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nicolemhewitt's review against another edition
5.0
This review and many more can be found on my blog: Feed Your Fiction Addiction
Story Genius is all about how character drives your story. This book isn't just theoretical; it gives you step-by-step instructions for how to create backstory and understand your characters' motivations. Following this blueprint will give you a story that resonates with readers because they will be invested in your characters. I feel like going through the exercises has helped me get to know my main characters better, even if every scene I wrote doesn't make it into my book. I do think that the structure that Cron suggests might not 100% work for every book out there (she sort of suggests that it's the only way, but I don't completely agree with that---there have certainly been wonderful and successful books that don't completely follow her formula). Like all books on the craft of writing, this will probably resonate with some people and not with others, but for me, it was very helpful and gave me something solid to work off of.
Story Genius is all about how character drives your story. This book isn't just theoretical; it gives you step-by-step instructions for how to create backstory and understand your characters' motivations. Following this blueprint will give you a story that resonates with readers because they will be invested in your characters. I feel like going through the exercises has helped me get to know my main characters better, even if every scene I wrote doesn't make it into my book. I do think that the structure that Cron suggests might not 100% work for every book out there (she sort of suggests that it's the only way, but I don't completely agree with that---there have certainly been wonderful and successful books that don't completely follow her formula). Like all books on the craft of writing, this will probably resonate with some people and not with others, but for me, it was very helpful and gave me something solid to work off of.
maryvarn's review
I don't have any great ambitions to write a novel. Maybe someday? But I tinker with graphic novel ideas and films. This opened my eyes to why a graphic novel idea I've been developing was falling flat. And like many books I read about writing, it really has me paying attention to the fiction I consume, in all forms, and dissecting it more than ever. That may sound terrible, but I really enjoy it.
This book has detailed instructions on how to go about writing a novel. That's not for everyone, but I appreciate the concrete advice.
This book has detailed instructions on how to go about writing a novel. That's not for everyone, but I appreciate the concrete advice.
harborwriter's review
I would have liked this book better had it been advertised as what it actually is: a guide to developing characters. For that, I found it useful, with a number of good exercises. Aside from that, I did a lot of skimming. Much of the book focuses on a book the author’s friend is supposedly developing (which it seems wasn’t actually written?), and I found those parts a bit dull. There’s also an unnecessary amount of repetition, when the author’s points could have been conveyed without as much discussion. My takeaway: read it as a character development guide, use the exercises, skim most of the rest.