other books Thriller novels: JEZEBEL DEAD RECKONING BRAINSTORM BIG THREE THRILLER BUNDLE/BOX COLLECTION - "The E Z Knight Reports" series novels KNIGHT'S BIG EASY KNIGHT’S LATE TRAIN KNIGHT'S RANSOM KNIGHT’S REPORTS – Box Set, Your Three Favorite E Z Knight Novels Bundled And coming soon: KNIGHT'S LAST SHOT Short stories: "Jack Baron," a nostalgic romance "Toothpick for Two," a humorous relationship story Nonfiction about novel writing: NOVEL WRITING MADE SIMPLE EBOOK WRITING MADE SIMPLE HOW TO WRITE YOUR NOVEL <><><> * EDITING — COVER DESIGN — EPUBLISHING — PRINT ON DEMAND (POD) * Do you need help with your novel? Are you looking for an editor? Need your cover designed at a reasonable price? How about ePublishing and POD? Let’s talk! Drop me an email. Here’s the old consultant/editor’s shingle: <+> I fix novels! For information on my “Novel Mechanix” services and a free evaluation, please email me at: [email protected] Low rates, high results. Free initial consultation. <><><> Credits The information contained in this collection of writing conventions and notions is from this author’s observations and opinions after careful study of the craft over the past twenty years. It has been gleaned from many sources including writing instructors, speakers at seminars and conventions, the study of writing books, magazine and website articles, and discussions with fellow writers. It has been analyzed, practiced and rethought — this entire process much like a child going through the primary education system. The utmost care has been taken to give credit due to any original ideas quoted, paraphrased or otherwise used in this book. Acknowledgements To Mike McQuay and Leonard Bishop, two of the best mentors a writer could ever have. May you both rest in peace. To bestselling authors Douglas Preston and James Rollins, two of the finest thriller novelists today. Thank you for your encouraging and complimentary words about my writing. To my hundreds of students and fellow writers who have helped me better understand the novel-writing craft. I thank all of you now. -&- To any writer who picks up this guide, I hope it helps you. Best wishes and enjoy. — Gordon A. Kessler Websites: http://GordonKessler.com http://www.IndieWritersAlliance.com http://www.WritersMatrix.com Email: [email protected] Table of Contents Part I. Introduction Part II. The Craft 1.0 Story 1.1 Genres a) Oddities b) Serial and Sequel c) Sex, Foul Language, Violence, Death and Aberrant Behavior 1.2 Characters a) Protagonist b) Antagonist c) Secondary Characters 1.3 Conflict 1.4 Setting the Scene 1.5 The Protagonist’s Fig. 1a Aristotle’s Incline Fig. 1b Freytag’s Pyramid Fig. 1c Fichtean Curve Fig. 2a Protagonist’s Journey Fig. 2b The Protagonist’s Journey (example) 2.0 Storytelling and Writing 2.1 Story Ideas a) What If? b) Don’t forget why? 2.2 Organizing Your Story a) Notebook b) Clustering Fig. 3 Clustering c) Outlining d) Storyboarding 2.3 Plot a) Internal Plot b) Emotional Plot c) Thematic Plot d) External Plot 2.4 Tenses (verb) a) Future tense b) Present tense c) Past tense 2.5 Point of View (POV) a) First Person b) Second Person c) Third Person (Subjective, Objective and Omniscient) 2.6 Psychic Distance 2.7 Narration a) Description Fig. 4 Dot the Dragon’s Eye b) Action c) Thought. d) Exposition e) Dialogue f) Voice 2.8 Hooks and Grabber Openings 2.9 Scenes and Chapters a) Backstory b) Flashbacks c) Framed Stories 2.10 The Rest of the Story a) The Exciting Middle (rising action a.k.a. complication) b) Climax c) Denouement d) Prologue e) Epilogues 3.0 Editing, Revising and Rewriting 3.1 Basics a) Paragraphs b) Sentences c) Word Choices d) Punctuation 3.2 Breaking the Rules 3.3 Critique Groups 3.4 Closing Thoughts on the Craft Part III. The Business 4.0 Industry Overview: Fiction, the Writer, the Subjectivity Factor and the Industry 4.1 Publishers a) Traditional or Trade Publishers b) Subsidy and Vanity Publishers c) Self-Publishers (a.k.a. Inide or Independent Authors / Writers) d) Print On Demand (POD) 4.2 Editors 4.3 Agents 4.4 Contracts a) Royalties b) Advances 4.5 Book Doctors, Independent Editors and Ghostwriters 5.0 The Writer, the Reader and Writing 5.1 The Reader 5.2 Mechanics and Manuscript Format Fig. 5 Manuscript Title Page Appendix A: Memoir Writing by Phyllis Rowland 6.0 Saving Your Life Appendix B: Corrections and Comments 7.0 Marking Up 7.1 Proofreaders' Marks (industry standard, mostly) 7.2 Critics’ Marks (these are my own) Appendix C: Querying Agents, Editors and Writing Professionals 8.0 Professionals. 8.1 Query Letters a) Grabber / Pitch / What if? b) Purpose Statement or Introduction c) Author Bio d) Brief Synopsis e) Request and Appreciation, SASE included Fig. 6 Query Letter 8.2 Synopses 8.3 Outline (chapter) Appendix D: ISBNs, Copyrights and Library of Congress Numbers (9.0) Appendix E: Resources and References (10.0) Appendix F: Terms and Definitions / Lexicon of 500+ Words (11.0) A Personal Message from Gordon A Kessler to the Reader Gordon Kessler's other books Subjectivity — you’ll see this term used throughout this book. It is an important and often frustrating aspect of novel writing. But don’t curse it. It is the reason there is art. Without subjectivity, there would be no art, only science and the unknown.