RIGHT! What is this, fascist Denmark? We're turning ourselves into Venezuela with all this free stuff. I mean who are we stealing from this time? Sorry, I couldn't help myself. Love that we all get to be a part of this writing community! ✌😁
7:28: "Sometimes a [character's] journey is 'apprentice to master.' They can be asking a lot of insightful questions and ... later in the story they can be *giving* the information, right? I've seen lots of great arcs where the character learns something and by the end they're teaching that thing." Anyone else amused by the fact that this is coming from a professor who was once a student in the predecessor to this very class?
@@thegeno424 Now I'm imagining Brandon confronting Dave Wolverton, teacher of that class and a renowned author in his own right, whose final *The Runelords* book we've been waiting on since before *The Way of Kings* was published. "The circle is now complete. When I left you, I was but the learner, but now I am the master."
If I'm ever a published author, I'm going to have to give Brandon Sanderson a lot of credit. People might assume it's because I've taken a lot of inspiration from his books (which are fantastic, so I don't think they'd be wrong), but really it would be these lectures that have helped me go from a vague unwritten idea to an actual first draft
You know what you can do to "not procrastinate" in writing a novel? The answer: GO FUCKIN CRAZY WITH THE STORY. That's what I do, I make the characters do crazy stuff suddenly, go totally wild .. And then the writing is not boring anymore, suddenly you'll find yourself so excited .. And the story will get a lot better and unexpected.
"Said is invisible to the reader." YES! I remember when I was a kid and my teachers would say not to say said because it's boring. If someone says something it must be okay to say that they said it. Most people don't scream, roar or whisper everything
This is not always the case, especially when reading a story aloud. When reading Jurassic Park aloud, the dialogue often felt stilted purely because of an over-reliance on 'said', especially when a character was asking a question. I got into the habit of mentally replacing some of the saids with 'asked' or 'replied' simply to vary the language, and it felt much more natural when read aloud.
@@NeverarGreat But we're talking about a book, my friend. Despite the recent surge in audiobooks, books weren't written to be spoken out loud. Like Shakespeare's work was meant to be watched on stage not read out loud. I'm sure Brandon goes on to say that 'said, asked, replied etc' aren't necessary after the initial exchange because the reader knows who is talking. But for a modern audience, you are absolutely right. The written word has to be written with audio in mind. A narrator should distinguish between the characters as well.
This guy is Matt Easton. He was referenced at 1:02:25 as a subject matter expert on HEMA (Historical European Martial Arts). This was in response to the question of what to do about inexperience in a subject that your reader might be an expert in.
And for those who want it: Em-dash (-): Alt + 0151 on Windows, Opt + Shift + - on Mac En-dash (-): Alt + 0150 on Windows, Opt + - on Mac The dash (-) on your keyboard is likely neither an em-dash or an en-dash. Knowing the difference will help to prove that you know your stuff and make your copy editor's life that little bit easier :-D
@@zunrael1553 Yes, generally it's used on the Num pad, but it can be the normal numbers above the keys as well. Press and hold "Alt" and then 0151 or 0150.
Ok but (in Word, at least) if you type the dash (-) on a keyboard twice, do no space, and then type the next word, pressing space after the word the dashes make an em-dash. I don't know if that's helpful to anyone, but I find it faster than alt+0151.
"In cinema you will never lose track of where the character is in relation to everything else around them.." Unless you're watching Transformers, that is.
About dialect. In Mistborn I gave up trying to understand what Spook was saying and I think that was kinda the point. I think that's a great example of using dialect for humor and worldbuilding.
The term Brandon is trying to come up with at 11:20 is actually called a tag question, or question tag, and not a backchannel as the student suggests (Brandon was actually close when he calls it a tag). A tag question is when a statement is turned into a question by the addition of a "tag". For example, "You're John, aren't you?", where the statement "You're John" is turned into a question by adding the tag "aren't you". Tags can take on many forms, depending on region and language. Alternatively, a backchannel is when one person is speaking and another interjects responses to the speaker, such as "yeah", "uh-huh", "hmm", and "right". - Source: Wikipedia
Yeah I looked this up and was disappointed the term was incorrect. Came here to the comments in case someone had shared the correct terminology, so thanks! Now I have it :)
As a college student, I had always wanted to take a creative writing class, but the time slots never worked out. There was always something I had to take for my major going on at the same time as the creative writing classes. Four years and I never got to take those courses. Now I've written my first book and I've finished my first redraft, and I will be using these courses to further strengthen my writing through the second and third redrafts. These courses are, essentially, a dream come true. Thank you Mr. Sanderson.
'said and asked are invisible to readers' is exactly what I needed to hear right now I'm in the middle part of a first draft novel and I'm doubting if I've overused 'said' as a dialogue tag too much
“If your doing it like this and you have 3 characters with different motivations different flaws and different areas of expertise having a conversation together where at the end of the conversation the reader feels like they know all 3 characters better and it’s given us the information about the heist they’re gonna pull of suddenly, you have just mastered characterization” Brandon just said he is a master at characterization in the most High-Iq way possible
* Four types of Writing: dialogue, description, beats, introspection (Navel gazing) 0:40 1.) Dialogue - How to use for maximum impact? 1:05 ___a. dialogue vs monologue ___b. use dialogue to like or dislike a character, show pro-activity/inactive, show motivations, show flaws ___c. punctuation ___d. internal dialogue 2.) Description 48:34 ___a. establishing shot ___b. 5 senses 3.) Beats 52:36 ___a. action scenes 4.) Introspection (navel gazing) 1:06:15 ___a. character 3-point plot
There's a technique I try in my writing that I call character demo-ing. Write a character having a rant, a monologue, a prayer, anything that's got a fair bit of length. Use this to establish what kind of person you want them to be. This will help you write them and help them develop into the character who would say that. Probably gonna use not your demo dialogue in the actual story, possibly a variant of it, but it's helped me so much when building my characters up.
Great technique. Another one is to write yourself having a conversation with your characters. Lots of voice comes through. It can get really weird, but also cool. Ymmv
write the dialogue, add your tags later... allows you to move your dialogue around so that you can put tags in early (more helpful to the reader) rather than at the end. plus, it allows you to take a step back and wonder what your characters are up to, even just body language, while they're chatting.
So far, this beginning information is exactly what I have needed for years. Every author class I have taken never explain the process and details of writing, just focusing on “follow your heart”. I can finally write the book part of my story haha this is so great
I had the biggest grin on my face when he started talking about Pratchett's The Truth, because I knew exactly where he was going! This lecture was really -ing good!
I can't be grateful enough. Whole this course is super valuable. I would never had a chance to watch this if this wasn't on RUclips and this wasn't free. Thank you, Brandon
Using this for DnD story inspiration. I’ve looked over tons of lectures and resources, and these lectures have been the most helpful by far. His advice and guidelines just makes intrinsic sense. Thank you Brandon. 🤘
This whole lecture series i fantastic, I’d also highly recommend listening to what George R R Martin has to say about “gardening”. Its a less pre-planned method that can help you develop coherent stories without having all the pieces in place beforehand (like for example the main characters and the actions they take)
Not only is it great that you can watch this for free, but the fact you can watch it over again is huge to me. I love listening to lectures in class but I know not everyone can simply listen to a long lecture and retain all that information in one go. It's great to be able to come back again an again to remind yourself of these lessons cuz we all forget sometimes and we all learn at different rates.
I can't believe that: a - this incredible resource is available for free. Thank you so much! And b - they were still doing in-class sessions in May 2020
This is pure gold. Those lessons gave me such a boost in understanding the nuts and bolts of writing. You, dear Brandon Sanderson are an absolutely fantastic person. RESPECT!
So interesting coming at description from a film background. A common thing in a lot of films that involve introspective characters is doing an establishing shots followed by 3 extreme closeups of details the character might notice (a tea kettle boiling, daisies in a vase on the table, an open window), and then movement. The character does something or a train goes by or the wind starts blowing. The thing that moves that the character notices tells us about the setting, the character, and the tone of the film... and I never even realized that we see this in books too.
I read Elantris around 2006 or 2007 and to this day (2022) I still use the word "kolo?" in actual conversation. I forget that no one know what it means. Lol. I'm glad you left the 25% that you did.
I love this series. Thank you Mr. Sanderson for posting these online. Your lectures are relatable and helpful in ways that a lot of writing advice isn't. You offer help for things that others for some reason either don't at all or give advice too specific or too obscure.
15:35 A Series of Unfortunate Events "The Penultimate Peril" has literally this, with characters you haven't seen for like 6 books, but those characters are so memefied that you KNOW who they are and it's hilarious
I've watched most of Brandon's older lectures, and listened to many of the Writing Excuses seasons. Am I the only one who felt like there was a lot of new info mixed in here, or is my memory getting worse? Of course character sliders, adverbs/tags, senses and pyramid of abstraction, progress have come up before. I feel like these elements were presented in a new way or expanded (perhaps because of questions from the class?); -beats -monologues -punctuation -techniques for introspection and what the reader needs to get from it -white room syndrome and losing track of characters, anchoring sentences -variety in types of dialogue & and subtlety of characters reacting in a consistent way to feel familiar without being too obvious -ways to show lying and expanding on unreliable narrator Especially interesting to think about how to contrast introspection from the others, and how action/dialogue/description can be used to reveal the character flaws to reader without the character realising it themselves.
There is only so much you can teach in an hour and a limited number of lessons. there are bound to be knowledge he simply doesn't have the time to relay and that is what it's so great that the lessons are online where you can see the old as well as the new lessons. In the future, there might be even more things he brings up on the same subject that he didn't have the time to do previously.
Hey fellow listener! Avid Writing Excuses listener here! I think firstly there's more than 15 mins here ;) but I think it's also because as of late Writing Excuses has shifted more from technique etc to more about representation and sensitive writing. Not my cup of tea, but I think other writers have a lot of use for it. I usually do listen to early seasons if I want technique like what Brandon's talking about here, though!
@@whakabuti I went through the whole W.E. archive and just picked out the most relevant lessons for me, but I would say I went through between a third and half of the content. To be fair, I find Brandon's advice is often easier for me, while some of the other speakers and guests can go a bit off target or ramble. I felt like this lecture expanded a lot of things he's mentioned in the older lectures, or maybe it's just these things just felt more relevant to me.
@@niclasjohansson1830 I guess my point was it seems to me like this lecture was more prompted by questions from students, and compared to the other lectures this year, there are more things I haven't heard Brandon talk about before. I always take notes, but I took a lot more in this one than the others this year
As a retired academic I can say that as I taught I learned from students what they needed. Every semester would be better, my explanations would be clearer. This lecture is great because he spends so much time responding to students. I always felt that helped students learn, and would say to ask questions because their job is to learn and my job is to teach what they don't know. I always felt that speakers who refuse to allow interruptions for questions were just demonstrating their lack of confidence that they know their subject. Btw, I taught C++. It has a *steep* learning curve.
Thanks! You just gave me an idea for my character’s wants vs needs, she now has a need to pull her away from her want.❤️ Your lectures are the best!!!!
Thank you for helping my characters be more like onions! Now they have layers and thinking about breaking them apart makes me cry (in a good way)! (And when you leave them out in the sun too long they turn brown and start sprouting little white hairs...but that's neither here nor there.)
I'd never heard before that an author's voice comes down to how they intermix dialogue, description, beats, and introspection, but it really helped demystify that for me
I would also suggest that the author’s particular use of psychic distance is a key component- by using some degree of your POV character’s viewpoint come through in the narrative descriptions. Example: “What’s with this damn rain?” he asked. He shuffled home from school upon sidewalks icky with one damn worm after another.
@@BooksForever Would you say that has more to do with character voice or author voice? Is there a difference in your opinion? Having thought about this more I'd add to how Brandon defined it that an author's lexicon also determines their voice.
@@thanks8589 - I’d put it in the camp of the author’s voice (i.e., style) because some authors never employ variations in psychic distance as part of their prose style whereas others consistently do. Just as Brandon says about the author’s voice, it’s the way in which the author employs his various narrative techniques, and I’m simply pointing out that this is a readily discernible one of those.
Brandon mentioned wrestling as being a good reference for one on one fighting sequences, which made my day! That's definitely what I've always referenced when writing a very drawn out one on one battle! Glad to know I'm not the only one!
While I agree, I have noticed that as I learned more about these things the less I enjoy some things I previously enjoyed. Not sure that is a bad thing though.
Thank you for your intelligent and witty teaching, Mr. Sanderson. I'm watching your videos from California and have gathered a lot of golden nuggets of wisdom here.
I really love how they enabled these lectures to be accessed for free. Super insightful lectures, best I have seen. I was hoping someone could share their thoughts with me on the following. I have a question about Frank Herbert's technique of reporting direct thoughts of a character in both dialogue and introspection. Sanderson says that Herbert uses direct thoughts to provide commentary on the dialogue as it is happening, and thus shows the true nature of the character. (I think in Herbert's case this works really well as he delves into politics a lot, and through this technique, he shows us the inconsistency between what someones say and what they think, thus hinting at the wider political powers at play...) Sanderson also said that by using this technique the attention is drawn more to what character actually thinks, and I wonder if by using this technique you really pull the reader away from the content of the dialogue itself? And, are there scenarios where this technique isn't appropriate? Are there are guidelines/advice as to when you should and shouldn't use it? Any thoughts from anyone who also admires Herbert's style and/or has read his work?
Third person omniscient is hard. Herbert was a genius. I think his trick was that there really isn't a main character- the main character is the universe so he's using Paul, Jessica etc al. but it's just a lens to build that universe
In dialogue, I've found beats are good for rhythm. I use them if I feel the character would take some time to respond, or to let the previous answer linger a little more. Same with descriptions, but those are more tone setters.
Two ways I've handled info dumps that people enjoyed reading (in addition to many that are "can do better"). I've had success with double info dumps. Two characters have two separate info dumps and are talking over each other leading to some humor too or similar. OR one character is saying something and doing something complicated that serves toward the plot. Monologue, description of action, monologue..... seemed to work. A third worked with a specific character (who was eccentric). Talk, waited for reaction, talk, waited for reaction, talk... other guy did something else on a tangent. I enjoyed writing them, people enjoyed reading them. Gigantic info dumps (info being interesting helped).
One way of doing telepathic communication that I heard about was using < and > like quotation marks... So dialogue would be like: I heard John's voice in my head. I think some authors have used that method...
Dialogue: ❤ show change in dialogue to rep the arc. Show competence through other characters recognizing their logic. 5: likability, characterization, arc, pro activity, competence, motivation Good point: 14:30
Its so very hard to rank any of these lectures, but after having consumed them all, I can say that this video in particular is the most informative in relation to its topic of them all. I will have this on repeat until I can recite it by rote so help me
Hey Brandon. I know you aren't going to read this, but still want to say that I love you're work. I've wanted to be an author since I was in the second grade, and I love these lectures. (I've watched, I believe, 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2019. I've stopped watching them, since it's the same thing every time, but it is all still very good.) I'm 18 now, just graduating. In fact, graduation would have been in 3 days. But that's out the window, so it seems. I just bought the currently released 3 Stormlight books, and have devoured the first. In 3 days, I've gotten through the first 2 parts. I'm finding the idea of highstorms eerily similar to something I came up with on my own a few years ago... Not totally the same, but a world rocked by constant storms (and earthquakes, and unnatural tide patterns, and insane volcanic activity) it was. Big fan, though I've been holding off on reading you until only recently for whatever reason. I hope to at least be able to break into the market at all, someday. I seem to suffer from the classic artist's ailment: I never see my own work as anything more than what a 2nd grader could do. Even though I have people telling me that what I am pumping out is at least nearing publishable quality, I'm not too convinced. And hey, maybe you've read, or will read, some of my work. (If you're still a judge, that is.) I've submitted to the First and Second 2020 Quarters of the Writer's of the Future contest. I'm not too sure how and when the judging works, so I'll avoid mentioning details of either of them. (Though I'm fairly sure I didn't win Quarter 1, since I've not heard anything. Not that I expected to win, of course.)
Out of all the Lectures, I think to me personally, this one was the most important one for me. So many practical Tips for things I was struggling with, like how to handle Action scenes. Thank you Brandon!
Brandon is using the “Harry Potter” test on writing tips. Rather than testing whether Harry Potter conforms to existing writing tips, he tests whether writing tips apply to Harry Potter. And when Harry Potter didn’t need to do a given thing in order to be successful, your story probably doesn’t necessarily need this particular writing tip either.
I love that you mention regency stories as well. I am currently writing a regency romance after I finished my alien book. A weird jump, I know. Haha Thank you for these classes Brandon! Honestly the best writing classes I've ever heard. The ones I had in college were not good....being able to write well saved my ass in college too. :)
I’ve been trying to learn writing through RUclips as well as articles for about five years now, and this resource that you’ve provided is leagues above the rest, bar none. Meg latore and Jenna morecci are okay, but I would recommend this to anyone. I’ve learned more in a few days than I have in years
I'm so glad he said you get over learning to write ruining books. I'm in the ruined books stage. Great books are so good they make me want to cry, but with others I can't shut off my critique partner brain.
One of the very best character establishments I have ever seen was the first few minutes of John Wick, they even made a monologue excited by cutting to wick digging up his stash
Part of me feels that I'm actually learning something concrete and this is a solid step in the direction of me actually becoming a good writer While another part of me feels like I do playing Elden Ring: happy and fearless when I probably should be terrified because there's no possible way I would ever be able to beat this thing--but I just keep going because I love fiddling with stories and enjoy doing this thing XD
Some writers forget that people ask questions A LOT. For a dialogue to feel like a dialogue you can make a character have the main words while the others are asking questions (which the character will be answering) or dropping their options about the matter, which can be wrong or right. That's how it works.
I haven't read a word of your writing but I've listened to every word you've said about writing. Thank you so much for the enriching videos. Such a blessing. I'll try to get some money your way soon. You don't know how influential and helpful your lectures are. Even if you think you do, you're way off and wildly underestimating yourself. Thank you so much and please never stop.
His world building, character, and action scenes are all top-notch. I also feel like he is far more proactive in his approach to writing than most other fantasy writers of our time. He is invested in telling good stories, and more good stories, not just making a buck. And personally I love his clean, clear prose style, which reads so easily and fluidly. Also, he's terrific with twists, misleading you just like a good magic trick.
Gotta add this in so I don't forget later: In regards to bold vs italics vs caps when a character adds emphasis in dialog, I think about how the person is doing the emphasizing: italics for when the person is enunciating, bold for when they saying something firmly but not raising their voice, and all caps for when they are yelling. For instance, when Gandalf is trying to talk Bilbo into leaving the ring for Frodo, this is how I would use each: "It's *mine*. My own... My /precious/!" "Precious? It's been called that /before/, though not by /you/." "What business is it of /yours/ what I do with my own things?!" "I think you've had that ring *quite* long enough." "You just want to take it for *yourself*!" *"BILBO BAGGINS! Do not take me for some conjurer of cheap tricks! I'm not trying to rob you!* I'm trying to /help/ you."
I've had multiple short stories bought and published. I took multiple writing courses in college. Many times one of my professors in particular would, in her feedback, say I needed to add a beat here or there. It's not until watching this video more than a decade later where I actually learned what a beat was. I feel like I should apologize for inadvertently ignoring the feedback given because I must have not paid attention on whatever day in whichever writing class I took where that was taught.
Holy crap, what a CLINIC! Just that section on fight sequences alone... Like I've done a lot of fighting in my writing, and I'm fairly good with it, but that really re-frames a lot of stuff for me. I'm definitely coming back and taking notes.
![Oasis - Oasis Live '25 [Official Trailer]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/gol_JnuEtKM/mqdefault.jpg)
Unbelievable we can watch this for free
Swag
RIGHT! What is this, fascist Denmark? We're turning ourselves into Venezuela with all this free stuff. I mean who are we stealing from this time? Sorry, I couldn't help myself. Love that we all get to be a part of this writing community! ✌😁
@@kvothekingkiller1754 Stuff We All Get 😁
I am grateful every single play through of this series. It has been a blessing to me and my writing.
So funny and weird when I see this kind if comments in this series. I cannot imagine living in a place where you pay for education. Paralyzing.
7:28: "Sometimes a [character's] journey is 'apprentice to master.' They can be asking a lot of insightful questions and ... later in the story they can be *giving* the information, right? I've seen lots of great arcs where the character learns something and by the end they're teaching that thing."
Anyone else amused by the fact that this is coming from a professor who was once a student in the predecessor to this very class?
Mason Wheeler the student has truly become the master
@Demus Du'noird that's commitment to the role. respect.
@@thegeno424 Now I'm imagining Brandon confronting Dave Wolverton, teacher of that class and a renowned author in his own right, whose final *The Runelords* book we've been waiting on since before *The Way of Kings* was published. "The circle is now complete. When I left you, I was but the learner, but now I am the master."
I guess it's just the wheel of time rotating him forward.
I do a lot of info giving through characters, things overheard, read somewhere. I call it active introduction of the info needed.
If I'm ever a published author, I'm going to have to give Brandon Sanderson a lot of credit. People might assume it's because I've taken a lot of inspiration from his books (which are fantastic, so I don't think they'd be wrong), but really it would be these lectures that have helped me go from a vague unwritten idea to an actual first draft
I’m 100% the same
for sure.
same though
@@kvothekingkiller1754 ?
Samsies
These are the only RUclips videos I watch that don't make me feel like I'm procrastinating writing
In contrast, these videos remind me that I'm procrastinating writing.
A little bit of both.
He’s so upfront making easy to digest.. well for the most part (sometimes he talks so much it’s hard to take it all in.
You know what you can do to "not procrastinate" in writing a novel?
The answer: GO FUCKIN CRAZY WITH THE STORY.
That's what I do, I make the characters do crazy stuff suddenly, go totally wild .. And then the writing is not boring anymore, suddenly you'll find yourself so excited .. And the story will get a lot better and unexpected.
@@ahmadabdelrahman5570 Yeah, I find it easier to make something super shit and crazy and reel it in. I learned that from making music.
"Said is invisible to the reader." YES!
I remember when I was a kid and my teachers would say not to say said because it's boring. If someone says something it must be okay to say that they said it. Most people don't scream, roar or whisper everything
They told you that because they were trying to develop your vocabulary, not write dialogue that has the reader skip over that part.
Yeah, man, that scarred me too 😥
This is not always the case, especially when reading a story aloud. When reading Jurassic Park aloud, the dialogue often felt stilted purely because of an over-reliance on 'said', especially when a character was asking a question. I got into the habit of mentally replacing some of the saids with 'asked' or 'replied' simply to vary the language, and it felt much more natural when read aloud.
@@NeverarGreat But we're talking about a book, my friend. Despite the recent surge in audiobooks, books weren't written to be spoken out loud. Like Shakespeare's work was meant to be watched on stage not read out loud.
I'm sure Brandon goes on to say that 'said, asked, replied etc' aren't necessary after the initial exchange because the reader knows who is talking.
But for a modern audience, you are absolutely right. The written word has to be written with audio in mind. A narrator should distinguish between the characters as well.
... or growl xD
Thanks for the shout-out and for following the channel Brandon! I'm honoured.
This is the most ambitious crossover in history.
This guy is Matt Easton. He was referenced at 1:02:25 as a subject matter expert on HEMA (Historical European Martial Arts). This was in response to the question of what to do about inexperience in a subject that your reader might be an expert in.
Cool Mat, I really like your channel as well
Hi Matt, Scholagladiatoria folks here!
Hey, Matt Easton! Big fan of your channel.
Brandon referencing "What about the droid attack on the wookies?" confirms he is a prequel memer.
Filled my heart with joy!
We already knew he was a redditor lol
Brandon Sanderson will be known as the teacher of all future famous authors
None of the losers watching this will be wimritera lnigao
@@kvothekingkiller1754 Neither will you, judging by the end of that sentence.
@@kvothekingkiller1754 wimritera lnigao... typos usually arent bad enough i cant understand what you meant to say but what is this?
@@ginge641 definitely
omg right?!?!? he's incredible.
And for those who want it:
Em-dash (-): Alt + 0151 on Windows, Opt + Shift + - on Mac
En-dash (-): Alt + 0150 on Windows, Opt + - on Mac
The dash (-) on your keyboard is likely neither an em-dash or an en-dash. Knowing the difference will help to prove that you know your stuff and make your copy editor's life that little bit easier :-D
Doing God's work
What does 0151 refer to? Do you actually have to type that number in? Is that something I'm supposed to know? :D
@@zunrael1553 Yes, generally it's used on the Num pad, but it can be the normal numbers above the keys as well. Press and hold "Alt" and then 0151 or 0150.
ctrl + shift + u2014 is em-dash (-) on chromebook
Ok but (in Word, at least) if you type the dash (-) on a keyboard twice, do no space, and then type the next word, pressing space after the word the dashes make an em-dash. I don't know if that's helpful to anyone, but I find it faster than alt+0151.
"In cinema you will never lose track of where the character is in relation to everything else around them.."
Unless you're watching Transformers, that is.
Well, he did add "if the director is doing his job".
Not even the movies, for me everything in the franchise has me wondering how big these things are compared to humans and their automobile forms.
So true...
Why are we in Egypt?!?!
I ate The WHOLE plate
About dialect.
In Mistborn I gave up trying to understand what Spook was saying and I think that was kinda the point. I think that's a great example of using dialect for humor and worldbuilding.
It's also played well for that joke on Breeze
I was trying not to laugh when they started talking in Spook's dialect in Alloy of Law
Shout out to the man who remembers Kronk's shoulder angel's wisdom!
The term Brandon is trying to come up with at 11:20 is actually called a tag question, or question tag, and not a backchannel as the student suggests (Brandon was actually close when he calls it a tag). A tag question is when a statement is turned into a question by the addition of a "tag". For example, "You're John, aren't you?", where the statement "You're John" is turned into a question by adding the tag "aren't you". Tags can take on many forms, depending on region and language.
Alternatively, a backchannel is when one person is speaking and another interjects responses to the speaker, such as "yeah", "uh-huh", "hmm", and "right".
- Source: Wikipedia
Yeah I looked this up and was disappointed the term was incorrect. Came here to the comments in case someone had shared the correct terminology, so thanks! Now I have it :)
Correct. My source: linguistics classes
The fact these are free online is beyond words. Thank you from NZ!
As a college student, I had always wanted to take a creative writing class, but the time slots never worked out. There was always something I had to take for my major going on at the same time as the creative writing classes. Four years and I never got to take those courses.
Now I've written my first book and I've finished my first redraft, and I will be using these courses to further strengthen my writing through the second and third redrafts.
These courses are, essentially, a dream come true.
Thank you Mr. Sanderson.
His competence, likeability and proactivity are off the charts here :)).
'said and asked are invisible to readers' is exactly what I needed to hear right now I'm in the middle part of a first draft novel and I'm doubting if I've overused 'said' as a dialogue tag too much
“If your doing it like this and you have 3 characters with different motivations different flaws and different areas of expertise having a conversation together where at the end of the conversation the reader feels like they know all 3 characters better and it’s given us the information about the heist they’re gonna pull of suddenly, you have just mastered characterization”
Brandon just said he is a master at characterization in the most High-Iq way possible
I've watched Brandon's lectures several times. Learn something each pass. Now, it's beginning to click in my writing. Thank you Brandon!
* Four types of Writing: dialogue, description, beats, introspection (Navel gazing) 0:40
1.) Dialogue - How to use for maximum impact? 1:05
___a. dialogue vs monologue
___b. use dialogue to like or dislike a character, show pro-activity/inactive, show motivations, show flaws
___c. punctuation
___d. internal dialogue
2.) Description 48:34
___a. establishing shot
___b. 5 senses
3.) Beats 52:36
___a. action scenes
4.) Introspection (navel gazing) 1:06:15
___a. character 3-point plot
There's a technique I try in my writing that I call character demo-ing. Write a character having a rant, a monologue, a prayer, anything that's got a fair bit of length. Use this to establish what kind of person you want them to be. This will help you write them and help them develop into the character who would say that. Probably gonna use not your demo dialogue in the actual story, possibly a variant of it, but it's helped me so much when building my characters up.
Great technique. Another one is to write yourself having a conversation with your characters. Lots of voice comes through. It can get really weird, but also cool. Ymmv
@@th3teacher705 that's a new one, i'll take note thanks
I did one exercise where I interviewed my characters following the events of my book.
I like this!
write the dialogue, add your tags later... allows you to move your dialogue around so that you can put tags in early (more helpful to the reader) rather than at the end. plus, it allows you to take a step back and wonder what your characters are up to, even just body language, while they're chatting.
So far, this beginning information is exactly what I have needed for years. Every author class I have taken never explain the process and details of writing, just focusing on “follow your heart”. I can finally write the book part of my story haha this is so great
Brady Just Brady same. And none of those teachers have loads of books on the shelves
H S even some of the ones from MasterClass felt really like that, though many taught me heaps
I had the biggest grin on my face when he started talking about Pratchett's The Truth, because I knew exactly where he was going!
This lecture was really -ing good!
This is better than all the writing Masterclasses I've bought put together.
You got duped
@@bustersbrain then :(
I can't be grateful enough. Whole this course is super valuable. I would never had a chance to watch this if this wasn't on RUclips and this wasn't free. Thank you, Brandon
'They're like me talking about writing' a large part of why Brandon's lectures are so interesting.
This is the most important video to me because it covers basically everything I need to work on as a writer
Using this for DnD story inspiration. I’ve looked over tons of lectures and resources, and these lectures have been the most helpful by far. His advice and guidelines just makes intrinsic sense. Thank you Brandon. 🤘
Dungeons Master advice- have two back up plans if players go off script just roll with it. don't get flustered.
This whole lecture series i fantastic, I’d also highly recommend listening to what George R R Martin has to say about “gardening”. Its a less pre-planned method that can help you develop coherent stories without having all the pieces in place beforehand (like for example the main characters and the actions they take)
I literally just finished watching the first character lecture this is such perfect timing
Not only is it great that you can watch this for free, but the fact you can watch it over again is huge to me. I love listening to lectures in class but I know not everyone can simply listen to a long lecture and retain all that information in one go. It's great to be able to come back again an again to remind yourself of these lessons cuz we all forget sometimes and we all learn at different rates.
I can't believe that:
a - this incredible resource is available for free. Thank you so much! And
b - they were still doing in-class sessions in May 2020
They weren’t, this was recorded a semester or two before
Source: I go to this school
This is pure gold. Those lessons gave me such a boost in understanding the nuts and bolts of writing. You, dear Brandon Sanderson are an absolutely fantastic person. RESPECT!
So interesting coming at description from a film background. A common thing in a lot of films that involve introspective characters is doing an establishing shots followed by 3 extreme closeups of details the character might notice (a tea kettle boiling, daisies in a vase on the table, an open window), and then movement. The character does something or a train goes by or the wind starts blowing. The thing that moves that the character notices tells us about the setting, the character, and the tone of the film... and I never even realized that we see this in books too.
Check out Film Courage if you haven't already.
I read Elantris around 2006 or 2007 and to this day (2022) I still use the word "kolo?" in actual conversation. I forget that no one know what it means. Lol. I'm glad you left the 25% that you did.
I love this series. Thank you Mr. Sanderson for posting these online. Your lectures are relatable and helpful in ways that a lot of writing advice isn't. You offer help for things that others for some reason either don't at all or give advice too specific or too obscure.
15:35
A Series of Unfortunate Events "The Penultimate Peril" has literally this, with characters you haven't seen for like 6 books, but those characters are so memefied that you KNOW who they are and it's hilarious
Thought of that very book when he was talking about this.
I've watched most of Brandon's older lectures, and listened to many of the Writing Excuses seasons.
Am I the only one who felt like there was a lot of new info mixed in here, or is my memory getting worse?
Of course character sliders, adverbs/tags, senses and pyramid of abstraction, progress have come up before.
I feel like these elements were presented in a new way or expanded (perhaps because of questions from the class?);
-beats
-monologues
-punctuation
-techniques for introspection and what the reader needs to get from it
-white room syndrome and losing track of characters, anchoring sentences
-variety in types of dialogue & and subtlety of characters reacting in a consistent way to feel familiar without being too obvious
-ways to show lying and expanding on unreliable narrator
Especially interesting to think about how to contrast introspection from the others, and how action/dialogue/description can be used to reveal the character flaws to reader without the character realising it themselves.
There is only so much you can teach in an hour and a limited number of lessons. there are bound to be knowledge he simply doesn't have the time to relay and that is what it's so great that the lessons are online where you can see the old as well as the new lessons. In the future, there might be even more things he brings up on the same subject that he didn't have the time to do previously.
Hey fellow listener! Avid Writing Excuses listener here! I think firstly there's more than 15 mins here ;) but I think it's also because as of late Writing Excuses has shifted more from technique etc to more about representation and sensitive writing. Not my cup of tea, but I think other writers have a lot of use for it. I usually do listen to early seasons if I want technique like what Brandon's talking about here, though!
@@whakabuti I went through the whole W.E. archive and just picked out the most relevant lessons for me, but I would say I went through between a third and half of the content. To be fair, I find Brandon's advice is often easier for me, while some of the other speakers and guests can go a bit off target or ramble.
I felt like this lecture expanded a lot of things he's mentioned in the older lectures, or maybe it's just these things just felt more relevant to me.
@@niclasjohansson1830 I guess my point was it seems to me like this lecture was more prompted by questions from students, and compared to the other lectures this year, there are more things I haven't heard Brandon talk about before. I always take notes, but I took a lot more in this one than the others this year
As a retired academic I can say that as I taught I learned from students what they needed. Every semester would be better, my explanations would be clearer.
This lecture is great because he spends so much time responding to students. I always felt that helped students learn, and would say to ask questions because their job is to learn and my job is to teach what they don't know.
I always felt that speakers who refuse to allow interruptions for questions were just demonstrating their lack of confidence that they know their subject.
Btw, I taught C++. It has a *steep* learning curve.
Thanks! You just gave me an idea for my character’s wants vs needs, she now has a need to pull her away from her want.❤️
Your lectures are the best!!!!
Brandon is an excellent teacher... so encouraging and involved with the students. Smart class!
this is 100% the discussion i've been waiting for, in the 4 or so years i've been watching these.
Thank you for helping my characters be more like onions! Now they have layers and thinking about breaking them apart makes me cry (in a good way)!
(And when you leave them out in the sun too long they turn brown and start sprouting little white hairs...but that's neither here nor there.)
I'd never heard before that an author's voice comes down to how they intermix dialogue, description, beats, and introspection, but it really helped demystify that for me
I would also suggest that the author’s particular use of psychic distance is a key component- by using some degree of your POV character’s viewpoint come through in the narrative descriptions.
Example:
“What’s with this damn rain?” he asked. He shuffled home from school upon sidewalks icky with one damn worm after another.
@@BooksForever Would you say that has more to do with character voice or author voice? Is there a difference in your opinion?
Having thought about this more I'd add to how Brandon defined it that an author's lexicon also determines their voice.
@@thanks8589 - I’d put it in the camp of the author’s voice (i.e., style) because some authors never employ variations in psychic distance as part of their prose style whereas others consistently do. Just as Brandon says about the author’s voice, it’s the way in which the author employs his various narrative techniques, and I’m simply pointing out that this is a readily discernible one of those.
@@BooksForever makes sense
Brandon mentioned wrestling as being a good reference for one on one fighting sequences, which made my day! That's definitely what I've always referenced when writing a very drawn out one on one battle! Glad to know I'm not the only one!
I actually love being able to deconstruct and know what the authors are doing in their books. It makes me admire the author even more.
While I agree, I have noticed that as I learned more about these things the less I enjoy some things I previously enjoyed. Not sure that is a bad thing though.
Thank you so much for making this lecture series publicly available. Watching these videos has been a huge help as I try to improve my writing!
The plotting information here has changed my life. I think I can actually write now... The structuring is just... ~*chef's kiss*~
Thank you so much.
🤯🤯🤯 He makes it so digestible. Thank you, Mr Sanderson!
Thank you for your intelligent and witty teaching, Mr. Sanderson. I'm watching your videos from California and have gathered a lot of golden nuggets of wisdom here.
Thank you brandon sanderson. Every video you share helps me a lot in my writing.
I really love how they enabled these lectures to be accessed for free. Super insightful lectures, best I have seen. I was hoping someone could share their thoughts with me on the following. I have a question about Frank Herbert's technique of reporting direct thoughts of a character in both dialogue and introspection. Sanderson says that Herbert uses direct thoughts to provide commentary on the dialogue as it is happening, and thus shows the true nature of the character. (I think in Herbert's case this works really well as he delves into politics a lot, and through this technique, he shows us the inconsistency between what someones say and what they think, thus hinting at the wider political powers at play...) Sanderson also said that by using this technique the attention is drawn more to what character actually thinks, and I wonder if by using this technique you really pull the reader away from the content of the dialogue itself? And, are there scenarios where this technique isn't appropriate? Are there are guidelines/advice as to when you should and shouldn't use it? Any thoughts from anyone who also admires Herbert's style and/or has read his work?
Third person omniscient is hard. Herbert was a genius. I think his trick was that there really isn't a main character- the main character is the universe so he's using Paul, Jessica etc al. but it's just a lens to build that universe
In dialogue, I've found beats are good for rhythm. I use them if I feel the character would take some time to respond, or to let the previous answer linger a little more. Same with descriptions, but those are more tone setters.
Two ways I've handled info dumps that people enjoyed reading (in addition to many that are "can do better"). I've had success with double info dumps. Two characters have two separate info dumps and are talking over each other leading to some humor too or similar. OR one character is saying something and doing something complicated that serves toward the plot. Monologue, description of action, monologue..... seemed to work.
A third worked with a specific character (who was eccentric). Talk, waited for reaction, talk, waited for reaction, talk... other guy did something else on a tangent.
I enjoyed writing them, people enjoyed reading them. Gigantic info dumps (info being interesting helped).
One way of doing telepathic communication that I heard about was using < and > like quotation marks...
So dialogue would be like:
I heard John's voice in my head.
I think some authors have used that method...
Dialogue: ❤
show change in dialogue to rep the arc.
Show competence through other characters recognizing their logic.
5: likability, characterization, arc, pro activity, competence, motivation
Good point: 14:30
Its so very hard to rank any of these lectures, but after having consumed them all, I can say that this video in particular is the most informative in relation to its topic of them all. I will have this on repeat until I can recite it by rote so help me
5:33 so Brandon's pulling these lessons off by becoming a character and making himself likable
Hey Brandon. I know you aren't going to read this, but still want to say that I love you're work. I've wanted to be an author since I was in the second grade, and I love these lectures. (I've watched, I believe, 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2019. I've stopped watching them, since it's the same thing every time, but it is all still very good.) I'm 18 now, just graduating. In fact, graduation would have been in 3 days. But that's out the window, so it seems.
I just bought the currently released 3 Stormlight books, and have devoured the first. In 3 days, I've gotten through the first 2 parts. I'm finding the idea of highstorms eerily similar to something I came up with on my own a few years ago... Not totally the same, but a world rocked by constant storms (and earthquakes, and unnatural tide patterns, and insane volcanic activity) it was. Big fan, though I've been holding off on reading you until only recently for whatever reason.
I hope to at least be able to break into the market at all, someday. I seem to suffer from the classic artist's ailment: I never see my own work as anything more than what a 2nd grader could do. Even though I have people telling me that what I am pumping out is at least nearing publishable quality, I'm not too convinced.
And hey, maybe you've read, or will read, some of my work. (If you're still a judge, that is.) I've submitted to the First and Second 2020 Quarters of the Writer's of the Future contest. I'm not too sure how and when the judging works, so I'll avoid mentioning details of either of them. (Though I'm fairly sure I didn't win Quarter 1, since I've not heard anything. Not that I expected to win, of course.)
I don't even plan on writing a book and yet here I am. Watching this class, like I have the many others.
You have good taste my friend
Because watching master teach his craft is always a good use of one's time.
Out of all the Lectures, I think to me personally, this one was the most important one for me. So many practical Tips for things I was struggling with, like how to handle Action scenes. Thank you Brandon!
Brandon is using the “Harry Potter” test on writing tips. Rather than testing whether Harry Potter conforms to existing writing tips, he tests whether writing tips apply to Harry Potter. And when Harry Potter didn’t need to do a given thing in order to be successful, your story probably doesn’t necessarily need this particular writing tip either.
Ayyyyy, it's the one class that I actually love!!!!
I love that you mention regency stories as well. I am currently writing a regency romance after I finished my alien book. A weird jump, I know. Haha Thank you for these classes Brandon! Honestly the best writing classes I've ever heard. The ones I had in college were not good....being able to write well saved my ass in college too. :)
Hello Brandon. It is I, background character
This is too good.
I’ve been trying to learn writing through RUclips as well as articles for about five years now, and this resource that you’ve provided is leagues above the rest, bar none. Meg latore and Jenna morecci are okay, but I would recommend this to anyone. I’ve learned more in a few days than I have in years
I love how in school they say never use 'said' in dialogue.
Always thought that was ridiculous
Oops. "Always thought that was ridiculous," I gushed.
Big credit to the students here, the questions are so good!
Best expression of a fight scene between two characters, in my opinion, is the fight between Inigo Montoya and Wesley in The Princess Bride.
Nah I think the Yoda v. Dooku fight was better. All those flips really made you FEEL like a Jedi.
37:22 Three forms: "What," he interrobanged.
“What I do, I blab” relatable. 😜 Your dialogue points for character development helped so much. Haven’t written so many notes since college.
I'm so glad he said you get over learning to write ruining books. I'm in the ruined books stage. Great books are so good they make me want to cry, but with others I can't shut off my critique partner brain.
One of the very best character establishments I have ever seen was the first few minutes of John Wick, they even made a monologue excited by cutting to wick digging up his stash
YESSSS! PRATCHETT!! My favourite writer too!!!
This particular session is especially useful for the nitty gritty.
Part of me feels that I'm actually learning something concrete and this is a solid step in the direction of me actually becoming a good writer
While another part of me feels like I do playing Elden Ring: happy and fearless when I probably should be terrified because there's no possible way I would ever be able to beat this thing--but I just keep going because I love fiddling with stories and enjoy doing this thing XD
Some writers forget that people ask questions A LOT. For a dialogue to feel like a dialogue you can make a character have the main words while the others are asking questions (which the character will be answering) or dropping their options about the matter, which can be wrong or right. That's how it works.
50:55 "The danger is white room syndrome" says the guy with white room behind him.
He almost never interacted with the setting...
Seems like the best use for a trademark/distinctive phrase, is to add emphasis to specific statements/questions.
So much value in this series of lectures! Thank you Brandon
Ive been a Pratchett fan for years, and i'm really happy he keeps mentioning him. If you havent read him i really recommend 'Witches abroad' :)
I want to attend your classes, sir. I live in Poland, though and am not a student anymore, so thank you for those videos. I appreciate it a lot.
I haven't read a word of your writing but I've listened to every word you've said about writing.
Thank you so much for the enriching videos. Such a blessing. I'll try to get some money your way soon.
You don't know how influential and helpful your lectures are. Even if you think you do, you're way off and wildly underestimating yourself.
Thank you so much and please never stop.
Read it, bruh. Hit that sci-fi/ fantasy section in the library. My favorite author of all time.
@@jacobgamber5407 what makes you like him so much?
His world building, character, and action scenes are all top-notch. I also feel like he is far more proactive in his approach to writing than most other fantasy writers of our time. He is invested in telling good stories, and more good stories, not just making a buck. And personally I love his clean, clear prose style, which reads so easily and fluidly. Also, he's terrific with twists, misleading you just like a good magic trick.
The one night I didn't bring my headphones to work w/ me 😭
Also gotta keep a cheap pair of earbuds in your bag, man. Just in case.
Wow there is so much to this. *gives up on idea of ever trying to write various scifi ideas*
Gotta add this in so I don't forget later:
In regards to bold vs italics vs caps when a character adds emphasis in dialog, I think about how the person is doing the emphasizing: italics for when the person is enunciating, bold for when they saying something firmly but not raising their voice, and all caps for when they are yelling.
For instance, when Gandalf is trying to talk Bilbo into leaving the ring for Frodo, this is how I would use each:
"It's *mine*. My own... My /precious/!"
"Precious? It's been called that /before/, though not by /you/."
"What business is it of /yours/ what I do with my own things?!"
"I think you've had that ring *quite* long enough."
"You just want to take it for *yourself*!"
*"BILBO BAGGINS! Do not take me for some conjurer of cheap tricks! I'm not trying to rob you!* I'm trying to /help/ you."
I think you're motivating me to complete my first novel...
I've had multiple short stories bought and published. I took multiple writing courses in college. Many times one of my professors in particular would, in her feedback, say I needed to add a beat here or there. It's not until watching this video more than a decade later where I actually learned what a beat was. I feel like I should apologize for inadvertently ignoring the feedback given because I must have not paid attention on whatever day in whichever writing class I took where that was taught.
This is exactly what I needed at this exact moment. Thank you so much!
All of these lectures are so good! Ty!!!
This lesson is like a language class XD, GOOD lesson Brandon.
Holy crap, what a CLINIC! Just that section on fight sequences alone... Like I've done a lot of fighting in my writing, and I'm fairly good with it, but that really re-frames a lot of stuff for me. I'm definitely coming back and taking notes.
I could watch these at infinitum 💛
Guy in the blue shirt in the first row looks like another Brandon Sanderson listening to his own class
Brandon Sanderception
😂
I love this man.
I've come to only use italics internal dialog when it is pretty clearly a better delivery than describing the thoughts without it.
Brandon Sanderson's writing: [Majestic lion]
Brandon Sanderson's writing examples while lecturing: [Derpy kitten]
Love all these lectures, I wish more university and college courses/lectures were free or at a low cost like going to a movie.
This is a blessing Brandon. Thank you for this free content !
The more beats and action, the more subtext and introspective the scene is, and vice versa
Wow! I’m doing some things right! And of course I’m realizing more areas to improve. Thank you.