Story Genius

"It’s every novelist’s greatest fear: pouring their blood, sweat, and tears into writing hundreds of pages only to realize that their story has no sense of urgency, no internal logic, and so is a page one rewrite.

The prevailing wisdom in the writing community is that there are just two ways around this problem: pantsing (winging it) and plotting (focusing on the external plot). Story coach Lisa Cron has spent her career discovering why these methods don’t work and coming up with a powerful alternative, based on the science behind what our brains are wired to crave in every story we read (and it’s not what you think).

In Story Genius, Cron takes you, step-by-step, through the creation of a novel from the first glimmer of an idea, to a complete multilayered blueprint—including fully realized scenes—that evolves into a first draft with the authority, richness, and command of a riveting sixth or seventh draft."

- Penguin Random House

Lisa Cron introduces a new form of outline: the Story Genius Blueprinting System

This is a book that will take you by the hand through writing a novel. But beyond a traditional outline, Story Genius urges you to prioritize characterization and use that to inform your outline. Although there's not much hard-data "science" in this book as the tagline on the cover might suggest, Cron provides much insight for how to make your characters relatable and three-dimensional, which is essential for any compelling story. The grueling process of developing your idea into an interesting and workable outline will be easier with this book at your side.