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How to Write Best-Selling Fiction

Season 1
Get a comprehensive, eye-opening, and illuminating survey of the entire writing process, as well as a full breakdown of how dozens of best-selling authors have implemented best practices in their own writing. As an aspiring author, you will gain a wealth of tools that will not only improve your ability to write, but will also increase your enjoyment of the craft.
201924 episodesTV-PG
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Episodes

  1. S1 E1 - Tell Me a Story
    March 28, 2019
    31min
    TV-PG
    Mr. Bell introduces you to the seven critical success factors of fiction and shows you how best-selling writers put them into practice. He explores literary genres through the success of bestsellers written by authors such as Harper Lee and Gillian Flynn. He then outlines the 10 characteristics a serious writer must possess.
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  2. S1 E2 - Anatomy of a Best Seller
    March 28, 2019
    28min
    TV-PG
    Looking at examples from writers including John Grisham, Michael Connelly, George Pelecanos, J. D. Salinger, Suzanne Collins, Thomas Harris, and more, Mr. Bell analyzes first what makes a novel, and then, what makes a novel successful. He also provides his own insights by exploring the role luck plays in creating a bestseller.
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  3. S1 E3 - Developing Ideas
    March 28, 2019
    30min
    TV-PG
    Jump-start your creativity with a selection of fun exercises, including “What-If Moments” and “The First-Line Game.” Mr. Bell cites best-selling authors such as Alice Sebold and Mickey Spillane to demonstrate the importance of creating unique elements: a twist, a character, a setting, a relationship. Find out how to create the ever-important elevator pitch.
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  4. S1 E4 - The LOCK System: A Foundation for Your Novel
    March 28, 2019
    31min
    TV-PG
    Using a proprietary system of his own invention, Mr. Bell introduces you to the foundational principles of a successful novel: LOCK (Lead, Objective, Confrontation, Knockout). He demonstrates how famous authors such as Stephen King, David Baldacci, and others utilize these fundamental elements. Plus, review the five types of endings and discover the pros and cons of each.
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  5. S1 E5 - Structuring Your Novel
    March 28, 2019
    31min
    TV-PG
    Dive into the writing styles of “pantsers” versus “plotters” and get a better understanding of whether you want to aim for a plot-driven or a character-driven story. And using the writings of John Grisham, Ernest Hemingway, Lee Child, and others, evaluate the traditional mythical structure of a three-act story.
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  6. S1 E6 - Act I: The Disturbance
    March 28, 2019
    33min
    TV-PG
    See how James M. Cain, Harlan Coben, Anne Lamott, Ken Follett, James Clavell, and Dean Koontz often use a jolt or disturbance to hook a reader in, and how that often contributes to the book becoming a bestseller. Look at other elements you'll need to include in the first act that will build up the character bonding and tension, which will keep readers riveted.
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  7. S1 E7 - Act II: The Arena of Conflict
    March 28, 2019
    30min
    TV-PG
    An “arena of conflict" is where your lead realizes he or she needs to overcome a challenge. Mr. Bell introduces you to the concept of a “mirror moment” and provides examples of authors who have demonstrated this technique, such as Margaret Mitchell, Suzanne Collins, Mario Puzo, Harper Lee, Thomas Harris, and Dashiell Hammett.
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  8. S1 E8 - Act III and Resolution
    March 28, 2019
    31min
    TV-PG
    Mickey Spillane noted, “The first chapter sells the book. The last chapter sells the next book.” Mr. Bell has already provided the tools to get your reader hooked with the first chapter, and potentially the first line! Now, he provides the five strategies that will help you end your book in a way that gets your reader craving your next title.
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  9. S1 E9 - Jump-off-the-Page Characters
    March 28, 2019
    33min
    TV-PG
    Learn how to use unpredictability so your readers don’t get bored with cliche characters or trite traits, and see how to develop flaws and baggage to make your characters relatable and human. Plus, get hints about building secondary characters, villains, and what it takes to keep a character interesting through an ongoing series.
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  10. S1 E10 - Bringing Characters to Life
    March 28, 2019
    31min
    TV-PG
    Mr. Bell reveals two ways to bring your characters to life, along with a myriad of techniques you can put into practice, including a timeline, a voice journal, a simple relationship grid, and the areas you should plan to research. Plus, learn how minor details such as patterns of speech, dress, physical appearance, mannerisms, tics, eccentricities, and even names can have a major impact.
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  11. S1 E11 - Point of View
    March 28, 2019
    30min
    TV-PG
    Dive into the concepts of point of view including: first-person, omniscient, second-person, and third-person (limited and open). Then study how Henry Fielding, Charles Dickens, Mario Puzo, James Clavell, J. D. Salinger, Raymond Chandler, F. Scott Fitzgerald, John D. MacDonald, Suzanne Collins, Dean Koontz, James Patterson, Herman Melville, and others use point of view successfully.
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  12. S1 E12 - The Essentials of Dazzling Dialogue
    March 28, 2019
    31min
    TV-PG
    Mr. Bell introduces the five functions of dialogue and breaks down the importance of vocabulary, syntax, and specifics like regionalism to help build the character. Examine examples from Margaret Mitchell, John Howard Lawson, Charles Webb, and others. Explore the importance of subtext, or what is underneath the words, and how it can suggest secrets, fears, memories, yearnings, or hopes.
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  13. S1 E13 - Tools for Talk
    March 28, 2019
    33min
    TV-PG
    Mr. Bell challenges you with exercises like determining the opposite of what a reader would assume a response should be, curving the language, and assigning “roles” to your characters to better form relationships, conflict, and realistic conversations. Also, gain tips for invoking silence, such as white space and inner monologues, and dive into the nuts and bolts of grammar in dialogue.
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  14. S1 E14 - Voice and Style
    March 28, 2019
    34min
    TV-PG
    Through examples from Janet Evanovich, Elmore Leonard, Douglas Adams, Tom Robbins, Dashiell Hammett, John D. MacDonald, Raymond Chandler, and others, gain the knowledge to master your voice by getting into your character. Then, delve into the rudimentary lessons of a good writer: showing versus telling, avoiding narrative summaries, writing great descriptions, and using telling details.
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  15. S1 E15 - Make a Scene
    March 28, 2019
    32min
    TV-PG
    See how Stephen King, Dean Koontz, and Michael Connelly use an emotional beat (emotion, analysis, and decision) to build conflict and tension in a scene and keep it going. Dissect the elements to create and use a successful hook and how to end each chapter on a prompt that will make the reader want to keep reading.
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  16. S1 E16 - Subplots and Parallel Plots
    March 28, 2019
    31min
    TV-PG
    Understand how weaving in smaller conflicts and challenges (subplots and parallel plots) is a great way to expand a story’s range. See how authors successfully integrate subplots into their main story lines. Mr. Bell introduces a formula for determining how many subplots your book should have and a simple grid you can use to manage multiple plots.
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  17. S1 E17 - Deepening the Reader’s Emotional Experience
    March 28, 2019
    31min
    TV-PG
    Mr. Bell shows you how to map the hot spots so you don’t get bogged down writing it. He unpacks the power of authors who have mastered delivering an emotional punch, such as John Steinbeck, John Harvey, and Raymond Chandler. He also introduces an exercise that helps you create strong yet concise emotional moments, and examines the power of metaphors to deepen emotional connection.
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  18. S1 E18 - First Pages That Grab the Reader
    March 28, 2019
    31min
    TV-PG
    Mr. Bell introduces you to the different kinds of beginnings and investigates the benefits of using a prologue. With examples from Mary Higgins Clark, Harlan Coben, Ken Kesey, John Gilstrap, Mickey Spillane, David Morrell, and others, you’ll learn how to start your scenes with a bang, raise big questions, and then switch things up in the next scene so readers are on the edge of their seats.
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  19. S1 E19 - Revising Your Novel
    March 28, 2019
    32min
    TV-PG
    Get helpful tips for a revision schedule, learn why you need to take a cool-off period before taking a first pass, gain tricks for helping you re-read with fresh eyes, and use shortcuts for marking places you need to come back to so you can read straight through. Mr. Bell also provides excellent advice about using outside readers, both professionals and “beta readers."
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  20. S1 E20 - Blunders and Baloney
    March 28, 2019
    34min
    TV-PG
    Mr. Bell provides an overview of the most common blunders that could knock you out of the running for publication before you even get started, including awkward flashbacks and fluffy dialogue. Using examples from best-selling writers including Sarah Pekkanen, Mark Twain, and Toni Morrison, he re-evaluates some of the most common writing advice, busting common misconceptions and myths.
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  21. S1 E21 - Getting Published
    March 28, 2019
    33min
    TV-PG
    Mr. Bell unpacks the most important parts of a book proposal that you would send to an agent or a publisher (query, synopsis, and sample chapters) by defining each and breaking down what you should and shouldn’t do. He also gives invaluable advice on what to look for in an agent, how to negotiate a contract, the importance of copyrights, and the most important component: getting paid.
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  22. S1 E22 - The Self-Publishing Option
    March 28, 2019
    33min
    TV-PG
    Is self-publishing a viable option? Mr. Bell spends an entire lesson breaking down the pros and cons of the self-publishing alternative. Gain a plethora of tips of how to find success when self-publishing and learn how to sort through the details like covers, formatting, picking a platform, marketing, and how to price your book.
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  23. S1 E23 - Marketing Your Work
    March 28, 2019
    32min
    TV-PG
    Even if you have an agent, you're still responsible for some aspects of marketing. Mr. Bell introduces you to the most important marketing tools. Get tips on selecting a marketable title, creating taglines, finding customers, using social media, building a website, using emails and newsletters, and knowing which self-publishing tools are worth the investment.
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  24. S1 E24 - Conquering the Mental Game of Writing
    March 28, 2019
    35min
    TV-PG
    Look at the most common reasons for writer's block and get tips for how to change your mental state when you feel blocked. Discover how to find inspiration in unusual places. Finally, Mr. Bell provides advice for dealing with rejection, which all writers face on occasion. Learn how to set your expectations and rejection won’t defeat you.
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Extras

Bonus

How to Write Best-Selling Fiction
How to Write Best-Selling Fiction
2minTV-PG
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Subtitles
None available
Producers
The Great Courses
Cast
James Scott Bell
Studio
The Great Courses
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