These myths are dangerous because they are deep-rooted, widespread, and alluring, but the more you know about why they don’t work, the easier it will be to resist them. In this chapter, we’ll discover why both “plotting” and “pantsing” lead you away from the story, rather than to it; why beautiful prose means nothing in and of itself; how “writing well” can actually alienate the reader, even in literary fiction; why and how using story structure models like The Hero’s Journey undermines your story; and why, even when it comes to the scenes you will be writing as you blueprint, that “shitty
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