The Marshall Plan of Novel Writing

At our last workshop, two of our members discussed their experiences using The Marshall Plan of Novel Writing, a 16-step writing program which breaks down the novel-writing process into small, manageable tasks that even the most inexperienced writers can achieve. Readers will learn how to find a hook, create a conflict, develop a protagonist and set her into motion.

As one reviewer puts it, "This is not a book about how to write great dialogue or develop charismatic characters (even though there are tips on how to get some of this accomplished).  This book is a blueprint, the scene by scene layout of your novel's plot structure.... detailed as stating the order in which the first 15 scenes (called sections) need to occur and what characters need to appear in those scenes and what in general terms need to happen."

Here is the link to the Amazon item.  http://www.amazon.com/Marshall-Plan-Novel-Writing/dp/1582970629

Have a Happy Thanksgiving, and a successful month of writing!

Survey Reminder

I hope everyone's been having a productive and pleasant month.

Just a reminder about the survey we sent out to help us improve the Writers Workshop. Please either e-mail it to me or bring a printout to our next meeting -- this Tuesday, November 17. Thanks to all of you who've already sent your feedback and suggestions in. It's very helpful! (If you need me to re-send the survey, please e-mail me...)

I look forward to seeing you all on Tuesday at 7 p.m., and to the writing, discussion, and critiques.

See you soon!

Author Series Launching

Heather and I are excited to announce the date of the first Author Series! Please mark your calendars: on Saturday, February 27, 2-4 p.m., the NRAS Writers Workshop will welcome author Randy Susan Meyers (The Murderer’s Daughters, St. Martin’s Press, January 2010) for a writing seminar, followed by a reading and a Q&A. More details to come in 2010…

Here is an advance review of her novel, from the Library Journal:

Lulu and Merry, ages ten and six, respectively, live with parents for whom marriage is a permanent battleground. One summer day in 1971, their father fatally stabs their mother in their Brooklyn apartment near Coney Island. Merry is also attacked but survives. When their father goes to jail, the sisters are shuffled from relatives to a group home to foster care. Lulu forever blames herself for her father's crimes, and Merry inexplicably continues to carry a torch for her father. How will they come to terms with their horrific past? Readers will follow them well into adulthood, hoping for the best. VERDICT First novelist Meyers draws on the eight years she worked at a batterer intervention program. Much like Janet Fitch's White Oleander or Jacqueline Mitchard's The Deep End of the Ocean , her book takes readers on an emotional roller-coaster ride. Readers, get out your handkerchief and prepare to care.-Keddy Ann Outlaw, Houston

For more information about Randy, please visit her Website: www.randysusanmeyers.com.