Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting by Robert McKee is a little older, but it was recommended by Jane Friedman, a publishing professional for whom I have a great deal of respect. I am SO GLAD I read the book. It is insightful about what makes a story work, helpful in explainingContinue reading “Craft Book Review: Story by Robert McKee”
Category Archives: Book Reviews
Book Review: Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka
WARNING: there are spoilers…and there is a Howler 🙁 This book is classified as literary suspense for those of you keeping score. It is Kukafka’s second novel and now I will probably have to go read the first one. (!) The question she is asking here is all about power. Why do we insist onContinue reading “Book Review: Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka”
Throwback Thursday: The Anomaly
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Book Review: The Bangalore Detective Club by Harini Nagendra
I had the privilege of interviewing Harini for the Read Like a Writer Podcast recently and her interview will be available to listeners in March, in anticipation of her new book, the second in the Bangalore Detective Club series. I listened to her debut novel on Audible and found it great fun. It is aContinue reading “Book Review: The Bangalore Detective Club by Harini Nagendra”
Book Review: Trust by Hernan Diaz
This book is fantastic. It is historical fiction that is also literary and it contains so much fodder for great discussions. I hope you and some friends will read it and discuss it. It will be featured in an upcoming episode of the Read Like a Writer Book Club podcast, so stay tuned! The structureContinue reading “Book Review: Trust by Hernan Diaz”
Mystery and Thriller Round up for 2022
It is time for year end lists! Here’s my list of favorite mysteries and thrillers I read in 2022. NOTE—I read these in 2022, some of them were published earlier… Each of these are a great mini-masterclass for mystery writers, too. Each does a wonderful job of keeping the reader curious, building suspense, but withoutContinue reading “Mystery and Thriller Round up for 2022”
Book Review: Brontë’s Mistress by Finola Austin
Brontë’s Mistress is an exploration of what happens when women are socialized to be decorative and seem to have no other purpose. Our anti-heroine, Lydia Robinson, is the woman who became Branwell Brontë’s mistress during the 1840s. Some readers may find her unlikable, spoiled, whiny, even extremely self-centered. As an anti-heroine, these qualities are notContinue reading “Book Review: Brontë’s Mistress by Finola Austin”
Book Review: The Fell by Sarah Moss
NOTE to writers: this book breaks a lot of the “rules” you’ve been told in good faith to follow. Please realize this is not her first novel, so she has more freedom to experiment. It’s okay to break the rules sometimes, if you can do it well, which she does. 🙂 This book is aboutContinue reading “Book Review: The Fell by Sarah Moss”
The Readerly NaNoPlanMo Virtual Retreat is Coming!
Do you struggle with finding time to write, because you have a busy schedule and no trust fund? Do you start writing a new novel because you have this fabulous idea, but then run out of gas about 30 pages in? Do you have a draft that needs revision, but you aren’t sure where toContinue reading “The Readerly NaNoPlanMo Virtual Retreat is Coming!”
Read Like a Writer Book Club Recap
We had a great July meeting and discussed Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty. If you missed it and would like to see the notes, click below. One thing that came up in the meeting was that we would all like to see a Story Grid/Bookmap analysis of this novel. I am not promising anything,Continue reading “Read Like a Writer Book Club Recap”