Building Fiction: How to Develop Plot & Structure

by Jesse Lee Kercheval

No one looks at structure like Jesse Lee Kercheval. She builds a work of fiction just as an architect would design a house - with an eye for details and how all the parts of a story or novel interconnect. Even with the most dynamic language, images and characters, no piece of fiction will work without a strong infrastructure. Kercheval shows how to build that structure using tools such as point of view, characterization, pacing and flashbacks.
The designs of Frank Lloyd Wright were always influenced by the terrain, says Kercheval. The building site helped him determine the materials and methods of construction. This book will help you envision the landscape of your fiction and build great stories there.

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction

208 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1997

Reviews

[V Rendina]

I don’t always like craft books, because I feel like sometimes craft books talk to you like you’re five, but Jesse does not talk to you like you’re five, and offers a lot of good insight.

[Christine Nolfi]

An excellent resource for the basics of building a compelling plot. Recommended.

[Randolph King]

In this book, Jesse provides clear steps and ideas to build structure and characters into a story. The book is well-written with clear goals and organization. She goes through different stages of writing discussing topics such as point of view, opening statements, building characters. She also compares the complexities and requirements of a book, short story and novella among others.

I found it easy to read and informative. She touches on ideas other books haven't covered without going into great details.

[Pam]

Excellent book about the craft of writing.

[Arwen Baggins]

This book wasn't bad.
There were somethings that I found interesting, and I think I'll try some of the suggested writing exercises. One tip for inspiration I liked was the suggestion to carry a notebook with you and write down anything and everything that strikes you as a potential story title.

There are frequently chunks of text from other books which are used for examples or to illustrate writing techniques, and the author will often talk about or recommend other books. I just want to say that about 90% of them seem like the type of books that I would never read. Most of them seemed either a bit too violent, depressing or inappropriate for my tastes, however it did further inspire me to write books are well-written and intriguing, while at the same time hopeful and from a Christian worldview even if it's not what would be officially categorized as a "Christian novel". I think the world needs more of that type of book.

So all in all, I enjoyed reading this book. It gave me some things to consider about crafting a story, and I'll probably use some of the techniques it suggested.

[Steven]

This would be a good book for a beginning writer, someone who has material they want to write about but no idea of how to structure or even approach the material. Plenty of other books that fit in this category, however, and I didn't really see anything that set it apart. As with all of these writing books, you kind of have to view the author as mentor, and if you mesh with the mentor then the book will work for you.

[Michele Berger]

I am so glad that I found this book in our local library. It is one of the best books on writing that I have encountered. The examples Kercheval draws from are intriguing, broad based and useful. She reviews the basic structure of writing (voice, plot, conflict) and does it with great freshness. Should be on your writer's shelf.

[James]

I must admit to cheating a bit with this book. I didn't do any of the exercises. I was mostly trying to get the main gist of what the author believed was paramount in the creation of a story. I may never write a book. But after reading this book, I'll never read a piece of fiction the same way again.

[Antonia]

Used lots of ideas from this book when I was teaching.

[Sanya]

SO HELPFUL!

[Serra]

Good explanations in here as well as decent writing exercises.