Writing | Story Engineering by Larry Brooks

From story concept to character development to scene construction and beyond, this blueprint for dynamic storytelling makes putting together a strong novel, memoir, or screenplay easier than ever. Beginning writers in all genres – from fiction writers to nonfiction writers to screenplay writers – will learn how to wrap their heads around the big picture of storytelling at a professional level through a new approach that shows how to combine six core competencies: the four elemental competencies of concept, character, theme, and story structure (plot); and the two executional competencies of scene construction and writing voice. You'll discover how to achieve the greatest potential in your story through mastering the way these six factors combine and empower each other on the page. (Amazon's description)

Can I just tell you, right off, how much I enjoyed Story Engineering? Yes, I think I can. Story Engineering: Mastering the Six Core Competencies of Successful Writing by Larry Brooks is an enlightening book filled to the brim with advice for authors who are constantly aggravated by the questions "What do I write and where do I put it?" and "What exactly does a book/screenplay need in it to be successful?" It's easy to come up with an idea for a book or screenplay; it's a lot harder to execute it well enough to become published (or at least to feel confident in one's own work).

With humor and an easy-going attitude, Larry Brooks efficiently details the six core competencies of successful writing. By the end of the book, the reader should have a very good sense of how to proceed in his or her own writing. Brooks also offers advice for "organic" or "seat of the pants" writers – those who prefer to skip story planning. For me, that was an extremely helpful section, as I've never enjoyed planning what I write before I write it.

Also, Brooks defies the common standard of drafting that is popular among writers; this goes hand in hand with refusing to plan, really. I especially enjoyed this section because, as I have read about how to go about writing a full-length novel, most authors recommend the style of drafting, where the writer writes several drafts in order to eventually come out with a good, crisp novel. I've never been one to enjoy drafting. And, as Brooks points out, drafting is a huge downer on a writer's soul because it involves constant rewriting of a three hundred plus page manuscript. Not fun. With Brooks's method of understanding the structure of a story and utilizing a beat sheet (which outlines scenes), a writer will eventually come out with a first draft that is only a few minor tweaks away from completion. That sounds a whole lot better to me!

Even if you've sunk yourself deep into the concept of drafting and "organic" writing, give Story Engineering a shot. It's an entertaining book to read, first of all, but, second, I think any writer can gain useful information from it. This is definitely a book to break out the highlighters, sticky-notes, and paper clips with, as I can guarantee you will read something that you'll want to make sure to remember later.

I also want to note that Story Engineering does contain a few expletives here and there, but it didn't bother me enough to put the book down.



 Larry Brooks's Website and Blog | Read an Excerpt

Story Engineering (288 pages) is published by Writers Digest Books, and they kindly provided me with a review copy of this book.