Creative Writing

A Practical Guide to Making Your Settings Work for Your Story Some writers treat setting as an afterthought—a simple backdrop for the plot to unfold. But the best stories don’t just happen somewhere; they emerge from places that feel alive, rich with history, symbolism, and emotion. The Anatomy of Settings is a step-by-step guide for writers looking to craft immersive worlds that shape character arcs, deepen conflict, and reinforce theme. Whether you’re writing fantasy, science fiction, historical fiction, or contemporary stories, this book will help you transform your settings from ...

It's every novelist's greatest fear: pouring their blood, sweat, and tears into writing hundreds of pages only to realize that their story has no sense of urgency, no internal logic, and so is a page-one rewrite. The prevailing wisdom in the writing community is that there are just two ways around this problem: pantsing (winging it) and plotting (focusing on the external plot).

Vibrant, believable characters help drive a fictional story. Along with a clever plot, well-drawn characters make us want to continue reading a novel or finish watching a movie. In Creating Characters, Dwight V. Swain shows how writers can invent interesting characters and improve them so that they move a story along.

There's more to writing a successful fantasy story than building a unique world or inventing a new type of magic. From the writing of strong, action-packed scenes to the creation of dynamic, multi-dimensional characters, fantasy author Deborah Chester guides novices and intermediate writers through a step-by-step process of story construction. Whether offering tips on how to test a plot premise or survive what she calls the dark dismal middle, Chester shares the techniques she uses in writing her own novels.

In this engaging book, the internationally best-selling author and famously private writer Haruki Murakami shares with listeners his thoughts on the role of the novel in our society; his own origins as a writer; and his musings on the sparks of creativity that inspire other writers, artists, and musicians.

No more excuses. "Let the lawn get shaggy and the paint peel from the walls," best-selling novelist Walter Mosley advises. Anyone can write a novel now, and in this essential book of tips, practical advice, and wisdom, Walter Mosley promises that the writer-in-waiting can finish it in one year. Mosley tells how to: create a daily writing regimen to fit any writer's needs - and how to stick to it, determine the narrative voice that's right for every writer's style, and get past those first challenging sentences and into the heart of a story.

What If is an essay about the power of daydreaming, and why you should never, ever, ever, become a writer. James J. Caterino is the author of Jordan Rose and the Tomb of Resurrection, The Anti-Matter Girl, Dreams, True Stories, To Meghan, I Want to Believe, Ghost Stories, Pop Star, Time Travel Stories, The Girl from the Stars, and much more.

Are you tired of writing intermittently? Would you like to install a lifelong writing habit, one that gets your butt in the chair every single day? Then this is the book for you. Lifelong Writing Habit draws on well-tested neuroscience to help you install a daily writing habit that will endure for life. It contains a simple-to-understand system, with actionable steps at the end of every chapter.

This Scene Revision and Plotting Guidebook Can Take Your Writing Skills to the Next Level! This isn't just a writing manual; it's a blueprint for writing narratives that resonate deeply with readers and sell. Elevate your writing to new heights with this definitive guidebook, crafted to fuse the simple techniques in crafting stronger beginnings, creating dramatic scenes, and developing lifelike characters. Packed with easy-to-follow instructions and invaluable advice for building a comprehensive storyline, including extensive character creation templates and tools for creating a page-...

So you want to write an engaging scene, do you? This book was written with one main purpose: to help give authors a creative boost in their scene writing and toss writers' block into the oblivion of the abyss. In order to accomplish this, each chapter is written in a workbook-like format so that the steps provided can easily be implemented after they are explained. For each element of scene writing that is presented, J.A. Cox explains the How, Why, and When of its use along with his own description so that the information is easy to assimilate. He provides copious examples from his own ...

They say writing is rewriting. So why does the second part get such short shrift? Refuse to Be Done will guide you through every step of the novel writing process, from getting started on those first pages to the last tips for making your final draft even tighter and stronger.

Young writers discover techniques for crafting persuasive opinion essays. Think rabbits make the best pets or that winter is better than summer? Share your opinion through writing! This engaging nonfiction book includes basic writing instructions, tips, and prompts tailored to beginning writers' needs. Perfect for research writing, browsing, or for fun!

Publishing books isn’t your problem...selling them is. You’ve written your heart out, followed the steps, and hit publish. But instead of steady royalties, you’re stuck refreshing your KDP dashboard, hoping for a sale. If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone. Most self-publishers struggle because they focus only on the writing. The real success happens when you master the entire process of publishing books that actually sell. The $10,000 KDP Formula gives you the clear, actionable roadmap to grow your Amazon KDP business from uncertain launches to consistent royalties. Built on ...

Welcome to Draw It, Write It, Become It — the first student adventure in the Ask Charlie series! This isn't just a workbook—it's a magical journey of imagination, self-discovery, and authorship for creative kids ages 9–14. Guided by Charlie, their wise and funny AI sidekick, young creators will draw, dream, and write their way into becoming confident young authors. With every step, they unlock pieces of their inner world—and by the end, they’ll have not just a story, but the start of their very own book. Inside this creative workshop, kids will: Discover what makes them unique ...

How come authors less talented than you are selling so many books? Why do they get more newspaper and TV interviews? How come they're earning so much money? It's a sharp learning curve when you write and publish a book. And, as you're probably discovering, there's a wide gap between theory and reality. You may be wondering: Is my book any good, or are my friends biased? Do I need a literary agent, or should I go it alone? Can I trust a publisher not to rip me off? Is publishing or self-publishing best for me? How can I get my book serialised in newspapers or magazines? How can I sell books ...

THE ONLY WRITING PROMPT GUIDE YOU’LL EVER NEED! You’re stuck on what to write so check out some writing prompts to spur your creativity. But they don’t help you out of your writing rut…sure, there are some neat ideas but none of them actually lead to a story. That’s because writing prompts all too often miss a key element: conflict. Conflict is the heart of every story, and without it you’re just writing a journal entry. Storystarters presents more than 200 writing prompts centered on exciting and interesting conflicts for your protagonist to solve. The prompts are divided among...

The Story Grid is a tool developed by editor Shawn Coyne to analyze stories and provide helpful editorial comments. It's like a CT Scan that takes a photo of the global story and tells the editor or writer what is working, what is not, and what must be done to make what works better and fix what's not. The Story Grid breaks down the component parts of stories to identify the problems. And finding the problems in a story is almost as difficult as the writing of the story itself (maybe even more difficult).

Steve Almond shares the insights gleaned from three decades as a beloved teacher and mentor, and a considerably less-beloved literary rabble rouser. His tone is irreverent. His ideas are iconoclastic. And his approach is stubbornly, radically, empathic. The goal is to explode the well-meaning but misguided myths that hold us back from writing our deepest and most honest work, to awaken the joys of storytelling while also confronting how grueling the process can be.

Best Book Awards winner: Real Estate Books: 2016 International Book Awards winner: Real Estate Books: 2016 If you’re constantly being asked, “How do I invest in property?” then a book will create more hours in your day by reaching more people than speaking one to one. It’s a powerful business card that makes you stand out from your competitors. It’s also a legacy for years to come. You may have valuable knowledge that you want to share with others. But if you’re a property investor or landlord, you may wonder how to write or publish a book. This guide gives you every strategy ...

Writing copy that sells without seeming "salesy" can be tough, but is an essential business skill. How to Write Copy That Sells is a step-by-step guide to writing fast, easy-to-read, effective copy. It's for everyone who needs to write copy that brings in cash - including copywriters, freelancers, and entrepreneurs. In this audiobook, you'll find copywriting techniques for email marketing, web sites, social media, sales pages, ads, and direct mail.