Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Writing Tips

Okay:

I said I would provide a weekly writing tip. So here is the tip of the week.

Whether you are writing fiction or nonfiction, romance or thrillers, you have to understand story structure. Go and buy Chris Vogler's book, The Writer's Journey and study it. Understand classic story structure that has worked for hundreds of years. Once you understand the structure, you can use this as a way to outline your novel.
Start with:

What is your protagonist's "ordinary world?" Be specific. For instance, in my upcoming novel, Wrongful Death I would write:

"Acclaimed San Francisco attorney David Sloane has moved to Seattle with his new wife Tina and son Jake. Sloane has just won his eighteenth jury verdict in a row. "

That's it. That's who Sloane is at the beginning of the novel.

Okay, send me your protagonist's ordinary world at bob@robertdugoni.com and I'll provide my two cents.

Looking to attend a great conference in April, look into Field's End. I've attended and taught at the conference and it is always first rate with great writers and a lot to learn:

April 18 (Saturday)Field's End's fourth-annual writers' conference takes place at beautiful Kiana Lodge on the shores of Agate Passage, just north of Bainbridge Island. Enjoy a day of camaraderie, inspiration, and learning about the art and craft of writing. The conference includes break-out sessions, hands-on workshops, a delicious salmon buffet lunch, and plenty of time to meet and discuss the writing life with fellow writers.

Bob

3 comments:

WSSS admin said...

Thanks for the shout out, Bob!

TKS/Field's End

Suma Subramaniam said...

Thanks Bob. I was looking to attend the Field's end conference this year and that was useful information.

Suma Subramaniam said...

Thanks Bob. I was looking to attend the Field's end conference this year and that was useful information.