Angie is learning about teaching math and either making connections to learning and writing...or developing a unified theory of everything. Elizabeth is in diffuse, “what if” mode, exploring her real values. As they delve into conversation about premise--an expression of values in a story--and limiting belief--the thinking that needs changing in a character, Angie asserts that what can seem like a blunt tool in writing, can come across subtle, enriching ways in reading. They explore how to use these tools to brainstorm and tap into the unconscious, how to develop and understand the psychology behind a character’s behavior, and how structure might mirror premise.

Links in this episode:

Link to free class on Writing in the Time of Covid.

Book in a Year

Craft Class and Story Development 

Dorothy Allison sorry about Shannon Pearl/ fire -- is embedded in her novel Bastard Out of Carolina

Lindsey Doran

Tony Robbins

NLP

Lajos Egri The Art of Dramatic Writing

Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol

Heather Young The Distant Dead

Story Makers Episode with Heather Young 

NYT What’s Happenjng in this Graph? Pandemic Consumer Spending

Story Makers is a podcast that features in-depth conversations with accomplished writers, filmmakers and industry experts about story craft, technique, habit and survival--everything you need to know to stay inspired, connect to your creativity, find others’ wonderful stories and your own success.

The hosts:

Elizabeth Stark is a published, agented novelist and distributed filmmaker who teaches and mentors writers at BookWritingWorld.com.

Angie Powers is a distributed filmmaker and published short story writer with an MFA in creative writing and a certificate in screenwriting from UCLA who teaches story structure at BookWritingWorld.com.

Today’s episode brings the study of scene to a conclusion with a third scene, this one from Danzy Senna’s non-fiction Where Did You Sleep Last Night? A Personal History. Angie and Elizabeth look at the work an opening scene does in establishing vital information--here, establishing a relationship  dynamic, a core theme, and stakes. With deft details and action, Senna creates a strong cinematic scene while also allowing for a narrator grappling with the meaning and interpretation of a scene from the past, one of the strengths of narrative prose on the page. The discussion also covers action as dialog, the interweaving of researched history with personal history, and the power of ambiguity. The episode kids off with a look at the trials, tribulations, and pleasures of reviewing morning pages, and of completion-centric project planning, as well as learning, revision, and imperfection in writing and math.

Links in this episode:

Sontag: Her Life and Work by Benjamin Moser

Cal Newport completion-centric and Einstein theory

The Einstein Principle: Accomplish More By Doing Less

The Art of the Finish: How to Go From Busy to Accomplished

Scott Young UltraLearning 

Story Makers Show scene episodes:

Scene It All: What Makes Scene Work?

The Final Scene: Elizabeth Strout

Establishing Scenes: Setting Up Desires, Character, Theme in Action in Colson Whitehead’s The Nickel Boys

Denzy Senna Where Did You Sleep Last Night?

Danzy Senna New People

Story Makers is a podcast that features in-depth conversations with accomplished writers, filmmakers and industry experts about story craft, technique, habit and survival--everything you need to know to stay inspired, connect to your creativity, find others’ wonderful stories and your own success.

The hosts:

Elizabeth Stark is a published, agented novelist and distributed filmmaker who teaches and mentors writers at BookWritingWorld.com.

Angie Powers is a distributed filmmaker and published short story writer with an MFA in creative writing and a certificate in screenwriting from UCLA who teaches story structure at BookWritingWorld.com.

Continuing the series examining the art of the scene, Angie and Elizabeth delve into an early scene from Colson Whitehead’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel, The Nickel Boys. A deft scene by a highly skilled author. Elizabeth and Angie discuss how what a character wants in a scene ties into the themes that drive the whole book; the balance between abstract and concrete; choosing scenes that matter to create your story; changing and building desires; what marks the end of a scene and what happens in a scene; the definition of a sequence; how questions drive scenes and stories; setting up surprises and revelations so we believe them; character change; rising stakes and how they prevent repeat beats; how to integrate backstory actively in the moment it’s necessary to the present scene. Use this scene as a template to write your own, and your strength as a reader to inspire you! In other news, Angie is working on Math, Climate Change and Comedy and Elizabeth is expanding her definition of noticing…and affirming that reading counts in the work of a true writer.

Links in this episode:

Intro to scene episode

Elizabeth Strout final scene episode

The Nickel Boys

Story Makers is a podcast that features in-depth conversations with accomplished writers, filmmakers and industry experts about story craft, technique, habit and survival--everything you need to know to stay inspired, connect to your creativity, find others’ wonderful stories and your own success.

The hosts:

Elizabeth Stark is a published, agented novelist and distributed filmmaker who teaches and mentors writers at BookWritingWorld.com.

Angie Powers is a distributed filmmaker and published short story writer with an MFA in creative writing and a certificate in screenwriting from UCLA who teaches story structure at BookWritingWorld.com.