Category: James Scott Bell

April 4, 2011 / James Scott Bell / No Comments »

If you’re a writer or screenwriter. . .

. . .or if you know someone who is, you will want to make note of a great seminar coming up the first weekend in June in Los Angeles. It’s the Novel and Screenwriting Intensive, taught by writer and teacher extraordinaire, James Scott Bell. Jim is a gifted writer and writer’s mentor- and a good friend. And I can’t wait to go.

The thing about writing is, you never stop learning how to pull it off better. There’s a lot to putting a great story down on paper. And I am finding that the more times I do it, the harder it gets, not easier. Each time I write a book, I set the bar higher for the next one and yet I still start at the same place when I begin it. A blank screen and whole lot of nothin’.  A daunting place to start from, actually.  Plus, the market for stories is always in a state of flux. While I am writing I have to be aware that I am not just telling a story, I am telling a story that needs to sell so that I can write the next one! There is an art to writing a story (or screenplay) that is irresistible.  My friend Jim is going to share his paintbrushes and tell us how it’s done.  


Here are just a few things Jim says (right from the website, folks) we will learn:

• The single most important secret to selling your work to Hollywood or big publishers. 
• The one plot element most writers miss, dooming their chances of selling. (Note: this applies to every genre, from comedy to tragedy and everything in between).
• How a misunderstanding of “character arc” might actually be hurting your story . . . and what you can do about it.
• Why “inciting incident” is confusing, and the more powerful concept that replaces it.
• An actual process for mining irresistible stories out of your writer’s mind.
• Why dialogue is the fastest way to improve your story instantly, and specific tools to take yours to the highest level of conflict and tension.

Writing seminars are wonderful investments into your writer’s toolbox, especially when you consider they are far more intimate than conferences. The experience is much more individualized. Even after writing a dozen novels, I can’t wait to be refreshed and re-energized to write the next one.


Check it out here: http://novelandscreenplayintensive.wordpress.com/the-seminar/
Hope to see you there. . .

December 11, 2009 / James Scott Bell / 2 Comments »

Wrap it up

If you are looking for the perfect gift for the novelist in your life, have I got an idea for you. Get a copy of James Scott Bell’s newest, The Art of War for Writers. I’ve read a boatload of writing books over the years, and I’ve got the bursting bookshelves in my writing corner to prove that I keep buying them and reading them. This one will sit next to my all time favorites, the ones I loan out the least because I need them near by.

Jim has taken the classic Art of War by the legendary strategist Sun Tzu and transformed the premise of how to win every challenge on the battlefield to how to win them at the writing table. And he deftly comminicates what every writer simply must hear: The exhausting struggle to write well is not just a lofty challenge only the Bravehearts and Hannibals of the world can conquer. I kept thinking as I read, “Hey! I can do that!” His presentation is cleverly concise, offering brilliant technique-building exercises that somehow don’t feel like exercise. I hate mindless exercise. This is not that. I own a lot of writing books that tell me: “This is how to write a great novel. It’s impossibly hard. Good luck.” This little gem says: “This is how to write a great novel. It’s hard, but not impossible. Here are your weapons. You can do it. See you on the other side!”

If I didn’t already own it, and someone asked me what I wanted for Christmas, I’d say I wanted this book. And it ain’t just because red’s my favorite color.

Have a lovely weekend. See you on Monday . . .