Three Rules for Writing a Novel: A Guide to Story Development

by William Noble

In this one volume are personal selections by the author from his three classics, Steal this Plot!; Make That Scene; and "Shut up!" He Explained. Selecting parts of three of his previous books to guide you though the art of writing a novel, William Noble starts by asking three - What's happening? - Who am I? - Where am I? and then uses the answers to create a solid foundation for developing a story. With this structure in place, he demonstrates how to move on to motivating the story, establishing a sense of place, and creating tension. Noble has added new material on developing characters and using point of view to help you get your story across. "The 'what' section, dealing with plot motivators and 'story spicers' and comprising a third of the book, is worth the price alone." -From an Amazon.com review

Genres: Writing

328 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1997

Reviews

[Aarón · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a how-to for plotting a novel, and does so by reducing all stories to a series of common tropes, defined as "motivators" such as rivalry, discovery, and ambition. These motivators are augmented by "plot spicers" like deception, suspicion, and rescue. The book was engagingly written and full of good practical advice, but was clearly written in an era before spoilers became a meme, as he gives examples of these motivators and spicers in existing novels, often giving away the entire plot in the process. Thanks a lot, blabbermouth.

[Catburglar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Somewhat useful.
Emphasizes plot motivators, setting and dialogue. Has a lot of good material, but the material is difficult to find. No index. Chapter titles are not very descriptive. The writing style of this book is like that of a novel instead of a technical book, which makes most of the reading very tedious. Mr. Noble spends an entire third of the book describing various common plots. He spends a third of the book on “Who am I?” which is all about dialogue – almost nothing about character.