en-US Thu, 26 Nov 2009 08:46:40 -0800 60 144 41 http://www.goodreads.com/images/layout/gr_logo_144.jpg /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5269-putting-it-all-together Thu, 26 Nov 2009 08:46:40 -0800 /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5269-putting-it-all-together or
Organizing This Frickin' Mess

by Jim Butcher
**************************

So you've got a great idea for a story. You've got some good characters, some
good plot, maybe a great scene or two in mind. You're ready to plunge in!

If only you could figure out WHERE to plunge in.

Be wise and listen to me, young padawan writer: get a few things organized
first. It'll save you enormous headaches in the long run. I'm going to share
what I do before I start a novel wit

posted by Jim Butcher on November, 26 ]]> /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5270-fun-time-waster Thu, 29 Oct 2009 20:43:07 -0700 /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5270-fun-time-waster
posted by Jim Butcher on October, 29 ]]> /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5271-story-climax Fri, 20 Nov 2009 02:44:29 -0800 /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5271-story-climax ********

Caveat, on this article as on all the others: This is not the whole sum of wisdom on writing craft, forever and ever amen. This is intended to be a place for aspiring writers to /start/, a little bit of foundation with which you can begin to develop your own style. If you work with this stuff here, it can be an immense aid to you in developing your skills to a professional level. I know it's true because this is exactly the stuff that I learned, and it worked out all right fo

posted by Jim Butcher on November, 20 ]]> /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5272-for-those-who-don-t-know-it-i-ve-stumbled-into-podcastin Tue, 13 Oct 2009 23:53:20 -0700 /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5272-for-those-who-don-t-know-it-i-ve-stumbled-into-podcastin
Check it out! :)

http://butcherblock.libsyn.com

Jim

posted by Jim Butcher on October, 13 ]]> /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5273-sequels Sat, 22 Aug 2009 12:20:22 -0700 /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5273-sequels
And no, we're not talking about book 2. We're talking about the original meaning of the word sequel--the part that comes after, the next in the sequence. In the scenes of a book, you're getting all your plot-pursuing and action-taking and choice-making done.

Now you get to the hard part.

Getting your reader to give a flying frack about it.

To do that, you've got to win them over to your character's point of view. You've got to establish some kind of basic emotional connection, an empathy

posted by Jim Butcher on August, 22 ]]> /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5274-scenes Wed, 03 Jun 2009 06:34:04 -0700 /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5274-scenes ----------

Scenes are important. Scenes are where all the plot in your book happens. Any time your character is actively pursuing his goal (as opposed to a character who is pausing to reflect or react emotionally to the events of the story) he is engaged in a SCENE.

The basic structure of a scene is simple. Your POINT OF VIEW character sets out in pursuit of a SPECIFIC GOAL. Someone else (usually, but not always, the antagonist) actively, knowingly tries to stop him. There is a CONFLICT

posted by Jim Butcher on June, 03 ]]> /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5275-holy-crap Thu, 29 Oct 2009 20:49:33 -0700 /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5275-holy-crap
1) You guys are way too kind. I mean, I was mostly posting those reviews because . . . well, they were just MEAN. I mean, for every one of those reviews, I've gotten three or four who were just as down on the books, but who laid out their reasoning for it in a calm, reasoned manner. I don't mind that kind of critique. It doesn't send me into raptures of delight or anything, but it doesn't faze me, either. That kind of thing can really be very useful.

posted by Jim Butcher on October, 29 ]]> /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5276-dresden-files-literacy-i-read-the-first-thr Fri, 16 Oct 2009 13:32:34 -0700 /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5276-dresden-files-literacy-i-read-the-first-thr --------------

"Literacy"
I read the first three of these books on a reccomendation from a bookseller. He said they had been very popular among the younger crowd. I had just read the His Dark Materials trilogy on his word and it left me with such a profound satisfaction at the end that I was open and eager to suggestion. Silly me.
The Dresden Files novels are some of the most devisive, contrived stories I have ever read. It was like torture reading these books and by the third one I wa

posted by Jim Butcher on October, 16 ]]> /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5277-the-great-swampy-middle Fri, 20 Nov 2009 10:58:49 -0800 /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5277-the-great-swampy-middle
Every writer runs into this, generally in every single book. The middle. It lurks between the beginning of your book and the exciting conclusion, and its mission in life is to Atreyu you right down into the yucky, mucky mire in order to prevent you from ever actually finishing.

The Great Swampy Middle (or GSM) knows no fear, no mercy, no regret. It doesn't come after you. It darned well knows that you're going to come to it. It knows that you're going to be charging

posted by Jim Butcher on November, 20 ]]> /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5278-characters Wed, 09 Sep 2009 15:39:52 -0700 /author/show/10746.Jim_Butcher/blog/5278-characters
Sticking with the purely craft-oriented standpoint, we'll start with a basic question: what makes a good character?

FIRST AND FOREMOST, FICTION WRITERS, YOUR CHARACTERS MUST BE INTERESTING

posted by Jim Butcher on September, 09 ]]>