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Quick Skills: NaNoWriMo Scene Starter Infographic

By on October 30, 2012 in 1. Discover your story, 2. Create Your Story, 4. Writer’s Life, Inspiration and Life Coaching, Action and ReAction Scenes, b. Building a Scene, Encourage Me!, How do I start my Scene?, Quick Skills, Story Crafting, Susan May Warren

Sally asked me for a Scene Starter Graphic to help her as she builds her scenes for NaNoWriMo.  If you haven’t joined the MBT WriMo Celebration yet, sign up for the fun, support and prizes at: http://www.mybooktherapy.com/mbt-wrimo-2012/! Hope the Infographic helps! (Right click on link below to download the graphic) Infographic Page 1 Page 2 Page 3                                                                    

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Conversations: Preparing for NaNoWriMo

By on October 29, 2012 in 1. Discover your story, 4. Writer’s Life, Inspiration and Life Coaching, 7. Search by Author:, b. Building a Scene, Brainstorming Strategies and Tips, Susan May Warren, Truth or Dare: Conversations with an aspiring novelist

“NaNoWriMo?  National Novel Writing Month?  Oh please, don’t ask me to write a novel in a month. I’m sorry, it’s just too overwhelming.” Sally took a sip of her mint dark chocolate cocoa, looking at me as if I’d asked her to run Grandma’s marathon. Tomorrow.  “No.  Forget it.” “You’re about half-way in, right?  And overwhelmed?  And you’ve learned so much. What about setting this book aside and simply jumping in with a new one with all you’ve learned.  Or maybe, just committing to finishing this one. Technically, NaNoWriMo is about finishing a new story, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take the principles and apply it to a current story and finish it. I’ll even help you prepare for it.” “55 thousand words in a month…?”  She took another, […]

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Storytelling vs. Backstory

By on October 25, 2012 in 1. Discover your story, Action and ReAction Scenes, Author Mistakes, Backstory, Creating Story Layers and Subplots, How do I get started?, Rachel Hauck

We’re continuing to blog questions from blog readers and MBT Voices. If you have a question, be sure to email me at Rachel@mybooktherapy.com. So, here’s today’s question. Q: How do I add “storytelling elements” to my novel without dumping backstory? A: The balance between back story and the action on the page is tricky but not hard. Let’s look at a few definitions before we outline some guidelines for weaving back story into a scene. Story telling elements are just those fragments of a characters life, history, wants, goals and desires that are necessary for filling out or understanding a scene. The trick is to deliver just enough emotion and history to intrigue the reader while filling them in on what’s going on. For example, if Sally is not excited […]

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Idea Sparking: Brainstorming Conflict in your Novel!

By on October 9, 2012 in 1. Discover your story, 2. Create Your Story, b. Building a Scene, Brainstorming Strategies and Tips, Editing Basics, Interviews, Quick Skills, SOTP or Plotter?, Writing, Writing Life Coaching

At MBT we’re all about trying to give you the best tools to create powerful stories. That’s why I asked our MBT Brainstorming Coach Michelle Lim to write a book about brainstorming techniques that help a writer create conflict in their stories. I’ve discovered that many authors just get stuck while brainstorming, and their stories lack spark or twists. Michelle’s book is a powerful tool to help an author think outside the box and create powerful twists and turns in their story.  I’ve asked her here to today to chat with us about her new book: Idea Sparking: Brainstorming Conflict into your Novel.   What prompted the idea for this book? Since I was a teenager I loved plot. If the story kept me turning pages by flashlight after bedtime, […]

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