Novels are the premier story form for anyone who wants to tell a story. That’s right, one of the oldest story forms in history is now hot! The rise of e-books has changed the playing field, and it’s the biggest trend in popular storytelling today.
The good news? Anyone can publish a novel.
The bad news? Anyone can publish a novel.
You don’t need a camera, crew, or even an agent. Plus, there is no longer any shame in self-publishing. Now it’s called indie publishing, and successful authors of all genres are skipping the middleman. With six major conglomerates now controlling all of traditional publishing, it’s harder than ever to get a novel published the old fashioned way. But you don’t need to.
Tip #1: don’t let your fear or lack of knowledge about the publishing industry stop you from starting your novel.
Successful authors of all genres are withdrawing from the corporate powers and taking control of their content. This is not to say that traditional publishing is dead, not by a long shot. But now even literary agencies are creating electronic offshoots and encouraging writers to reclaim their backlist titles to add depth to their repertoire.
Tip #2: the single most important step in creating your unique brand as a professional storyteller is to take control of your content and never let it go.
The rise of e-books is tremendous news for writers because it allows you to build your credits, which is the real currency of success in any form of creativity. But there is a big downside. Since anyone can now dash off a few hundred pages, submit it to Amazon Kindle and press publish, anyone good at marketing can get their work out there. Even the word ‘bestseller’ has become a game of strategy involving subgenres, timing, and price cuts. Not only is there more competition than ever, we now have virtual libraries full of unreadable drivel.
Tip #3: the only way you get your book to stand out above the crowd is to write a good story.
Tip #4: that means you have to be a professional: write like a professional, get professional help, and publish like a professional.
In telling a good story, trained screenwriters have a huge advantage over most creative writers for the following reasons:
- You are trained to push narrative drive
- You create vivid story worlds
- You don’t rely on internal dialogue
- You know what it means to “Show don’t tell”
- You eliminate unnecessary characters
- You know the importance of story structure
Most importantly, you know that fixing your typos is not the same thing as fixing your story.
Tip #5: this is where getting professional help is so important. The difference between a copy editor and a developmental story editor can mean the difference between having your book read or ignored. A copy editor will clean up your prose. But it’s far more valuable to have a story expert help you punch up your story – and apply the prose techniques to make it shine.
It’s also a wise investment in you. With online publishing, any work you do to improve your story will have an immediate effect on everyone who takes a look at your novel. You have a fleeting moment to impress your readers. Any help you can get to hook the reader from page one will make a huge difference in establishing yourself as a professional storyteller in a worldwide marketplace.
The New Story for Novel Class
Because novels are the hottest medium for writers today, and the best strategy for breaking in as a professional storyteller, we are teaching a brand new class this September 26 on Story for Novel.
We’ll explore the key techniques in adapting a screenplay to a novel, the main structural differences in writing each form, and how to apply the 22 Structure Beats™ of every great story to create the kind of novel that will stand above the crowd.
And if you want to take a shot at the most ambitious challenge in story, we’ll go through 15 techniques you need to know to have a shot at writing the Great American Novel. It’s going to be an amazing day.
What you’ll learn:
• 15 essential techniques for writing the Great American Novel
• Why now is the best time to write a novel, if it’s the right kind
• The biggest story mistake novelists make
• How to turn story problems into creative opportunities
• How the novel story form differs from film and TV
• The 1st rule of writing the popular novel
• Special character techniques for novel writing
• Unique story beats of the novel form
• How to choose the right POV for your novel
• 8 techniques to get the most out of the storyteller
• 7 techniques for writing a successful multi-POV story
• Key techniques for adapting your screenplay to novel
• Key techniques for adapting your novel to screenplay
• Paths to publication: traditional, indie & hybrid
• Which kind of editor you need to put you over the top
Please join us in San Francisco (location TBA), September 26, for the class that will jump start your novel-writing career!
John Truby and Leslie Lehr, bestselling novelist and Truby’s Writers Studio Novel Consultant
