Book in a Month: The Fool-Proof System for Writing a Novel in 30 Days

This book was so helpful for me! I had been working on a manuscript for over 2 years and was stuck on where to go with my plot, how to structure my plot and characters, keeping on task, and simply staying motivated. This book was so helpful in giving me a structured plan to follow. And while some of the exercises are tedious at times, for the most part, everything that was done was purposeful and helpful. And I loved that it was a spiral bound book so I could have it open, flip pages, and write without any hassle (I know, seems like a strange thing, but that sold me on it). I would recommend this for any writer whose hit a snag or needs a little extra help.

If you love well-planned writing and filling out worksheets to mark progress in your work, you'll probably like this book I feel that this book is the best of Schmidt's works on creative writing. The reason I would say such a thing is that her system, the workbook/notebook approach, helps organize each book-writing project into a single place. There is a large sticker to be labeled and placed on the spine to indicate the project's name. There are also many other stickers with symbolic and perhaps sentimental value. Schmidt uses many worksheets (about 5 per day) to foprce the writer into making productive use of the 2-3 hours of daily writing time (or whatever amount of time that you choose). I don't recommend it to avsolute beginners because the worksheet method is very laborious and can become daunting unless it is maintained. Experienced writiers may notice that this is a book filled with worksheets all of which are available for free on the author's website. In addition, an experienced writer may be able to just use a lined notebook to keep track of characters, plot, outines and so forth. Well, I am not what I would call an experienced novelist (like, say, Nora Roberts, Stephen King or any number of writers of pulp fiction). My conclusion about this book is that it is the best I have ever seen from this publisher (Writer's Digest) and is a great introduction to the author and her other, well-written works on creative writing. It is expensive and she does expect the reader to buy a new book for each new novel/book project, but I would gladly buy several copies of this work and use its method over and over again. Once you master the system, you can do most of the things on scraps of paper, a notebook, or even a computer file. To compare this to Nanowrimo is to be unfair to Dr. Schmidt. She sets out to provide a way to produce a usable book-length work in thirty days or more, while the Nanowrimo folks focus on encouragement, self-esteem and fast-production of story ideas. I still prefer schmidt.

This unique book makes writing fun. As you can see with the "Search Inside" feature, there are around 50 worksheets to fill out on all the details of your novel. If you fill in the blanks, you're guaranteed to have an outline for a fleshed-out, compelling story. The book is also very inspirational, with tips on how to avoid resistance (psychological reasons for why we might allow ourselves to procrastinate) and asking you to really think about why accomplishing your goal of writing a novel is important to you. And for some reason, just the act of writing into the actual book with my story details made the project seem more serious and provides a great place to jot down every detail. With all that said, this is an excellent book for any writing project, even if you don't plan to write it in 30 days, but it's even more exciting if you do decided to go for it. Good luck!

This isn't the first how-to write a novel book I've purchased. My first how-to was THE MARSHALL PLAN FOR NOVEL WRITING: A 16-STEP PROGRAM GUARANTEED TO TAKE YOU FROM IDEA TO COMPLETE MANUSCRIPT. I made it all the way to the section sheets and stopped. I had no clue how to do those. At the time, I was really big into Yahoo Groups and had signed up for a mess load of writer's groups. I talked someone into starting a writing group for writers using this method. To my amazement, he did. They all got to the section sheets and guess what? You got it, I wasn't the only person totally confused. Like the insane person I am, I purchased the workbook hoping to get clarity. It never came. Was it a waste of money? No, because I walked a way with more knowledge than before and to be fair, I understand more about the section sheets now. There's more... About the same time, I'd purchased FIRST DRAFT IN 30 DAYS: A NOVEL WRITER'S SYSTEM FOR BUILDING A COMPLETE AND COHESIVE MANUSCRIPT by Karen Wiesner. A novel in 30 days, a 1st draft in 30 days, and a 16 step program to a complete novel - great book. So when I talk about BOOK IN A MONTH, I have the two others to compare it to. My only complaint is it's small. For those of you who carry such things around with you, this might be just the ticket. I don't and I don't write small either. The pages are 5-1/2 inches wide, making this very compact for travel. I don't travel. So if I had one wish, it would be a super-size model. The book combines psychology with the mechanics of how to organize a novel from start to finish. This is by far the best on the market I've seen. As a side note, it was helpful for me to also purchase "Make a Scene: Crafting a Powerful Story One Scene at a Time" by Jordan Rosenfeld as well. I was able to get more out of the book that way.

I've been waiting for this book to be published for the last couple of months. And I was so excited to finally get it in the mail yesterday. The actual product is even better than what I expected. I have looked at Victoria Schmidts other books and Story Structure Architect was interesting but too complicated for me. This book is a workbook. You write in it - but its not one of those complicated workbooks that make you write backline and huge character outlines and then piece them all together later. Instead it walks you through the process of writing a novel on a daily basis. It's not a book about writing - its a book for writing. As Schmidt says in the intro "You cannot read a book on writing and then poof become an author (though books are great guides)No you must experience the act of writing to be an author...the only way you can do this is to write, from beginning to end a story. And then do it again and again. Then you will have the experience. Then you will be an author." What differs this book from other book in a month style books is the structure. Its easy to follow, the daily tasks are manageable, it follows the classic 3 act structure. It's basically a template for writing the book you want to write. Plus it has online support if you want to be part of a community. Writers Digest did a GREAT job in the layout and design of the book so you can write directly in it and it has a ring binder so you can lay it flat while writing. I wanted a book to jump start my writing again as I have been out of practice. This is exactly what I needed. I know I will buy a new copy each time I write a book. I used to buy screenwriting books to study story structure. Finally thankfully books on the craft of novel writing are focusing more on story structure too. This does not take away from the creative process but rather provides a strong framework for you to unleash your creativity. So if you want to write a novel, buy the book, get your [...] in a chair, pick up a pen and use the book everyday for a month...you'll have a novel.