What I Learned From Dan Browns Free MasterClass Session

What I learned from Dan Browns Free MasterClass Session

Check out the full video on Youtube.

“If you can sit down and write, you’re nowhere near the end of your ability. […] I wasn’t born knowing this [writing] I learned it by making mistakes, reading writers who do it much better than I do and saying, wow I love the way they do that, I want to pull that into what I do.”

– Dan Brown

“Protect the process and the results will take care of themselves”: Writing is 90% routine and just 10% inspiration – a marathon, not a sprint! Create a space in which you can be creative.

“Make it important to yourself”: Writing has to be a project, a priority which importance you have to enforce with yourself and your surroundings. And sometimes that’s hard and uncomfortable.

“every story has been told”: We know the hero will safe the day, but it’s all about how things happen! You get a template on which you can apply your creativitiy and voice.

“be honest with your reader”: creative liberties are alright (e.g. in historical fiction), but you have to be upfront with your reader about what is accurate according to your research and what is your creativity.

“the three C’s” for great stories: clock (time pressure, e.g. a time bomb), crucible (a box that encloses the action, restrain characters and make them face their demons, e.g. a sinking boat), contract (every page should be a promise to the reader: “I know something you don’t know and if you turn the page I promise I will tell you”).

“sticking to the right POV let’s you play fair with the reader in withholding information”: omniscient narrators owe it to the reader to spill a secret the POV character knows – if somebody has a secret that shouldn’t be told yet, stick to another POV

“whichever character has the most to loose, that’s the one you write from”: whoever is the most emotionally stimulated, just found out something upsetting or is in danger, tends to be the most interesting POV.

“I wanna do this better tomorrow”: If something doesn’t work out at first, come back later and give it more creativity, tell yourself that you can make it better to stay motivated, take it as a challenge!

“The way you spark creativity is to empty your mind”: meditation, taking a walk in nature, turn of television/smartphone, whatever let’s you be blank, your mind doesn’t like to be empty, so it will make something to fill itself up.

“Setting the table for breakfast”: Before you end your writing session, start the first paragraph for the next session – it will keep you from going back and being stuck on the last things you wrote.

“You always want people looking in the wrong direction”: Never underestimate your reader! They can tell that the person the author is shining a spotlight on is the red herring. Create a second red herring character on the sidelines who the reader could pick up on as the villain.

“The Michaelangelo way of writing”: At the first stage of writing start with many clues, make sure all the information is there. You can take unnecessary or overdone clues away during editing. It’s easier to take things away than it is to add them.

“I’m always trying to get out of a scene before it’s over”: rather than wraping everything up in a nice bow – get out before the bow is tied. A later chapter can tie up the bow of something that happened a few chapters back! You’re simultaneously solving a problem and posing a new problem. Introduce and answer questions as you go to keep things satisfying. It’s all about tension and release.

story outlining methods, pt. 1:

take off your pants!! (“take off your pants!: outline your books for faster, better writing” by libbie hawker)

this outline starts with a character — specifically their biggest flaw — and leads to five points that will make up the core of your story. it’s best for plots and subplots that focus on overcoming the flaw!

this outline doesn’t just have to be used for coming of age novels. it is just as important in your dystopian, fantasy, or thriller novels that the main character learns something or has changed by the end.

STEP ONE: think about your character

your main character — what is their name, and what are their important features?

what are your character’s flaws? what about their FATAL flaw? ex: hubris, overconfidence, stubbornness, etc.

STEP TWO: think about the end of the story

the story (whether the main plot, a subplot, or a facet of the main plot) is the journey lead to overcome the flaw. now that you know the character’s flaw, you know what lesson they need to learn.

the end of the story = the flaw mastered, the lesson learned.

STEP THREE: think about the external goal

the external goal is the plot, the outer motivation to push the character to the end of the story where the goal is mastered. if you remember my post on quests, you know that a quest has two reasons to be there: the external factor (shrek saving fiona for his swamp), and the real reason (the lesson learned)

the external goal should provide a chance for the character to recognize their flaw and begin to change. how does your plot tie into their character development?

STEP FOUR: think about the antagonist

thinking about the external goal should reveal who the antagonist is. the antagonist should want to achieve the same goal or a goal that impedes with the protagonist’s goal. the antagonist should be the biggest obstacle to the character.

STEP FIVE: think about the ally/allies

the character(s) that is capable of forcing the protagonist down the correct path. where your protagonist most likely will resist changing and confronting their flaw, the ally will help force them to do so anyway.

STEP SIX: think about the theme

so what’s the point of your book? if you are struggling to boil it down to one sentence, you might want to think about it a little longer. this is what keeps the story feeling coherent. what are you trying to tell us?

STEP SEVEN: think about the plot

each main plot element should somehow relate to the core of the book, aka the character’s development in overcoming their flaw

OPENING SCENE - set the stage. address the flaw or the theme

INCITING EVENT - what forces the character out of their everyday life and into the story?

REALIZING EXTERNAL GOAL - what makes the character begin seeking their goal?

DISPLAY OF FLAW - if the character’s flaw hasn’t been made blatantly clear, now is the time. make it known to the reader.

DRIVE FOR GOAL - what is your character’s first attempt to reach their goal?

ANTAGONIST REVEAL - how do you first show your antagonist’s opposition to your character?

FIRST THWART - what happens to your character that keeps them from reaching their goal?

REVISIT FLAW - show the character’s flaw again, even if they themselves aren’t aware of it yet.

ANTAGONIST ATTACKS - what does the antagonist do that makes things worse?

SECOND THWART - where your character fails most likely due to the attack

CHANGED GOAL - the character finds a new goal or focuses on the external goal in a different way

ALLY ATTACKS - what does the ally do to force the character to see the flaw?

AWAKENING - the character knows what they must do to reach the external goal. how will you show that the character has also awakened to their flaw? how will you show them changing?

BATTLE - the final showdown with the antagonist!

DEATH - the character’s flaw dies here. how will you show that the character truly is different now?

OUTCOME - show whether the character won or lost the external goal, reveal the theme of the story.

naturally, you don’t have to follow that outline exactly, but it can be a good place to start ;)

Blogs to Follow to Help Develop Your OC

On top of having this blog to encourage creating OCs, I also want to give people access to resources that can help you out in creating your OC! Here is a compilation of blogs to follow, as well as a few other links to help further your development!

maxkirin - Novelist blogger who offers many great pieces of writing advice, as well as videos!

about-your-oc - Writing prompts and resources for OCs

character-prompts - A collection of short character prompts

develop your oc - A collection of prompts and questions for your OCs

faceclaims-rpg - A blog dedicated to finding “face claims”, or irl people to represent your character’s appearance. They include a large array of tags and a directory of faceclaims, including POC.

tasksweekly - A blog dedicated to bringing more advanced prompts to get your creative juices flowing. Check out their info page and just snoop around.

dear-indies - A blog dedicated more specifically towards RPers with guides, tutorials, masterposts and face claim help.

howtofightwrite - An excellent resource for tips and tricks on writing combat and fight scenes, as well as what not to do.

The Script Family - This is a link to a separate masterpost, all of the blogs listed being absolutely excellent resources for writing and research. Just reach in and take a look, there’s answers to questions you didn’t even know you had.

writing-prompt-s - Short prompts to write stories off of

tiftswritingcorner - Prompts and challenges

helpfulwritingstuff - Reblogs of random resources and tips for writing.

heywriters - Writing tips, inspiration and resources

writingwithcolor - A blog dedicated to writing and resources centered on racial & ethnic diversity

fixyourwritinghabits - A collection of resources and tips for writing

fuckyeahcharacterdevelopment - A hub of information for character creation, development and writing

writeworld - A blog dedicated to prompts/inspiration to get writing via pictures, art and music

promptsandpointers - A blog dedicated to bringing advice and inspiration for writing

yourocs - Questions to flesh out your characters

writing-questions-answered - A blog dedicated to answering questions about writing help

I visit almost all of these blogs quite regularly, and I highly recommend going through these blogs for help and inspiration. These are just my personal recommendations, there are definitely more blogs out there you can dig for of course!

Increase your writing speed

I got an ask ages ago by @theemmanation, asking if I have any advice for under-writers. As a former under-writer, I do.

It used to take me two or three hours of steady writing to get to a thousand words. Needless to say, my novel was progressing slowwwly. I had accepted the fact that I would never write 1,000 words per hour, I just wasn’t that kind of a writer. Or so I thought.

These are the things I did to increase my wordcount and my writing speed:

1. I stopped writing by hand

I love, love the idea of a stack of notebooks for my first draft, to show how much work I put into it. For my first NaNoWriMo, I decided to temporatily switch to typing and BOY, did that work. Without changing anything else, my writing speed doubled.

Because I couldn’t let go of the idea of the stack of notebooks for my first draft, I printed them. If you want to see how that turned out, here is my finished first draft, a stack of 14 notebooks. I considered creating a font of my own hand-writing for the print, but in the end I didn’t. (If you want to, google how. It’s free.)

2. I participated in NaNoWriMo

NaNoWriMo is a yearly event in which writers try to write 50,000 words in 30 days, or an average of 1,666 words per day. I had never had such an ambitious goal, and surfing along the momentum of other writers made me push myself beyond what I thought was possible. It genuinely changed me as a writer. Because I was pushing myself to write these 1,666 words per day, I wrote faster and for longer per writing session. And against all (my) expectations, I won! I wrote more in that month than I had written in the previous 2 years.

Even if you start NaNoWriMo and don’t succeed, you may find that you can do more than you think.

3. I do word sprints

Meet up with someone (online or live), set a relatively short time, and get out as much words as you can on your wip. If the competetive factor doesn’t work for you or if you’ve got no-one to partner up with, do the Pomodoro technique: set your timer for 25 minutes, write your ass off, and take a 5 minute break. Repeat if needed.

In word sprints, I often reach a speed of 1,200 words per hour. And good words, too, not just word vomit.

4. A good plan is half the work

The idea is to get your problem-solving done before you write, so that you don’t lose any writing time and still get the same (or, I would argue, a higher) quality of writing. So I usually know what I’m gonna write before I start. Not in great detail, but I have a one- to three-sentence description of my scene before I start it, and before writing the real stuff, I make sure I already have the scene in my head, using the method of “How I never have to face an empty page when I write”. If it doesn’t suit you, then don’t, but this is what does the trick for me. Also, see my post on how to outline your novel, but I’m sure most of you have seen it.

5. I carve out my writing time

Write when you’re the most creative, the most mentally active. Don’t go against your own energy pattern. Most people write when the moment is convenient, like in the evenings after dinner when the kids are in bed or when homework is done. But if you’re like me, dinner makes you drowsy and you don’t have a lot of mental stamina left. Afternoons are my jam. Base your writing time on your bioclock and then make writing a priority.

When I say make writing a priority, I don’t mean that afternoon writers need to work less to be able to write more. I mean: prioritize writing during lunchtime over talking to your colleagues. If you’re an evening writer, prioritize writing over watching that new series your partner is bingeing. If you’re a morning writer, prioritize writing over waking up slowly while watching the news.

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I hope this was helpful. Don’t hesitate to ask me any questions, and happy writing!

Follow me for more writing advice, or check out my other writing tips here. New topics to write advice about are also always welcome.

Tag list below the cut. If you like to be added to or removed from the list, let me know.

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Guide: Naming a Town or City

There are many things to keep in mind when naming the town or city in your novel:

1) Genre/Theme/Tone

It’s very important to consider the genre and theme of your story when choosing a town name. Take these names for example, each of which indicates the genre or theme of the story: King’s Landing (sounds fantastical) Cloud City (sounds futuristic) Silent Hill (sounds scary) Sweet Valley (sounds happy and upbeat) Bikini Bottom (sounds funny) Radiator Springs (sounds car-related) Halloween Town (sounds Halloween-related) Storybrooke (sounds fairytale-related) 2) Time/Place It’s also important to consider the time and place where your story takes place. For example, you wouldn’t use “Vista Gulch” as a name for a town in Victorian England. You probably wouldn’t use it for a town in modern day North Carolina, either. Vista is a Spanish word and would normally be found in places where Spanish names are common, like Spain, Central and South America, the southwest United States (including southern California), Cuba, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, and Florida. 3) Size/Settlement Type An isolated town of 300 people probably won’t be Valley City, but a sprawling metropolis of 30 million could be called Windyville, because it could have started out as a small town and grew into a large city. 4) Geography Words like gulch, butte,and bayou tend to be regional terms. You probably wouldn’t find Berle’s Bayou in Idaho, or Windy Butte in Rhode Island. Words like mount, cape, and valley are dependent upon terrain. Most of the time, you won’t have a town named “mount” something unless there are hills or mountains nearby. You wouldn’t use “cape” unless the town was on a cape, which requires a large body of water. 5) History Is there a historical person or event that your town might be named after? The Simpsons’ hometown of Springfield is ironically named after its founder, Jebediah Springfield. Chattanooga, Tennessee is named after the Cherokee town that was there first. Nargothrond, in The Lord of the Rings, is an Elvish town with an Elvish name. 6) Combination of Words

person name + geographical term = Smithfield, Smith Creek

group name + geographical term = Pioneer Valley, Settlers’ Ridge

descriptive word + geographical term = Mystic Falls, Smoky Hill

person name + settlement type = Smithton, Claraville

landmark + settlement type = Bridgton, Beaconville

Word Lists: Types of Settlements

Geographical Features

Place Words

Common Suffixes

Other Descriptors

Try a combination of two words from any of these lists. :)

Concept: an apocalyptic or post apocalyptic tv show centred on a group of disabled protagonists

Must include:

-enough details about how they survive that no one can call it “unrealistic”

-mental and physical disabilities 

-a character who isn’t necessarily contributing to the survival of the group, but is not abandoned or looked down upon

-at least one character whose disability is actually less of a problem for them now that the world is ending/ended (example: autistic character who used to be constantly overstimulated but no longer is)

Optional features:

-abled person says “the only disability in life is a bad attitude” and gets told where to stuff it

-creatively weaponized mobility aids/assistive devices

-character who abled people think isn’t worth helping because of their disability, but actually has at least one skill essential to the survival of the group

-every time an abled person says something ignorant, all present disabled people look into the camera like they’re on the office