Deborah Chester

Goodreads Author

Born

The United States

Website

http://www.deborahchester.com

Genre

Science Fiction & Fantasy, Fantasy, Historical Fiction

Member Since

January 2015

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The internationally published, award-winning author of 41 novels, Deborah Chester has written Regency romances, historical romances, young adult, science fiction, and fantasy. She is a tenured professor of professional writing in the Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Oklahoma, where she teaches novel and short story writing.
She holds a B.A. with General Honors and an M.A. in Journalism; both degrees are from the University of Oklahoma, where she studied professional writing from author/teachers Jack M. Bickham, Robert L. Duncan, and Pulitzer-nominee Carolyn Hart. Chester has been writing professionally since 1978, and has used three pseudonyms – Jay D. Blakeney and Sean Dalton and C. Aubrey Hall for ...more

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What’s your advice for aspiring writers?

Deborah Chester Figure out what type of story you want to write and then read as much as you can. Read fiction--not just in your selected genre but all types--and…moreFigure out what type of story you want to write and then read as much as you can. Read fiction--not just in your selected genre but all types--and read some nonfiction as well. Read daily. Strive to read at least one novel a week. Look at how stories are put together. How, for example, do writers introduce their characters into the stories? Which approaches grab your attention best? Or consider how writers conclude chapters. Do they always stop with a hook? Or do they close chapters with the viewpoint character falling asleep? Which method do you personally find more effective? Dig into some reference books on writing craft. Not the kind that discuss the author's means of finding inspiration, but the books that serve up real nuts-and-bolts information on putting scenes together and how viewpoint should be handled. Look at Jack Bickham, James Scott Bell, and Robert McKee. Good luck!(less)

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Do you work on one project at a time or do you have several going at once? How do you divide your time between them?

Deborah Chester Whenever possible, I try to work on one project at a time. Occasionally, though, I find myself writing two books at once. I put most of my effort…moreWhenever possible, I try to work on one project at a time. Occasionally, though, I find myself writing two books at once. I put most of my effort toward the book with the earliest deadline, and will work either in chunks of say, three to five chapters before I switch to the other one. I have also tried writing on one book for half the week and the other one the rest of the week. But alternating back and forth in short bursts has never worked well for me.

Hope this is useful!(less)

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Combine Editions
Deborah Chester's Books

Average rating: 3.75 · 6,079 ratings · 308 reviews · 46 distinct works · Similar authors

	The Sword (The Sword, the Ring, and the Chalice, #1) 3.66 avg rating — 1,304 ratings — published 2000 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Chalice (The Sword, the Ring, and the Chalice, #3) 3.70 avg rating — 844 ratings — published 2001 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Ring (The Sword, the Ring, and the Chalice, #2) 3.74 avg rating — 832 ratings — published 2000 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Golden One (LucasFilm's Alien Chronicles, #1) 4.10 avg rating — 355 ratings — published 1997 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Crimson Claw (LucasFilm's Alien Chronicles, #2) 4.19 avg rating — 293 ratings — published 1998 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Crystal Eye (LucasFilm's Alien Chronicles, #3) 4.15 avg rating — 273 ratings — published 1999 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Reign of Shadows (The Ruby Throne Trilogy, #1) 3.73 avg rating — 380 ratings — published 1996 — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Shadow War (The Ruby Throne Trilogy, #2) 3.74 avg rating — 250 ratings — published 1997 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Realm of Light (The Ruby Throne Trilogy, #3) 3.74 avg rating — 234 ratings — published 1997 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Pearls (Pearls and the Crowns, #1) 3.38 avg rating — 219 ratings — published 2007 — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Series by Deborah Chester

The Stories of Nether and Mandria (7 books)
by Deborah Chester (Goodreads Author)
3.67 avg rating — 3,432 ratings

The Sword, the Ring, and the Chalice (3 books)
by Deborah Chester (Goodreads Author)
3.69 avg rating — 2,980 ratings

LucasFilm's Alien Chronicles (3 books)
by Deborah Chester (Goodreads Author)
4.14 avg rating — 921 ratings

The Ruby Throne Trilogy (3 books)
by Deborah Chester (Goodreads Author)
3.73 avg rating — 864 ratings

Pearls and the Crowns (2 books)
by Deborah Chester (Goodreads Author)
3.37 avg rating — 350 ratings

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Deborah Chester voted for The Penderwicks in Spring (The Penderwicks #4) as Best Middle Grade & Children's in the Opening Round of the 2015 Goodreads Choice Awards. Cast Your Vote
Nov 03, 2015 02:57PM · like
Deborah Chester wants to read The Iron Trial (Magisterium, #1) by Holly Black (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 25, 2015 02:30PM · like
Deborah Chester rated a book really liked it Green Grows the City: The Story of a London Garden by Beverley Nichols	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 03, 2015 01:52PM · like
Deborah Chester rated a book it was amazing Sunlight on the Lawn by Beverley Nichols	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 03, 2015 01:52PM · like
Deborah Chester rated a book it was amazing Laughter on the Stairs by Beverley Nichols	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 03, 2015 01:52PM · like
Deborah Chester rated a book really liked it Tears of the Giraffe (No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, #2) by Alexander McCall Smith (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 03, 2015 01:51PM · like
Deborah Chester rated a book liked it Cruise to a Wedding by Betty Neels	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 03, 2015 01:51PM · like
Deborah Chester rated a book really liked it Damsel in Green by Betty Neels	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 03, 2015 01:51PM · like

More of Deborah's books…

Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Fantastic Fantasy...: Recommend a book or series for a group read	50	89	Apr 12, 2011 05:27PM
Building a SciFi/...: Favorite sci-fi written by women	83	557	May 17, 2013 01:56PM
Beyond Reality: Recently acquired books	1288	959	Nov 22, 2016 02:21PM

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Deborah Chester

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