#Revising Your NaNoWriMo Project
With National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) starting in November, there may be a first draft (of what could become your first novel) in your immediate future! Putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) is just the first step, though! Find out how to make your 50,000 words sparkle, shine, and start looking more like a finished novel with our next Writer's Lab workshop!
JOIN
So you've finished writing a draft of a novel (or perhaps you're nearing the finish line). What comes next? Join writer Hurley Winkler to learn about novel revision tactics. You'll walk away with a stronger revision plan for your book-length project as well as renewed energy and inspiration.
Writer’s Lab: Novel Revision Tactics, on Tuesday, November 14, at 6:30 p.m. at the Beaches Branch Library.
Instructor Hurley Winkler is a writer and a lifelong resident of Jacksonville. Her fiction and nonfiction work has appeared in Hobart, Neutral Spaces, The Millions, and elsewhere, and she interviews writers and musicians for The Creative Independent and WJCT's Jacksonville Music Experience. She's also the creator of Lonely Victories, a Substack community for writers and readers, where she facilitates the Book Club for Writers and teaches online writing workshops.
HURLEY RECOMMENDS
In her opinion, the best books on novel revision:
- Refuse to Be Done: How to Write and Rewrite a Novel in Three Drafts by Matt Bell - I wish this book had existed when I first started working on a novel! Seasoned novelist and short story writer Matt Bell provides a slew of ideas for generating and improving a novel manuscript. The title is a testament to the ruthlessness required to write a book-length work of fiction.
- How to Grow a Novel: The Most Common Mistakes Writers Make and How to Overcome Them by Sol Stein - I always turn to this classic book whenever I need a push in the right direction while writing.
- Mastering the Process: From Idea to Novel by Elizabeth George - Mystery writer Elizabeth George employs a research-heavy process, which she outlines in this book. She includes examples from her novel Careless in Red to illustrate her process.
- The Anatomy of Story: 22 Steps to Becoming a Master Storyteller by John Truby - This isn't a book about novels or revision—it's actually about screenwriting—but I find so many of Truby's principles helpful for tightening a novel's plot.
- Meander, Spiral, Explode by Jane Alison - This unusual and lovely book is a great resource for thinking about a novel's structure.
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