Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook: Hands-On Help for Making Your Novel Stand Out and Succeed

Rating:
Summary: Not very good for learning to write . . .
Review: "Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook" advises us in several places to 'make it move'. But Donald Maass could stand to take some of his own advice. The book's organization is poor, and the informational structure seems to rely more on sound bites than in-depth knowledge. Each chapter has a point to make, and uses an excerpt from bestseller fiction to make the point; the two problems with this are that the points do not stand on the fiction used to back them up, and that the fiction is not selected for quality, but for saleability.

If you're trying to write books of low quality that fly off the shelves and earn you a large check, I revise my rating upward, but only to three stars -- because, again, the advice structure doesn't go into detail enough to be useful, or hold together very well.

While we're at it, I understand this is a "workbook", but we're perfectly capable of bringing our own paper! Half the book is taken up by fill-in-the-blank notebook spaces -- very annoying in a 200-page, 20-dollar volume. They don't even allow enough room to complete the suggested exercises! I'm not too happy about these.

There are a couple of decent pieces of advice in here, but I don't think they're worth buying the book, and I plan to return it. The Elements of Fiction Writing series seems to have a lot more good in it, especially "Plot" by Ansen Dibell.

Rating:
Summary: Chuck the rest of my collection if I can keep this book
Review: After attending one of Maass' BN workshops and diligently typing down all the questions he posed us, I preordered this book immediately.

This was everything I hoped it would be and more, even with the "heads-up" I'd gotten from the workshop. I've gone through the first section since receiving my copy and it's already made me rethink my heroes and all the impacts to the plot.

This is a definite keeper and I'll likely have to get another two copies for when I wear this one's spine to nothing.

If I could pass out more stars, this book would get fifteen.

Rating:
Summary: Some valuable nuggets of advice!
Review: Donald Maass is a New York literary agent who seems to spend as much time promoting himself as he does his clients. Maass also does workshops on novel writing throughout the country, and this book, a companion publication for the more-in-depth WRITING THE BREAKOUT NOVEL, incorporates some of the exercises he assigns during those workshops.

I have read dozens of writing books over the years; just about always I glean some valuable nuggets from each of them. Maass's workbook is no different. For instance, he suggests that the beginning novelist put off back story as long as possible to add tension and suspense. Maass stresses THERE CAN'T BE TOO MUCH TENSION in a novel. He suggests the writer add tension on every page!

Another segment I found useful was his section on plot development. He recommends using layers and subplots to add texture and believability to your work. Subplots are plot lines given to characters other than the protagonist; layers are additonal plot lines given to the main character. He uses Mystic River as an example. Sean Devine is a homicide cop who must investigate the murder of his boyhood friend Jimmy Marcus's daughter; his wife has also left him, taking their baby daughter with her; he also flashes back to the day when the principal suspect, Dave Boyle, was kidnapped by child molesters while he and Jimmy stood by and watched.

Maass reinforces his advice by furnishing a sample outline in an appendix. He insists that every novelist, whether he uses an outline in actual practice or not, must provide one for a possible agent or film producer eventually anyway, so he might as well learn how to do one.

Beginning writers should understand that writers never quit learning and that they should continually practice their craft. Baseball players and piano players practice continually, why not novelists? WRITING THE BREAKOUT NOVEL WORKBOOK will help you practice and head off possible mistakes.

Rating:
Summary: An Eyeopener for Advanced Students of Fiction Technique
Review: What does an aspiring novelist do when they've read just about all the how-to books out there? This has become my own dilemma, since I've read over 30 of the best fiction writing books (often twice) and am still looking for new insights and pearls of wisdom. It's not a bad idea to read the basics of fiction writing multiple times, since repetition is the surest way to permanently absorb and remember all the many details one must know to succeed in the novel writing market. This is why I heartily recommend Maass' new workbook IF YOU HAVE MASTERED THE BASICS AND ARE READY TO TACKLE THE ADVANCED ASPECTS OF NOVEL TECHNIQUE. Reading his previous book, "Writing the Breakout Novel" is imperative, and having read it twice is even better preparation. By expounding on his previous book's instructions and providing over 500 individual tasks to aid in improving and refining what you've already written, Maass has written a workbook that should make a big difference to anyone willing to spend the time and energy required to write a truly great story. This book is not for beginners, and it's not for sissies, but if you are thoroughly committed to succeeding and have already written a substantial part of your manuscript, it can give you the help you need to put you over the top. Bookstores are full of mediocre novels that somehow got published. Donald Maass has set a new standard for excellence. If you're serious, get "Writing the Breakout Novel" and "The Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook," and go for it!