Lesson 1.4 — The Truth About Stories: The Key

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Plotting and Planning Your Novel

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Instructor

Daniel

The first day: how to start your book

Welcome to the Course!

Watch This First: a Guide to the Highlights of this Course!

The Place to Start: Day One

How to Begin Your Novel

The Goal

The problem with starting a novel

One clue: reading vs remembering

Trouble-shooting: What if I can’t find my real plot?

The Project – how to begin your novel

Bonus: the Project for Mysteries

Bonus: the Project for Space Operas

Case study: How to start a novel quickly without confusing your reader

It’s Time! Sketch Out your First Chapters

Congrats!

Bonus lesson: How to Design a Compelling Prologue

Bonus mini-module: the lightness project

A simple job lightness project part one

A flash forward prologue the lightness project part two

The clues the lightness project part 3

The first week: how to use the character-first method

The Truth About Stories (very important)

The Truth About Stories: A Promise

Lesson 1.2 — The Singular Reader

Lesson 1.3 — The Truth About Stories: The Case Studies

Lesson 1.4 — The Truth About Stories: The Key

Lesson 1.5 — The Truth About Stories: The Mistake

Lesson 1.6 — The Truth About Stories: The Situation

Lesson 1.7 — The Truth About Stories: Nothing Is Wasted

The Two Commitments

Lesson 2.1 — The Premise Is Not Enough

Lesson 2.2 — The Middle Creates Its Own Conflict

Lesson 2.25 — Chapter Capstone

Lesson 2.3 — 2C, Troubleshooting: Where do I find the commitments?

Lesson 2.4 — 2C, Troubleshooting: Don't let your characters drop their commitments!

Lesson 2.5 — 2C, Troubleshooting: What happens in the middle?

Lesson 2.6 — 2C, FAQ: "Daniel, isn't this just a subplot?"

Send off and conclusion: Why does my middle feel like a list of events?

How to Set Limits on your Novel

Don’t Hate Me, But… Cut It?

The Rule of Five Ones

A Story That Reads Quickly

Weaving in the Real Plot - Quickly!

The Dragon’s Toe: Exposition and Mystery

The Dragon’s Foot

Connecting Story Elements

You Should Narrate More

How the character first approach works on the page

Push and Look Scene Design

Scene and Satellite

The Wheel of Drama

Download the Pre-writing Manual (it's amazing)

Construct Your Plot With This Pre-Writing Manual

Mid-course check in!

Writer satisfaction survey

Bonus: on Character Growth and Character Arcs

What does "Growth" mean for a protagonist?

The first month: plot out your entire novel and start writing

The Heart of the Course: the ABC Plot

The Plan for This Section of the Course

From a Protagonist to a Plot

The perfect stage one opening

Plot Your Novel in Four Stages

Build a Knot at the Middle of Your Plot

Stage Four and the Staggered Ending

How to Write Each Stage (1-4)

How to Write Stage Two

How to Write Stage Three

Stage Four and the Staggered Ending

Optional: ABC Plot Troubleshooting, Tips, and Examples

Designing the Best Possible A: the Path to Success

Designing the Best Possible B

ABC Plot Summary: Killing Floor by Lee Child

ABC Plot Summary #2: The Age of Innocence

Internal Conflict to Drive Forward Your Story

How to Master the Middle: Your Protagonist's Three Mistakes

The Secret Engine of Your Story

External Conflict to Keep Your Reader's Attention

Introduction to this Chapter

The Mid-Point Twist

The "All is Lost" Moment

Build in “Manifestations”

Add a Ticking Clock to the Second Half

Plot Twists and Mirror Scenes

Bonus: Be Careful About the Three Act Structure

The Plotting Manual - It's Time to Plan This Story Out!

Download this Manual and Create your Plot

Your Quick Start Guide

The Quick Win

This How You Get Started

Bonus Videos: Start a Novel from Scratch

Start with your Dream Story

Imagine the Best Bits

Picture An Unhappy Visitor

Now we use hints to connect the two

Sketch the Backstory

Begin the World-building Bible

Now Start Sketching out "Implied" Scenes

Wrap Up: Now You're Ready for the ABC Plot

How to Write Each Stage (1-4)

How to Write Stage One

How to Write Stage Two

How to Write Stage Three

Your Problems, Solved!

The Biggest Problem: Leading with B

ABC with Multiple Protagonists

What if you Don't Actually Have a C Plot

Alternate Openings For Your ABC Plots

Alternate Stage One Opening: Multiple Timelines

Alternate Stage One Opening: A Magical Job

Resources and Download

Collected Handouts, Downloads, Manuals

Conclusion, Your Certificate, and Next Steps

Conclusion

Send Off

Final Exam

Download Your Completion Certificate

Next Steps / How I Help Writers

Final Quiz

Bonuses, live sessions, and acknowledgements

Resources and Downloads

Acknowledgements

How to Get Help

Live sessions

Protagonists and their Projects

A, B, and Cs — plot advising session

Daniel answers questions from participants in the course

Audiofiles

The ABC Plot

Preview of the NEXT course: "Write A Great Chapter"

How to write dialogue

How to prepare a plot twist

Collected prompts and challenges

Prompts & Challenges

Build a Great Writing Routine + Better Writing Habits

Intro to this writing habits bonus section

How to Become a More Consistent Writer

Getting Over Perfectionism

Using Time Tracking to find more writing time