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kjboldon's review
informative
slow-paced
3.75
Really useful book to write a draft and be a writer. I appreciated the many reminders that the work and one's creative self are entwined. I didn't love the extre reliance on the left brain/right brain trope, plus some of the examples from potboilers as opposed to classics. Still, informative and encouraging and one for the permanent shelf.
falcone9's review
2.0
The central theory of this book is to create a million different post-it notes in a million different colors and cover your wall with them. I neither have a sufficiently large wall nor the post-it budget to accomplish this.
toboldlygoat's review
4.0
This has a lot of great insight and useful tools for constructing compelling stories, even if the "spiritual guidance" wasn't for me.
mk_pagano's review
3.0
Some good advice, but nothing revolutionary, pretty much a lot of stuff covered in a lot of other craft books.
carololiverbooks's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
From the title (The Plot Whisperer), I expected this to be a book about plotting, but instead the subtitle is more accurate (Secrets of Story Structure…) It focuses on the “Universal Story” in a way which aligns well with the individualism emphasized by the Hero’s Journey, detailing the purposes of the beginning, middle, and end sections of the story and the thresholds between these segments. There is fairly equal treatment of a dramatic action plot, character emotional development, and thematic significance.
The author asserts that left-brained writers naturally prefer action-based plots and that right-brained writers naturally prefer character development plots. She encourages writers both to play to these strengths and to strengthen their weaknesses to create a well-balanced story. Many visual exercises are suggested for viewing individual story elements as well as mapping out the progression of threads throughout the whole story.
Aligned with the subtitle (…Any Writer Can Master), the primary target audience is writers who either don’t know how to get through a complete draft or are insecure about their capability to do that. The author is significantly influenced by the healing energy work she has done and talks about energy flow in stories and in real life. Reflection passages throughout the book map the “Universal Story” experience to the process of writing a story and attempt to warmly coach writers through the struggles likely to arise at that point in their writing journey. Overall, the author strives to encourage writers to believe in their ability to tell stories and to complete both first drafts and revisions of their stories.
The author asserts that left-brained writers naturally prefer action-based plots and that right-brained writers naturally prefer character development plots. She encourages writers both to play to these strengths and to strengthen their weaknesses to create a well-balanced story. Many visual exercises are suggested for viewing individual story elements as well as mapping out the progression of threads throughout the whole story.
Aligned with the subtitle (…Any Writer Can Master), the primary target audience is writers who either don’t know how to get through a complete draft or are insecure about their capability to do that. The author is significantly influenced by the healing energy work she has done and talks about energy flow in stories and in real life. Reflection passages throughout the book map the “Universal Story” experience to the process of writing a story and attempt to warmly coach writers through the struggles likely to arise at that point in their writing journey. Overall, the author strives to encourage writers to believe in their ability to tell stories and to complete both first drafts and revisions of their stories.
qkjgrubb's review
4.0
Most Touchy Feely Writing book I have ever read
At first I thought that there was little about plot that I hadn't read before. But then the author described right-brain and left-brain writing, the emotional journey of the protagonist and how our personal thresholds shape our souls to become great writers. I took lots of notes on character development and I can't wait to apply many of these ideas to my next project.
At first I thought that there was little about plot that I hadn't read before. But then the author described right-brain and left-brain writing, the emotional journey of the protagonist and how our personal thresholds shape our souls to become great writers. I took lots of notes on character development and I can't wait to apply many of these ideas to my next project.
abigcoffeedragon's review
3.0
This is not the worst book and it is not the best on helping writers write. However, as I am learning, just as there are many styles of writing there are just as many approaches to it. So, while this did nothing for me, it may for you, so give it a try. As with everything in life, you have to find what works best for you and apply it lightly or liberally depending on how much you require.
ksbookjunky's review
5.0
Vital resource for writers of all genres and mediums. The companion workbook helps too. Love it!
lachellerising's review
3.0
This is a great book for people who are looking to gain some practical skills in structuring long form narrative works. I'd specifically recommend this book for novelists and screenwriters (specifically features). I'm in the process of writing a short-form narrative piece and a lot of the suggestions in this book did not apply though some of them proved to be helpful. I make this comment specifically for people who write short stories and short films, this is probably not the book for you.
There are some parts that are redundant and many examples used feel like they were skewing toward formulaic writing but as someone who more of a right-brained writer, the tools in this book help a lot with finding a balance between writing about character development and moving the story forward through dramatic action, themes, and other plot devices. I will definitely be revisiting this as I work through the pieces I am writing.
There are some parts that are redundant and many examples used feel like they were skewing toward formulaic writing but as someone who more of a right-brained writer, the tools in this book help a lot with finding a balance between writing about character development and moving the story forward through dramatic action, themes, and other plot devices. I will definitely be revisiting this as I work through the pieces I am writing.