Writing the Popular Novel

by Estleman, Loren D.; Lescroart, John T.

• ISBN13: 9781582972886
• ISBN10: 1582972885
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-09-25
• Publisher: Writers Digest Books

Summary

Writing great fiction is, quite simply, hard work. It requires dedication to the craft, hours of thought and research, attention to detail and sentence structure, a clear understanding of the submission process, and so much more. In Writing the Popular Novel, Pulitzer Prize-nominee and award-winning author Loren D. Estleman draws on his vast experience to teach you the awareness and skills you need to turn your efforts into a rewarding, exciting experience. Estleman offers invaluable instruction on the craft behind writing commercial fiction and provides you with a smart, honest look at today's competitive publishing industry. At once thoughtful and engaging, Writing the Popular Novel provides new and experienced writers with an unmatched resource for writing and selling their fiction! Book jacket.

Table of Contents

Foreword
Introduction: The Decline and Fall of Mainstream Fiction	1	(5)
Better Than Life: Why Fiction Exists	6	(10)
What To Write	16	(13)
A Clean, Well-Lighted Place	29	(6)
Gears and Pulleys	35	(12)
Sources in Conflict	47	(8)
Past Perfect	55	(7)
The Rapture of Research	62	(7)
Perspectives on Point of View	69	(9)
How to Ignore an Outline	78	(7)
Wyatt Earp and Me	85	(13)
Series and Standalones	98	(12)
Talk is Action	110	(8)
A Sense of Reader	118	(5)
Having Fun	123	(7)
Jump Starts	130	(10)
The Eleventh Hour	140	(8)
Dressing Up	148	(7)
Ten Things You Can Do to Avoid Success	155	(5)
Editing	160	(8)
Legal Limits	168	(8)
Fifteen Percent of Your Life	176	(8)
A Prayer For the Short Story	184	(8)
Poetry: A Requiem	192	(5)
The Golden Cage	197	(6)
Real Stuff	203	(4)
Five Things Your Teacher Never Told You	207	(6)
The New Mainstream	213	(7)
Appendix: Recommended Reading	220	(20)
Index	240