April Awesomeness: Larry Brooks Workshop

Coldplay Concert @ Rose Garden Area

April is fast approaching conclusion and I have to say it's been a kick ass month & not just here on the blog. 1st, I finished my day job class from hell & feel a million pounds lighter having that behind me. 2nd, I saw Coldplay live for the 1st time. They are a great arena band to see and I would recommend going if they're coming to your neck of the woods. They gave out wrist bands at the door. When they lit up during the show I felt like I stood in the middle of a galaxy full of colorful stars. One of the most magical moments of my life. 3rd, yesterday we were in Spokane WA for a wedding for the weekend and spend the morning at Cat Tales Zoo. They rescue wild cats of all sizes and take very good care them. Being a feline lover, I was in heaven. Here is Apollo, a White Bengal Tiger. (BTW, I tweeted this picture under the incorrect name of Zeus. Zeus was there, but not in the picture.)

Apollo @ Cat Tales

I promise to post more pictures soon especially since hubby captured some great ones!

As much as I would love to talk about cats, concerts and show you pictures, you came here today to read my notes from Larry Brooks Workshop I took at the RCRW Spring Intensive. Your wish is my command, however I don't have a lot of notes, because much of what he said wasn't anything new for me. With that being said, there were some key points that I jotted down because I found them interesting. For more in depth notes click here, here, and here.

Ask yourself these questions:

What is the most important word in the realm of writing stories?  

Remember the moment when the seed of the story began?What sparked the story?

How did you turn the seed into a story?Why?

In one sentence what is your story about?

What is concept?

What is the most important moment in the story? (The inciting incident leading to the dark moment.)

What is the element about your book that will stand out of the slush pile?

Are you searching for your story, polishing your story, or optimizing your story, or searching for your ending?

Six Cores:

      Concept: the dramatic stage on with the character plot unfold.

      Character

      Theme 

       Story Structure: What happens, in what order and why? 

    Scene Writing: each scene needs to tell the mission.

       Writing voice. Ability to write a great sentence.

Three phases of writing. Designing, Implementation, & Optimizing.

Six key realms of story physics

1.      Compelling narrative premise. Evolution between seed to story.

2.      Conflict. Dramatic Tension. What are the stakes?

3.      Pace. Expositional pace.

4.       Heroic Empathy. Must like hero.

5.      Vicarious reader experience. Top Gun- cool jets.

6.      The x-factor that makes the book unique.

For more information on Larry Brooks visit his website:

www.storyfix.com

Thanks again for reading & have a lovely week.