How to write better books by John Westermann
 | Write a story as if you are telling it to someone you love to entertain. |
| Outline if you can (Writing is architecture). |
| Put as much of the good stuff as you can upfront (Pack your beginning with enough tension and suspense). |
| Edit ruthlessly. |
| When you work from real life, adjust those vividly remembered scenes to the demands of the story's structure. |
| Choose mere mortals as characters. |
| Build worthy opponents for your heroes, not straw men. |
| Try to see every scene from the viewpoint of each character in it. |
| Practice empathy. Even sympathy. If the people don't feel real, the story sounds like a lie. |
| State your most outlandish positions boldly. Like a politician, allow no equivocation to invite reader disbelief. |
| Skip gracefully past what you don't know (or do the research). |
| Consider the tone of the writing (Is it appropriate to your plot and characters?). |
| Consider the pace of the story. Spend words where they are needed. Slow down for the dramatic; whisk us through the mundane. |
| Make your dialogue sound like real people speak. |
| Make your ending better than your beginning. Make your middle better than both. |
