Writing Fiction For Dummies

A complete guide to writing and selling your novel So you want to write a novel? Great! That’s a worthy goal, no matter what your reason. But don’t settle for just writing a novel. Aim high. Write a novel that you intend to sell to a publisher. Writing Fiction for Dummies is a complete guide designed to coach you every step along the path from beginning writer to royalty-earning author. Here are some things you’ll learn in Writing Fiction for Dummies :

Strategic Planning : Pinpoint where you are on the roadmap to publication; discover what every reader desperately wants from a story; home in on a marketable category; choose from among the four most common creative styles; and learn the self-management methods of professional writers.

Writing Powerful Fiction : Construct a story world that rings true; create believable, unpredictable characters; build a strong plot with all six layers of complexity of a modern novel; and infuse it all with a strong theme.

Self-Editing Your Novel : Psychoanalyze your characters to bring them fully to life; edit your story structure from the top down; fix broken scenes; and polish your action and dialogue.

Finding An Agent and Getting Published : Write a query letter, a synopsis, and a proposal; pitch your work to agents and editors without fear.

Writing Fiction For Dummies takes you from being a writer to being an author. It can happen—if you have the talent and persistence to do what you need to do.

Introduction 1

About This Book 1

Conventions Used In This Book 2

What You’re Not to Read 2

Foolish Assumptions 3

How This Book is Organized 3

Part I: Getting Ready to Write Fiction 4

Part II: Creating Compelling Fiction 4

Part III: Editing and Polishing Your Story and Characters 4

Part IV: Getting Published 4

Part V: The Part of Tens 5

Icons Used in This Book 5

Where to Go from Here 5

Part I: Getting Ready to Write Fiction 7

Chapter 1: Fiction Writing Basics 9

Setting Your Ultimate Goal as a Writer 11

Pinpointing Where You are as a Writer 13

Freshmen: Concentrating on craft 13