Write Characters Your Readers Won't Forget

Write Characters Your Readers Won't Forget
Author: Stant Litore
Publisher:
Total Pages: 106
Release: 2015-04-02
Genre:
ISBN: 9781942458050

"I just don't care enough about your character." "Write Characters Your Readers Won't Forget" is a toolkit for addressing that issue. Packed with 30 exercises, abundant examples, and practical strategies, this guidebook will help you write unforgettable characters who "come alive" on the page, create compelling dialogue, and chart a more breathtaking emotional journeys for your characters. Stant Litore is the author of "The Ansible Stories, The Zombie Bible, The Running of the Tyrannosaurs, " and "Dante's Heart." Best known for his weird fiction, alternate history, and scifi, he has taught frequent courses for writers across the genres and has served as a developmental editor for Westmarch Publishing. His own fiction has been acclaimed by NPR, has served as the subject of scholarly work in "Relegere" and "Weird Fiction Review, " and he has been hailed as "SF's premier poet of loneliness." He lives in Colorado with his wife and two daughters, and is working on his next book.

Write Stories Your Readers Won't Forget

Write Stories Your Readers Won't Forget
Author: Stant Litore
Publisher: Westmarch Publishing
Total Pages: 190
Release: 2022-02-18
Genre:
ISBN: 9781736212745

Write the story you've always wanted to write. Stant Litore's third toolkit for writers will empower you to sharpen your story's thematic intensity. Theme is your answer to the question, Why does this story matter? Why does this story matter to each of your characters, and why does it matter to you? Why this story? What hold does it have on your heart? If you find the most compelling answer to that question - and then write that answer into every scene in your book - you'll have a story that will matter to readers, too. This toolkit provides a sequence of 30 story-building exercises plus guidelines on how to craft a thematic outline for your story and use it as a potent tool for revision. In these pages, explore how character, theme, and plot interact; how what matters most in your story gets expressed through each character's unique voice and gets performed dramatically through your plot; and discover how a mastery of theme can help you establish a powerful threshold text to begin your story, solve "the saggy middle," and deliver a denouement that your readers will never forget. Advance Review "Learning to write fiction that moves readers is a lifelong pursuit, but successful writers often struggle with showing others how they do it. For that, you need a good teacher. Stant Litore is an extraordinary teacher, and in Write Stories Your Readers Won't Forget he shares what he knows in clear, practical and profound chapters. Packed with insight, examples, and exercises, Stant's book will cut years off your learning curve." - James Van Pelt, author of Pandora's Gun Reviews for Stant Litore's Other Toolkits for Emerging Writers "Not only is the advice great, but there's a warmth to the chapters that makes writing inviting rather than intimidating." - Todd Mitchell, author of The Traitor King and The Last Panther "There are other worldbuilding books out there; this is the one you want." - Travis Heerman, author of the Ronin trilogy "A master class: Litore has created an accessible, comprehensive approach." - S.G. Redling, author of Flowertown and Damocles "This is a clear, comprehensive, and beautifully written guide that will not only help emerging writers to find their voices and build imaginative worlds and characters, but one that will also prove invaluable to experienced writers seeking to spark their creative impulses or deepen the worlds they create." - Angela Mitchell, author of Falada and Dancing Days

Shadow Captain

Shadow Captain
Author: Alastair Reynolds
Publisher: Orbit
Total Pages: 398
Release: 2019-01-15
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0316555681

The gripping sequel to the Locus award winning science fiction adventure, Revenger, tells a story of obsession and betrayal as two sisters hunt for the greatest treasure in the universe. Adrana and Fura Ness have finally been reunited, but both have changed beyond recognition. Once desperate for adventure, now Adrana is haunted by her enslavement on the feared pirate Bosa Sennen's ship. And rumors of Bosa Sennen's hidden cache of treasure have ensnared her sister, Fura, into single-minded obsession. Neither is safe; because the galaxy wants Bosa Sennen dead and they don't care if she's already been killed. They'll happily take whoever is flying her ship. Shadow Captain is a desperate story of cursed ships, vengeful corporations, and alien artifacts, of daring escapes and wealth beyond imagining . . . and of betrayal.

Write Worlds Your Readers Won't Forget

Write Worlds Your Readers Won't Forget
Author: Stant Litore
Publisher:
Total Pages:
Release: 2017-11-06
Genre:
ISBN: 9781942458302

"There are other worldbuilding books out there; this is the one you want." - Travis Heerman, author of the Ronin trilogy and Death Wind. Like a god, you get to invent a world. Maybe several. But how do you make these worlds that readers want to visit? How do you make them worlds that readers never want to leave? In Write Worlds Your Readers Won't Forget, explore how to create unforgettable environments, creatures, and cultures in 33 intensive exercises. ADVANCE PRAISE FOR WRITE WORLDS YOUR READERS WON'T FORGET: "One of the best worldbuilding workbooks I've ever seen. Litore is inspirational, reveling in the power of imagination and packing his journey with top-notch examples and exercises. A superb resource for beginners and pros alike." - Richard Ellis Preston, Jr., author of Romulus Buckle and the City of the Founders "Stant Litore's book overflows with everything you need to know to build your own worlds from the ground up or the top down, from creatures to ecology to culture. Tons of thought-provoking exercises help create an elegant framework for speculative worldbuilding. With these techniques and your own creativity, you'll be able to create worlds your readers will never want to leave. There are other worldbuilding books out there; this is the one you want." - Travis Heermann, author of the Ronin trilogy and Death Wind "Not only is the advice great, but there's a warmth to the chapters that makes writing inviting rather than intimidating." - Todd Mitchell, author of The Traitor King and The Last Panther "A master class in world building: Litore has created an accessible, comprehensive approach. Covering religion, biology, technology, magic, language, justice, privilege and more, the book ignites the writer's imagination with provocative questions and exercises. Pro tip: read this with a notebook handy. You will be inspired to get down to the business of building your fictional world in ways you hadn't dreamed possible. Litore's passion for well-crafted sci-fi comes through in every chapter." - S.G. Redling, author of Flowertown and Damocles "This is a clear, comprehensive, and beautifully written guide to worldbuilding that will not only help emerging writers to find their voices and build imaginative worlds and characters, but one that will also prove invaluable to experienced writers seeking to spark their creative impulses or deepen the worlds they create. My favorite thing about this guide was how incredibly immersive it is. When Litore says the word 'worldbuilding, ' he's not kidding... Highly recommended. I can't wait to use some of the exercises and questions Litore offers here when writing my next book." - Angela Mitchell, author of Falada and Dancing Days "Stant Litore does an excellent job bringing structure and order to the art of world-building. His book makes the craft easy to understand and is filled with information for beginners and veterans alike." - Milton Davis, author of Changa's Safari "Stant Litore is a wonderful storyteller with a knack for creating nuanced characters and equally nuanced worlds. And this book delivers on its title: it offers a great glimpse at how to write worlds your readers won't forget." - James A. Hunter, author of the Yancy Lazarus series and Viridian Gate Online

Million Dollar Outlines

Million Dollar Outlines
Author: David Farland
Publisher: WordFire +ORM
Total Pages: 228
Release: 2013-01-31
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1614751757

Discover the secrets to crafting a successful novel in this guide by a master writer & instructor and New York Times–bestselling author. Bestselling author David Farland taught dozens of writers who went on to staggering literary success, including such #1 New York Times Bestsellers as Brandon Mull (Fablehaven), Brandon Sanderson (Wheel of Time), James Dashner (The Maze Runner) and Stephenie Mayer (Twilight). In this book, Dave teaches how to analyze an audience and outline a novel to appeal to a wide readership. The secrets found in his unconventional approach will help you understand why so many of his authors went on to prominence. Hailed as “the wizard of storytelling,” Dave was an award-winning, international best-selling author with more than fifty novels in print, and a tireless mentor and instructor of new writers. His book Million Dollar Outlines is a seminal work teaching authors how to create a blueprint for a novel that can lead to bestseller success.

Dante's Heart

Dante's Heart
Author: Stant Litore
Publisher: Westmarch Publishing
Total Pages: 144
Release: 2018-05-18
Genre: Fiction
ISBN:

One day, homo sapiens will burn half the universe—and after, our descendants will cross billions of light years to atone and forget. In the pages of Dante's Heart, join Mara the naiad, the monster-hunter Dante, Fang Yu the cyborg knight and her lover Siwatu the necromancer, and Azar Almasi the intergalactic geneticist (and deity) as they search the universe for the secret of violence. From a foot-trek through forests made of glass, to the pools where the tadpoles of dragons are born, from alien planetscapes to pitched battles in the silent dark between the stars, who will survive humanity's last pilgrimage? This lavish, full-color edition includes 20 illustrations and 9 sketches by artists Roberto Calas, Chaz Kemp, and Frankie Serna. EARLY REVIEWS FOR DANTE'S HEART "Dante's Heart is like Clive Barker, Octavio Paz, and Dante Alighieri are playing D&D together. Lush stuff and more imaginative than most fantasy fare." - Marc McDermott "Dante's Heart isn't as much a story as it is an epic poem. Visually and emotionally evocative, it seems to be this gifted author’s heartfelt rumination on pain, loss, and the human propensity toward violence. To read it is to step through an oil painting into another world. But beware: Once there, you may have trouble finding your way back out. Not that you'll necessarily want to, because Dante's Heart is both terrifyingly and achingly beautiful." – Michael Whiteman Jones REVIEWS FOR STANT LITORE'S PREVIOUS FICTION "Heartbreaking and wonderful." – Conflictium "I find myself riveted to Stant's prose, not only because I'm eager to find out the characters' fate but because his words are so beautiful. The story has stayed with me days after reading it. I highly recommend." – Denise Grover Swank, author of The Curse Keepers "To say I loved this book would be an understatement. I could not put it down." – The Seattle Post-Intelligencer "Stant Litore may be SF's premier poet of loneliness." – Jason Kirk, author of Reverb and The Other Whites in South Africa "Litore's stories aren't only entertaining. They are stories invading our lives, unexpectedly. You encounter them, as you might encounter people. They are those random elements in life that happen to you, like a mugging, like childbirth, like falling in love and marriage, like death and the funeral that follows. They are moments that leave a mark, and leave you changed." – Andrew Hallam, Ph.D., Metropolitan State University of Denver "Stant eloquently writes passages that are so moving, full of passion, fury, loneliness, blind drive … He takes us to places of amazing beauty, awe-inspiring, as well as places where the implications in the story can leave you almost in despair for the human race." – Nikki Ebright, Director, Shiny Garden

His Majesty's Dragon

His Majesty's Dragon
Author: Naomi Novik
Publisher: Del Rey
Total Pages: 386
Release: 2006-03-28
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 034549072X

In the first novel of the New York Times bestselling Temeraire series, a rare bond is formed between a young man and a dragon, and together they must battle in the Napoleonic Wars. “A terrifically entertaining fantasy novel.”—Stephen King Aerial combat brings a thrilling new dimension to the Napoleonic Wars as valiant warriors rise to Britain’s defense by taking to the skies . . . not aboard aircraft but atop the mighty backs of fighting dragons. When HMS Reliant captures a French frigate and seizes its precious cargo, an unhatched dragon egg, fate sweeps Capt. Will Laurence from his seafaring life into an uncertain future–and an unexpected kinship with a most extraordinary creature. Thrust into the rarified world of the Aerial Corps as master of the dragon Temeraire, he will face a crash course in the daring tactics of airborne battle. For as France’s own dragon-borne forces rally to breach British soil in Bonaparte’s boldest gambit, Laurence and Temeraire must soar into their own baptism of fire. “Just when you think you’ve seen every variation possible on the dragon story, along comes Naomi Novik. . . . Her wonderful Temeraire is a dragon for the ages.”—Terry Brooks Don’t miss any of Naomi Novik’s magical Temeraire series HIS MAJESTY’S DRAGON • THRONE OF JADE • BLACK POWDER WAR • EMPIRE OF IVORY • VICTORY OF EAGLES • TONGUES OF SERPENTS • CRUCIBLE OF GOLD • BLOOD OF TYRANTS • LEAGUE OF DRAGONS

How to Write a Novel

How to Write a Novel
Author: Nathan Bransford
Publisher: Nathan Bransford
Total Pages: 188
Release: 2019-10-15
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 173414940X

Author and former literary agent Nathan Bransford shares his secrets for creating killer plots, fleshing out your first ideas, crafting compelling characters, and staying sane in the process. Read the guide that New York Times bestselling author Ransom Riggs called "The best how-to-write-a-novel book I've read."

Writing Your Story's Theme

Writing Your Story's Theme
Author: K. M. Weiland
Publisher: Penforasword Publishing
Total Pages: 222
Release: 2020-10-12
Genre:
ISBN: 9781944936112

Theme Is What Your Story Is Really AboutTheme-the mysterious cousin of plot and character. Too often viewed as abstract rather than actionable, theme is frequently misunderstood and left to chance. Some writers even insist theme should not be purposefully implemented. This is unfortunate, because in many ways theme is story. Theme is the heart, the meaning, the point. Nothing that important should be overlooked. Powerful themes are never incidental. They emerge from the conjunction of strong plots and resonant character arcs. This means you can learn to plan and implement theme. In doing so, you will deepen your ability to write not only stories that entertain, but also stories that stay with readers long after the end.Writing Your Story's Theme will teach you:?How to create theme from plot and character.?Why every supporting character and subplot should enhance the theme.?How to prevent theme from seeming preachy or "on the nose."?What to consider in identifying the best theme for any given story.?And much more!Conscious mastery of theme will elevate every story you write and allow you to craft fiction of depth and meaning.Take Control of Your Story Via a Powerful Implementation of Theme

The Bonfire of the Vanities

The Bonfire of the Vanities
Author: Tom Wolfe
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Total Pages: 708
Release: 2002-02-21
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1429960566

Vintage Tom Wolfe, The Bonfire of the Vanities, the #1 bestseller that will forever define late-twentieth-century New York style. "No one has portrayed New York Society this accurately and devastatingly since Edith Wharton" (The National Review) “A page-turner . . . Brilliant high comedy.” (The New Republic) Sherman McCoy, the central figure of Tom Wolfe's first novel, is a young investment banker with a fourteen-room apartment in Manhattan. When he is involved in a freak accident in the Bronx, prosecutors, politicians, the press, the police, the clergy, and assorted hustlers high and low close in on him, licking their chops and giving us a gargantuan helping of the human comedy, of New York in the 1980s, a city boiling over with racial and ethnic hostilities and burning with the itch to Grab It Now. Wolfe's novel is a big, panoramic story of the metropolis that reinforces the author's reputation as the foremost chronicler of the way we live in America. Adapted to film in 1990 by director Brian De Palma, the movie stars Tom Hanks, Bruce Willis, Melanie Griffith, and Morgan Freeman.