Cori-Beth's Books

Highly recommend this book, Save the Cat! Writes and Novel by Jessica Brody. Breaks down comprehensively how a novel works and the "beats" and "acts" to move it along. Doesn't really teach you how to write (that takes practice and skill), but rather how to engage the audience. Based on similar methods used in the book Save the Cat!: The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need by Blake Snyder.

I will admit, that I didn't actually read the book, but rather I took an online course based on the book on LinkedIn through my local library taught by the author,  Not everyone is able to take the course, that is why I am recommending the book.  Or take the course (not sure if it's still available) and read the book.  Why not?  I learned so much with the course (say course one more time!) and took tons of notes.  From the steps of what makes a good story including when the "bad guys close in" to the "mid-point" and when a story should split into two. Again, I took so many notes from the course and was able to actually use the methods to complete the Adventure of Flame Gurl book series I had been struggling with. Ended up being twenty-eight books total! See the link in the sidebar to find out more about those. I use Ms. Brody's beats and acts every time I write now including the Eutopia series. It has helped me more than I can express with synopsis of any book I have wanted to write from opening scene to closing scene, with three Acts all together, just like a play.

If you would like to learn the steps in what makes a good novel or even a novella or just a fun adventure book like my Flame Gurl series, get your hands on a copy of Save the Cat! Writes a Novel: The Last Book on Novel Writing You'll Ever Need by Jessica Brody. I have  included below a link to the author's website where you can print off your own copy of the "Beats". Personally, I would recommend copying them into Word and then having the steps blank to fill in yourself. That is what I do and then print off my outline. It's just a guide, so it can be veered away from if you wish, of course. I have done it many, many times.

Have a lovely day and write on!