Author and former literary agent Nathan Bransford shares his secrets for creating killer plots, fleshing out your first ideas, crafting compelling characters, and staying sane in the process. Read the guide that New York Times bestselling author Ransom Riggs called "The best how-to-write-a-novel book I've read."

The Snowflake Method-ten battle-tested steps that jump-start your creativity and help you quickly map out your story.

The inspiring sequel to the 2015 Parent's Choice Winner, How to Read a Story! Step 1: Choose an idea for your story. A good one. Step 2: Decide on a setting. Don't be afraid to mix things up. Step 3: Create a heroine—or a hero. Now: Begin. Accomplished storytellers Kate Messner and Mark Siegel playfully chronicle the process of becoming a writer in this fun follow-up to How to Read a Story, guiding young storytellers through the joys and challenges of the writing process. From choosing an idea, to creating a problem for their character to resolve, to coming to The End, this empowering picture book breaks down the writing process in a dynamic and accessible way, encouraging kids to explore their own creativity—and share their stories with others! • Perfect for educators, librarians, and parents who are helping children develop early writing and reading skills • Great read-aloud book for preschool- and kindergarten-aged children interested in learning to read • Helps teach Common Core Curriculum skills Young readers who love We Are in a Book!, How Rocket Learned to Read, and Also an Octopus will love the reading and writing lessons and inspiration in How to Write a Story. • Read-aloud books for kids ages 3–5 • Learning to write books for kids • Kindergarten, pre-K creativity books Kate Messner is an award-winning author whose many books for kids have been selected as Best Books by the New York Times, Junior Library Guild, Indie Bound, and Bank Street College of Education. She lives on Lake Champlain with her family. Mark Siegel is the author of many graphic novels and children's picture books, including the 5 Worlds series, as well as the illustrator of How to Read a Story and the Robert F. Sibert Honor Book To Dance: A Ballerina's Graphic Novel. He lives in New York.

It's time to begin your next great adventure.It's time to write a novel Through this simple ten day challenge, The Ten Day Draft will help you break through the mental barriers that are preventing you from writing a novel. Along the way, it'll guide you step-by-step through every stage of your first draft, so you'll never have to wonder-what comes next?You'll learn to: -Manage your mindset and avoid the crippling burnout many writers face.-Use story structure to guide and strengthen your writing process.-Keep your ideas fresh, even after writing thousands of words.-Craft a compelling story using a system you can repeat for future novels.-Bring it all together in a final first draft just waiting to be sent into the world Each day of this outlining challenge comes with easy to follow prompts and intuitive goals, simplifying the writing process. By the end, The Ten Day Draft will have proven that yes, you CAN write a novel Here's what you'll find inside: -Day Zero: How to Write a Novel-Day One: Finding the Right Mindset-Day Two: Developing a Routine-Day Three: The Journey Begins-Day Four: The Trials of Act Two-Day Five: Halfway Day-Day Six: Fighting Burnout-Day Seven: Writer's Deja Vu-Day Eight: Approaching the End-Day Nine: The Final Fight-Day Ten: Dawn of the Last Day-The Complete Ten Day Drafting Process

An enchanted island. An evil resurrected. A society determined to gain power. When a violent attack leaves their father in the hospital, Abigail and Benjamin Cole discover there's more to their family history than mental illness. But after fifteen-year-old Abi is abducted, she learns the attack wasn't random. Thrust into an exotic and beautiful world part of a multi-millennial feud, she must decide who to trust in a society built on secrets. Questioning everything she's ever known, she enlists the help of a boy connected to her in impossible ways and uncovers a dangerous secret stretching generations. Seventeen-year-old Ben desperately searches for both his sister and his mother, but his hold on reality is fading. Something dark has latched onto him. In a race against his own failing mind, where violent hallucinations and paranoia force him to believe he's next in line for the family curse, he learns he's the only one that can save his family. When darkness is coming, who do you trust? Magic. Deceit. War. Perfect for fans of Libba Bray, Cassandra Clare, and Leigh Bardugo.

Out-of-this-world antics in this hysterical middle-grade adventure! Sixth-grader Jacob Wonderbar is a master when it comes to disarming and annihilating substitute teachers. But when he and his best friends, Sarah and Dexter, swap a spaceship for a corn dog, they embark on an outer space adventure. And between breaking the universe with an epic explosion, being kidnapped by a space pirate, and surviving a planet that reeks of burp breath, Jacob and his friends are in way over their heads. Action packed with an added dose of heart, Jacob Wonderbar and the Cosmic Space Kapow is sure to captivate middlegrade readers all over the universe.

"Heralds Mags and Amily must continue to protect the realm of Valdemar while raising their children and preparing them to follow in their footsteps... The oldest, Peregrine, has the Gift of animal Mindspeech-- he can talk to animals and persuade them to act as he wishes. Perry's dream is to follow in his father's footsteps as a Herald Spy, but has yet to be Chosen by his horse companion ... Mags proposes that Perry join a group of traveling players and musicians, to get experience away from home and out in the world. Perry joins the troupe, and he starts collecting information for his father. And the patterns he finds are unsettling"--

Techniques of the Selling Writer provides solid instruction for people who want to write and sell fiction, not just to talk and study about it. It gives the background, insights, and specific procedures needed by all beginning writers. Here one can learn how to group words into copy that moves, movement into scenes, and scenes into stories; how to develop characters, how to revise and polish, and finally, how to sell the product. No one can teach talent, but the practical skills of the professional writer's craft can certainly be taught. The correct and imaginative use of these kills can shorten any beginner's apprenticeship by years. This is the book for writers who want to turn rejection slips into cashable checks.

The first novel-writing guide from the best-selling Save the Cat! story-structure series, which reveals the 15 essential plot points needed to make any novel a success. Novelist Jessica Brody presents a comprehensive story-structure guide for novelists that applies the famed Save the Cat! screenwriting methodology to the world of novel writing. Revealing the 15 "beats" (plot points) that comprise a successful story--from the opening image to the finale--this book lays out the Ten Story Genres (Monster in the House; Whydunit; Dude with a Problem) alongside quirky, original insights (Save the Cat; Shard of Glass) to help novelists craft a plot that will captivate--and a novel that will sell.

More than 80% of the global population want to write a book, but the majority never do. Fear, anxiety, day jobs, family commitments, procrastination, depression, self-doubt, and the ubiquitous 'writer's block' all get in the way. But what if they didn't have to? Kristina Adams draws on her 20 years in the literary world to help you build a sustainable writing practice that adapts to your lifestyle, whatever that may be. You'll be the most productive you've ever been in no time.