i highly recommend these two books on story structure. they're initially for screenplays, but it can definitely be applied to books and graphic novels as well. The books are Invisible Ink by Brian McDonald, and Inside Story by Dara Marks. these two books are my go-to guides, as im currently writing a graphic novel.
1- On Writing. By: Stephen King (2010) -- 02:10 2- Dreyer's English. By: Benjamin Dreyer (2019) -- 04:00 3- Save the Cat! Writes a Novel. By: Jessica Brody (2018) -- 06:40 4- Story Genius. By: Lisa Cron (2019) -- 09:07 5- Before and After the Book Deal. By: Courtney Maum (2020) -- 11:10
To these I would add Ursula K. Le Guin's "Steering the Craft: A Twenty-First-Century Guide to Sailing the Sea of Story". As a former newspaper reporter conditioned with editors' truncheons to bleed all my prose of any and all color (to say nothing of the blasphemy of interiority), I struggle with writing with the kind of vividness that novels require. This title is Le Guin's Stanford writing workshops in book form, with exercises that help build your narrative and figurative musculature.
Thank you so much for giving us such a wide and deep collection of information! As someone who is writing a first novel and who is unfamiliar with the publishing landscape, I find your videos are VERY helpful.
Thank you, very helpful as always! I struggle with plot and sustaining longer stories, so I'm excited to check these resources out. Also your dog is adorable!!
I'm reading Jessica Brody's Save the Cat Writes a Young Adult Novel. I love the Save the Cat structure. I would also recommend Million Dollar Outlines by David Farlard. Great overview of the try/fail cycle and how to make a story resonate with the reader.
Thanks for the great recommendations. I also found "On Writing" to be helpful. Another one I have read and reread is "Bird by Bird" by Anne Lamott. She is a national treasure, and her advice is spot-on and often hilarious.
Great video, thanks! I’m late to the party here but I loved King’s ‘On Writing’, Murakami’s ‘What I Talk About When I Talk About Running’ and more recently I absolutely was blown away by Matthew Salesses’ ‘Craft in the Real World’ which was astoundingly good.
Thanks for another great video. I wanted to let you know that in the past week I started the query process on my first book, and your advice has been very helpful in moving me into this process. So first book querying, time to do a little platform work, but most importantly, time to start planning the second, which makes this list very timely. Blessings in the New Year.
I also recommend: The Complete Handbook of Novel Writing, by The Editors of Reader’s Digest Self-Editing for Fiction Writers, by Brown & King The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published, by Eckstut & Sterry And two amazing books about story that are geared more toward screenwriting, but absolutely work for novel writing: The Writer’s Journey, by Christopher Vogler Anatomy of Story, by John Truby
I loved Dreyer's English, superb reference book for self-editing. Okay, for more advanced writers who wish to further your experimentation with writing, if you write non-linear prose with non-linear narrative structure and a little offbeat altogether, I highly recommend "Meander, Spiral, Explode: Design and Pattern in Narrative" by Jane Alison. From its blurb: "Let's leave the outdated modes behind and, in thinking of new modes, bring feeling back to experimentation."
Great titles, I love some of these too! I was hoping you would consider making a future video about digital publishing. When I look at the deals report on Publisher's Marketplace I see more and more large deals for digital publishers from Amazon imprints such as Lake Union and Thomas & Mercer.(among other companies.) How does this work? Is it digital only or do they actually have distributors for print books? I'm curious as someone who is querying and hoping for a traditional publishing deal , yet I see more well-known authors taking this route. Thanks for all the brilliant info!
I was given several books to read from previous editors about writing and they have been a good guide. I do have 'Save the cat' as it was highly recommended by several indie authors. And I can say, its very informative that I got the physical version so I can look it up if I should get stuck. Even marked some pages. Sadly, regardless all the books, it still didn't help me with my dyslexia and thinking more in English. But, I'm not giving up since I learned so much after writing several books and self published four books before I quit the self path.
Newbie writer, part way through my first novel. Have gone through a lot of your videos, picking up things which I didn't think about, but when told them, make so much sense. and, a book which helped me on story development, is Story, by Robert McKee. an in-depth look at all aspects of creating a story, for either novel or screenplay. well worth a read, but is very heavy and long, so best to read it in small sections.
Stephen King's On Writing is the first book that comes to mind for me also. Read a lot and write a lot sums up the best approach to mastering the craft. I recently completed James Scott Bell's contribution to The Great Courses which I found to be masterful and very helpful, covering many topics in an accessible manner. George Saunders' A Swim in a Pond in the Rain revealed how suggestion and subtlety can enrich story telling.
Just a note - Stephen King's On Writing was published in 2000, not 2010 (the 10th anniversary edition was published in 2010). But it definitely still holds up!
Great job, Alyssa. You read my mind, because the first book that comes to my mind, if someone were to ask me, Iis the Stephen King book... which I read avidly when it first came out. People sometimes think of him "only as a horror writer"... they sometimes forget he wrote the Shawshank Redemption, a much-loved story, as well as the story that the movie "Stand By Me" was based on. His writing advice is mostly pretty simple but well worth noting. As for the rest, I've been studying "Save the Cat," but the original version. Do you think that applies to novels, or should I get "Save the Cat Writes a Novel" instead? Anyway, that's for a great video.
Since novel and scripts have different structures, I'd still recommend Save the Cat!: Writes a Novel just so you can get the novel specific references! Plus it comes with those additional worksheets.
My go to recs, because they're funny even if you don't get any writing advice from it, but still the writing advice is applicable to many beginners would be: "How Not to Write a Novel: 200 Classic Mistakes and How to Avoid Them-A Misstep-by-Misstep Guide" by Howard Mittelmark and Sandra Newman, and "Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t: Why That Is And What You Can Do About It" by Steven Pressfield.
I like: Thrill Me: Essays on Fiction - by Benjamin Percy and The Art of War for Writers: Fiction Writing Strategies, Tactics, and Exercises , by James Scott Bell. These two see the most action when I get stuck.
Stephen King is a brilliant marketer and an okay writer. If you take King’s name off On Writing, the robots and groupies don’t worship it nearly so much. Like his novels, it was just okay.
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i highly recommend these two books on story structure. they're initially for screenplays, but it can definitely be applied to books and graphic novels as well. The books are Invisible Ink by Brian McDonald, and Inside Story by Dara Marks. these two books are my go-to guides, as im currently writing a graphic novel.
1- On Writing. By: Stephen King (2010) -- 02:10
2- Dreyer's English. By: Benjamin Dreyer (2019) -- 04:00
3- Save the Cat! Writes a Novel. By: Jessica Brody (2018) -- 06:40
4- Story Genius. By: Lisa Cron (2019) -- 09:07
5- Before and After the Book Deal. By: Courtney Maum (2020) -- 11:10
To these I would add Ursula K. Le Guin's "Steering the Craft: A Twenty-First-Century Guide to Sailing the Sea of Story". As a former newspaper reporter conditioned with editors' truncheons to bleed all my prose of any and all color (to say nothing of the blasphemy of interiority), I struggle with writing with the kind of vividness that novels require. This title is Le Guin's Stanford writing workshops in book form, with exercises that help build your narrative and figurative musculature.
Thank you so much for giving us such a wide and deep collection of information! As someone who is writing a first novel and who is unfamiliar with the publishing landscape, I find your videos are VERY helpful.
Just had to say, besides enjoying your video, I was fascinated by your dog on the couch behind you!! 🐶🐕😉
I LOVED Stephen king’s on writing. I have the audio version and have listened at least 5 times!
I just got started on this
Oxford Comma for the win! Great list - I've added new titles to writing toolbox.
Thank you for the recommendations and also the fine lesson on annotated bibliographies!
Thank you, very helpful as always! I struggle with plot and sustaining longer stories, so I'm excited to check these resources out. Also your dog is adorable!!
Haha, thank you for the kind comment!
@@AlyssaMatesic please recommend for Beginners?
I'm reading Jessica Brody's Save the Cat Writes a Young Adult Novel. I love the Save the Cat structure. I would also recommend Million Dollar Outlines by David Farlard. Great overview of the try/fail cycle and how to make a story resonate with the reader.
thanks for suggestions!
Thanks for the great recommendations. I also found "On Writing" to be helpful. Another one I have read and reread is "Bird by Bird" by Anne Lamott. She is a national treasure, and her advice is spot-on and often hilarious.
Thanks for the book rec!
Great video, thanks! I’m late to the party here but I loved King’s ‘On Writing’, Murakami’s ‘What I Talk About When I Talk About Running’ and more recently I absolutely was blown away by Matthew Salesses’ ‘Craft in the Real World’ which was astoundingly good.
Just ordered save the cat for novelists. Thanks for the suggestion
Thanks for another great video. I wanted to let you know that in the past week I started the query process on my first book, and your advice has been very helpful in moving me into this process. So first book querying, time to do a little platform work, but most importantly, time to start planning the second, which makes this list very timely. Blessings in the New Year.
Best of luck with querying, Andy!
Lisa Cron's work is straight up gold. I also loved Wired for Story by her.
On Writing is also excellent
I also recommend:
The Complete Handbook of Novel Writing, by The Editors of Reader’s Digest
Self-Editing for Fiction Writers, by Brown & King
The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published, by Eckstut & Sterry
And two amazing books about story that are geared more toward screenwriting, but absolutely work for novel writing:
The Writer’s Journey, by Christopher Vogler
Anatomy of Story, by John Truby
Thanks for the book recs!
I loved Dreyer's English, superb reference book for self-editing. Okay, for more advanced writers who wish to further your experimentation with writing, if you write non-linear prose with non-linear narrative structure and a little offbeat altogether, I highly recommend "Meander, Spiral, Explode: Design and Pattern in Narrative" by Jane Alison. From its blurb: "Let's leave the outdated modes behind and, in thinking of new modes, bring feeling back to experimentation."
Thanks for the book rec!
Great titles, I love some of these too! I was hoping you would consider making a future video about digital publishing. When I look at the deals report on Publisher's Marketplace I see more and more large deals for digital publishers from Amazon imprints such as Lake Union and Thomas & Mercer.(among other companies.) How does this work? Is it digital only or do they actually have distributors for print books? I'm curious as someone who is querying and hoping for a traditional publishing deal , yet I see more well-known authors taking this route. Thanks for all the brilliant info!
Interesting. I would be interested in this as well.
I got Save the Cat for Christmas. And just bought Story Genius. Thanks for these suggestions!
I was given several books to read from previous editors about writing and they have been a good guide. I do have 'Save the cat' as it was highly recommended by several indie authors. And I can say, its very informative that I got the physical version so I can look it up if I should get stuck. Even marked some pages.
Sadly, regardless all the books, it still didn't help me with my dyslexia and thinking more in English. But, I'm not giving up since I learned so much after writing several books and self published four books before I quit the self path.
I'm sure a lot of y'all have read it, but George Saunders' "A Swim in a Pond in the Rain" is life-changing!!!
Thanks for the rec!
Alyssa, I love your tips, and your very cute 🐕!
Great videos very informative keep up the great work
You are so wonderful 😊😊😊
Newbie writer, part way through my first novel. Have gone through a lot of your videos, picking up things which I didn't think about, but when told them, make so much sense. and, a book which helped me on story development, is Story, by Robert McKee. an in-depth look at all aspects of creating a story, for either novel or screenplay. well worth a read, but is very heavy and long, so best to read it in small sections.
Stephen King's On Writing is the first book that comes to mind for me also. Read a lot and write a lot sums up the best approach to mastering the craft. I recently completed James Scott Bell's contribution to The Great Courses which I found to be masterful and very helpful, covering many topics in an accessible manner.
George Saunders' A Swim in a Pond in the Rain revealed how suggestion and subtlety can enrich story telling.
Is a series comma the same thing as an Oxford comma? If so I 1,000% agree.
It is
Just a note - Stephen King's On Writing was published in 2000, not 2010 (the 10th anniversary edition was published in 2010). But it definitely still holds up!
Thanks for the fact check!
@@AlyssaMatesic No worries!
Great job, Alyssa. You read my mind, because the first book that comes to my mind, if someone were to ask me, Iis the Stephen King book... which I read avidly when it first came out. People sometimes think of him "only as a horror writer"... they sometimes forget he wrote the Shawshank Redemption, a much-loved story, as well as the story that the movie "Stand By Me" was based on. His writing advice is mostly pretty simple but well worth noting. As for the rest, I've been studying "Save the Cat," but the original version. Do you think that applies to novels, or should I get "Save the Cat Writes a Novel" instead? Anyway, that's for a great video.
Since novel and scripts have different structures, I'd still recommend Save the Cat!: Writes a Novel just so you can get the novel specific references! Plus it comes with those additional worksheets.
My go to recs, because they're funny even if you don't get any writing advice from it, but still the writing advice is applicable to many beginners would be: "How Not to Write a Novel: 200 Classic Mistakes and How to Avoid Them-A Misstep-by-Misstep Guide" by Howard Mittelmark and Sandra Newman, and "Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t: Why That Is And What You Can Do About It" by Steven Pressfield.
I like: Thrill Me: Essays on Fiction - by Benjamin Percy and The Art of War for Writers: Fiction Writing Strategies, Tactics, and Exercises , by James Scott Bell. These two see the most action when I get stuck.
I have several James Scott Bell books
"Perpetuated" is, in this usage, your second-best choice. Bettter: "propogated".
Quick correction: On Writing was published in 2000, not 2010. Inconsequential, but I just did a paper on it, so I knew offhand. lol
Thanks for the fact check!
Do you work as a writer's agent helping to secure a publisher?
327 pages that go nowhere? That could be a TV show.
Give Abhigel the pen. Wrap it as a gift from me.
Please skip the background music.
Stephen King is a brilliant marketer and an okay writer. If you take King’s name off On Writing, the robots and groupies don’t worship it nearly so much. Like his novels, it was just okay.
I wouldn't buy a toothpick from Stephen King, let alone a whole book.
😂😂😂
Too bad. It’s a great book.