Showing results by narrator "William Bernhardt" in All Categories

The court of public opinion found her guilty. But one attorney resolved to change the verdict.... Attorney Daniel Pike knows the dire consequences of crossing the government. So when rising political star Camila Perez faces charges in a gruesome quadruple homicide, his instincts sense a frame by powerful rivals. But Dan and the Last Chance Lawyers may have a hopeless case when the police discover damning evidence scrawled at the crime scene in blood.... Sorting through incriminating clues in the horrifying murders, Dan pieces together a dark conspiracy.

"Writing is structure,” William Goldman said, but too often aspiring writers plunge into their work without grasping this fundamental principle. Story structure is one of the most important concepts for a writer to understand - and ironically, one of the least frequently taught. In this book, New York Times best-selling author William Bernhardt explains the elements that make stories work, using examples spanning from Gilgamesh to The Hunger Games.

Too often aspiring writers are frustrated by rejection, not realizing that the problem is not the story but the way they are telling it. In this audiobook, best-selling author William Bernhardt brings his down-to-earth approach to the subject of style, revealing everything you need to know to write with the art and craft of a seasoned professional. Bernhardt goes beyond memorizing rules to a fresh approach, a philosophy of writing that will transform your work and take it to a higher level.

Even the most unique and interesting characters will not engage readers if their journey - the plot - fails. In this audiobook, best-selling author William Bernhardt reveals the secrets that will keep readers riveted to the page. He explains the importance of matching character to plot and the key distinction between surprise and coincidence. Bernhardt discusses how to enrich your story by layering three levels of conflict and, in the final chapter, analyzes the primary plot structures that delight readers.

Getting his client off death row could save his career...or make him the next victim. Daniel Pike would rather fight for justice than follow the rules. His unique ability to "connect the dots," to observe what others do not, has made him the most notorious criminal lawyer in St. Petersburg. But when his courtroom career goes up in smoke, he fears his lifelong purpose is a lost cause. A mysterious job offer from a secretive boss gives him a second chance but lands him an impossible case with multiple lives at stake.

All fiction is character-driven, according to William Bernhardt, despite what you might have heard elsewhere. If your characters don’t interest readers, even the most exciting plots will fail. “Action is character,” Aristotle wrote, but what does that mean, and how can you use that fundamental principle to create dynamic fiction that will captivate readers? This audiobook explains the relationship between character and plot, and how the perfect melding of the two produces a mesmerizing story.

If he loses this case, the consequence is death.... Ever since his father’s wrongful incarceration, defense lawyer Daniel Pike has defended the innocent at any cost. But he’s stunned when his archrival DA is found shot dead and brutally crucified. And after Pike himself lands in jail for the crime, he smells a terrifying setup. Fearing he’ll suffer the same fate as his parent, the determined attorney uncovers evidence that the DA was involved with a sinister sex-trafficking ring.

Why do so many people talk about writing a book but never get the job done? Why do so many start books they never finish? And why is the final product often so much less than what editors and agents want? Because writing is a process, and no steps can be omitted without impacting the quality of the work. As best-selling author William Bernhardt explains, editing begins before you start writing and doesn't end until the book is in print (if then). This book guides writers through that process, explaining what's worth doing and when to do it.

William Bernhardt explains the essential elements of breakout books, stories that reel in readers and attract serious attention. He discusses all the essential elements: originality, high stakes, believability, inescapable conflict, emotional appeal, and others. Plus, in the final chapter, Bernhardt explains how to turn your powerful premise into a winning pitch to attract agents and editors.

How do you create a fictional world that audiences will want to visit? How do you paint a picture that springs to life? William Bernhardt explains how to use description and setting to enhance your story without slowing the pace. Bernhardt discusses showing without telling, providing descriptive details that inform character, and integrating visuals and action with "stealth description". In his direct, no-nonsense style, Bernhardt explains how to use all five senses to create a fully realized portrait.

He has one chance to find the facts he’s searched for his entire life. All he has to do is prove his number one enemy is not a killer...Daniel Pike has devoted his legal career to ensuring that no wrongly convicted person dies in prison like his father did. But he’s still no closer to uncovering his painful family secrets. And after a terrible twist of fate, he’s hired to defend his arch-nemesis who’s been charged with a gruesome murder.

Dynamic dialogue can turn an otherwise ordinary novel into a delightful read, but dull, uninspired dialogue will cause readers to lose interest and try something else. In this book, bestselling author William Bernhardt, renowned for his handling of dialogue, explains his techniques for making characters come to life through their words. He explains the importance of matching character and dialogue, of avoiding dialogue that's “on-the-nose,” and the value of using dialogue to suggest what no one will say aloud.

Why do some books linger in memory long after they are over? Why are some books reread, recommended, shared in the classroom? How can you add your book to this distinguished company? The key is theme, giving your story a dynamic idea that lends it power and purpose. William Bernhardt explains what theme is, how it is best revealed, and how to find the theme that, handled correctly, will distinguish your book from all the others. Plus, in the final chapter, Bernhardt explains how your book can have a positive impact on the world in which you live.

This is a collection of three short stories involving lawyer Ben Kincaid and his friends and colleagues. In this short story, Ben Kincaid solves a Christmas mystery with his legal assistant, Christina McCall. Relations with Clyde Burris, the owner of the pawnshop next to Ben's law office, have always been frosty, but that doesn't stop Burris from asking Ben to investigate a Christmas Eve theft that turns out to have life-or-death ramifications.

Kincaid is in a meeting with the president in the Oval Office when Washington suddenly explodes into chaos. Facing an imminent threat to the White House, Kincaid is whisked, along with the president and his advisors, to the underground PEOC - Presidential Emergency Operations Center - built to withstand a nuclear blast, but vulnerable to another kind of attack. Inside the bunker, defense specialists realize that a malevolent foreign dictator has hacked into the US nuclear defense system and now has a finger on the trigger of America’s most dangerous weapons.

In this story, William Bernhardt sends his crusading attorney Kenzi Rivera (Splitsville) to solve the mystery of a missing family heirloom—with several lives hanging in the balance.

Most people will never be rejected by their family, outcast and alone at 14. Most people won't be threatened, stalked, and almost murdered by the mob. Most people will never serve time in a maximum-security prison. But everyone has gone through traumas and devastating disappointments. In this riveting memoir, Stevie Ray Hansen will lead you through his incredible journey from homeless kid to multimillionaire oilman willing to give a helping hand to other throwaway kids.

William Bernhardt's second poetry collection explores the complex tapestry of family and the subtle interconnections that bind us to our past and forms the ballast to identity. Popular culture merges with classical allusions, weaving the colorful threads of a fabric composed of moments lived and still to be lived. These poems remind us that we are part of a collective history and that we are never alone.

Readers can open any page in this book at random and realize that William Bernhardt is a poet of the rarest kind - one who can communicate grace, humanity, and shared experience without the obscurity and obfuscation that sometimes causes people to avoid modern poetry. His everyman approach and direct language draws in readers who might normally never give a poem a second glance.