Writing the Novel: Intertwining Plot, Conflict, and the Tapestry of Character Development

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Novels are complex creatures. They involve a complex weave of characters and events which must still fascinate the reader from the first page to last. The key to unlocking your novel lies in integrating the personal conflicts of each individual character with the central conflict of the whole novel.  The goal is to help the reader sympathize with your characters as they struggle not only to "solve" the core problem of the novel, but also as they try to face the dangerous facts of their own lives.

Do I Need an Agent to Publish My Book?

The publishing world is changing rapidly due to improvements in technology and media. However, many facts of the literary landscape mean that agents should still be a relevant (and very important) part of your publishing plan.

Do you need an agent?  Yes and no - it depends on where you are as a writer and what you want for your book.  Read on to learn more about when and why you should find an agent.  (Thanks to Joserie F. for asking this question.)

How to Write a Novel: The Quick Guide

Writing a novel can bee an extremely difficult experience, and yet it remains one of the most rewarding experiences in writing. Public adoration aside, the sense of accomplishment runs deep.

To help you reach that, here are some tips on how to write a novel.

Lead Online Writing Groups with 12Writing

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Are you ready to encourage fellow writers in an upbeat atmosphere?  Would you like a place to share your own work and receive feedback?  Looking for experience teaching a writing workshop?  Then consider joining 12Writing as a Writing Group Leader. Becoming a Group Leader Benefits - Requirements - Application

Motivate Your Students with Purpose-Driven Lesson Plans

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Our students are now more distracted than ever.  As writing teachers trying to hold the attention of our students, we compete with Facebook, Netflix, and the upheavals of the modern family. To keep our students focused on our classes - and, more importantly, to keep them interested in writing - we need to give our students a reason to to study.

Learn to Market Yourself and Mentor Your Students with Cameron Herold's Double Double

Double Double: How to Double Your Revenue and Profit in 3 Years or Less No, I don't normally read business books.  But I've been trying to expand 12Writing into something profitable, and this book came highly recommended.  But you shouldn't read this book just because you're maybe interested in business - this is actually a book about building a solid foundation for any organization.

Traditional Workshops vs Freewriting Workshops and the Amherst Method

The structure and goals of the writing workshop have changed a great deal over past hundred years.  To benefit the most from a workshop, you should familiarize yourself with the advantages and disadvantages of the different types of workshops.

Google Wave: Edit This Poem!

Google Wave is out!  And this may be the best way yet to have real-time collaboration online.  I think this may revolutionize the way we conduct creative writing workshops, but we'll just have to see.  Please click Read More below to see a sample of Google Wave in action.

How Do I Choose an MFA Program?

Choosing to move past the "lone ranger" stage of writing and on to an MFA program can be a big step forward for any writer.  But it does represent major changes in terms of the time and effort you dedicate to your work, and you want to make sure you choose an MFA program which fits your needs as a writer.

Starting a Literary Magazine for Johns Hopkins Undergrads

Very soon, I'll be sponsoring an Undergraduate Online Literary Magazine for Johns Hopkins.  The name, format, and submissions process are still to be worked out - my goal is that the undergraduate editors will learn to manage and produce online issues mostly on their own, and I can work more as a supervising editor.  Since Hopkins isn't among the Ph.D. programs I'm applying to for next year, I hope we can make the magazine largely self-sufficient either by the end of the semester or by the end of summer.

If you're a student at Johns Hopkins and would be interested in taking part, please contact me.  For updates on the magazine, visit our Word Planet Literary Magazine and Follow Us on Facebook.

Surviving the Writing Conference - AWP 2011

Have you attended a writing conference? Have you experienced the bug-eyed wonder of a room filled with over a thousand students and writers and writing teachers clumped around the islands of agent booths and presentation tables? Or maybe you've had the choice between six or seven panels you really want to see...except they're all in the same time slot, and you haven't eaten since breakfast, and breakfast was nearly eight hours ago...and it wasn't what you'd call a large bagel...

Ph.D. Programs in Creative Writing Go Global

At AWP this week, I met someone who's looking into a low-residency Ph.D. program in Ireland that - get this - encourages genre writing. You can earn a Ph.D. in Creative Writing with a focus in science fiction, fantasy, or even magical realism from Warnborough College, and the courses are all conducted online. (and don't fall into the trap of thinking this would be an easy course of study - a quick look at the Creative Writing Modules reveals some real meat to the coursework).

But this is part of the growing trend in low-residency education. Bath Spa University also offers a Ph.D. which is open to genre fiction, and they are introducing a new low-residency program starting this fall.

Revising the Website - New Look for IFP

Yes, it's a lot of work putting together a website.  It's even more work making it reliable while looking good.  So I'm very happy to unveil the new look of my Introduction to Fiction and Poetry homepage.  It's even more a product of Blogger now than it was before, but it does look better.  And I took the background photo myself - with an iPhone, no less.

But let's not kid ourselves - the main reason I'm posting this link is because I have to reset the www subdomain yet again.  But that's okay.  Hopefully, it will all be worth it.

New Intersession Course on Writing the Human in Science Fiction

For the Johns Hopkins Intersession, I'll be teaching a course on how to write believable human characters in the fantastical worlds of science fiction.  Through workshops and readings, we'll address questions of how to develop a realistic and believable character who inhabit worlds that may involve aliens, time travel, and intelligent robots.  As we do so, we'll be examining issues of how the physical form affects the spiritual and mental identity of the individual, gender and sexuality, and memory versus reality.

If you'd like to learn more about this course, take a look at our course website: TheHuman.12Writing.com.  If you've already registered for the course, you can go ahead to the User Login to set up your profile on the assignments homepage.  You should have received the enrollment key via e-mail from ISIS.  If you haven't, please Contact Me so I can forward that on to you.  Be sure to include your full name in the online form so I can confirm your enrollment with ISIS.

NaNoWriMo 2010 - Interactive Writing

So I've been long wondering how best to use social networking tools to drive traffic to my website.  And it's hard.  As you can see, I've been busy lately, so I haven't been putting in as much work on the website lately.  But with National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) just around the corner, I believe I've found a way to incorporate writing, social networking, and website development into one exciting project: Dragons Vs. Machine Guns.

Does My Head Look Big In This by Randa Abdel-Fattah

Does My Head Look Big In This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah is one of the most entertaining books I've read this year.  It starts with a simple premise: a young Muslim Palestinian-Australian high school student decides (while watching Friends) that she will begin wearing her hijab full-time.  And from there, Abdel-Fattah takes on all the trials and tribulations of high school: test prep stress, racism, dating, choosing not to date, weight, running away - even pimples.  And not only does she cast these disasters in the appropriate context of "this is the end of my world!" of teenage angst, but she makes it fun and engaging.  As a writer, I was particularly impressed by the delicate use of voice - it's a rich cast of characters, each one unique, and each one revealed with both humanity and interest.

Revision: Realizing the Full Potential of the Story

Revising a short story can be both challenging and rewarding. In a way, you have a lot more control once you've completed the first draft - our goal is to make the most of that control in order to refine the story.  Here's a look at how my approach to revision has changed over time.

June 9, 2010 Newsletter - Short Story Workshop Starts Friday

In our latest Creative Writing Newsletter, read about the Short Story Workshop coming up this Friday and the encore of Freewriting Across Genres coming on June 25.  If you would like to register for either of these courses, visit our Online Registration Page.

Also, you don't want to miss our Online Workshop Survey.  With just a few clicks of the mouse, you can help us determine which classes to add to our roster over next couple months.

Freewriting Across Genres is Off to a Good Start

I'm very pleased to announce the start to our summer workshops with Freewriting Across Genres, which began yesterday.  To give an idea of the scope and direction of the course, here's a selection from the teaching material...

How to Write a Novel in Three Easy Steps

There are really three steps to writing a novel: begin, persevere, and revise.  Once you master these three steps, the rest of the work - the entire novel itself, actually - will literally complete itself.

But then only three easy steps?  Is it really that simple to write a novel?  The answer, dear reader, is yes.  And at the same time it's no...