Now’s your chance

It’s here. I finally figured out how to:

• Hold the Novel Writers Academy courses
• Give you one-on-one guidance (not canned videos)
• And still accommodate my writing schedule and commitments

The course that’s open for applications is called Create Story Ideas That Beg to Be Written. It’s purpose is to transform you into a story idea machine.

And you can be there in six weeks. Before the end of the year.

I will be working with only a small set of people. I can’t accommodate more and give you the one-on-one feedback you need. And so you need to apply to get in.

The deadline for applications is midnight, October 27^th. So contact me now to get the application instructions.

A cracking good story idea requires five critical elements. Until you have all five, you’ll struggle to plot. You’ll write a few scenes and run out of gas. You’ll feel like the story just isn’t going anywhere. And that’s because it isn’t. It can’t. A story isn’t a story without all five elements.

However, once you develop these five things, your story will suddenly roar to life. There are a few other elements that are important as well, but these five things form the core of the story setup. 

In this course you’re not going to merely learn about all of those story elements. You’re going to go deep and learn what can only be learned by actually doing the work and developing story idea after story idea with personal one-on-one feedback from someone who knows what they’re doing.   

When you finish, you won’t just know story theory. You will be a story idea machine. And you will be that because you have put in the work. The right work.  

Again, this is not a course full of lectures and videos. This is a course where you’re going to work. And develop the insights and skills that only come from doing the work.

You’re actually going to:

• Come up with story setup after story setup after story setup
• And improve them with one-on-one feedback. 

It’s going to:

• Eliminate years of you wandering about in the story wilderness trying to figure things out on your own. 
• Put you miles ahead of other writers who have no idea what’s really at the core of story. 

You are going to learn how to develop killer story ideas on purpose instead of on accident. Which means you’ll be able to do again and again. Reliably. Like clockwork. 

Course details

Here are the details. 

• 6-week course 
• Starts: November 2
• Ends: December 19
• One week off right in the middle for the US Thanksgiving holiday 

The focus of the class is not on learning about story, although you will do that. The majority of your time will be spent on developing stories. 

You can’t become a carpenter by watching videos and reading books about it. You have to get out on the work site, cut wood, and pound nails. You have to make the mistakes all beginning carpenters make, get feedback, and improve. The same goes for writing. And you’re going to work in this class. You develop 21 story setups. In fact, you develop more because the 21 are just the ones you turn into me. And with each one your skills, insights, and abilities grow.  

In the beginning, your setups will be bare bones. By the end, they’ll be fully developed setups that beg to be written. Setups you can use to immediately write the first draft  of your novel, whether that’s in outline or chapter form. 

Here’s what you do each week. 

Week 1. November 2-7

• Uncover the secrets of what’s really at the heart of story and how to generate ideas. 
• Define your genre requirements
• Create story setups 1-3

Week 2. November 9-14

• Uncover the secrets to compelling characters 
• Create character sketches
• Create story setups 4-7 

Week 3. November 16-21

• Uncover the secrets to formidable obstacles
• Create story setups 8-11 

Week 4. November 30-December 5

• Uncover the secrets to interesting casts
• Create story setups 12-15

Week 5. December 7-12

• Uncover the secrets to managing multiple storylines and series
• Create story setups 16-19 

Week 6. December 14-19

• Create story setups 20-21. These are your capstone projects where you apply everything you’ve learned and take it to the next level

As you can see, in this class you develop story idea after story idea after story idea. I didn’t detail it above, but each week you will also be lifting the hood on your favorite stories and actually seeing how they work. Story after story after story. In this class, you are marinated in the work of developing characters, THOMs, goals, obstacles, settings, casts, and more. And because of that, each week will not only bring an explosion of insights, but new skills and abilities.

Every week you get two private, one-on-one, live sessions with me where you get encouragement and feedback on what you’ve developed. And then we’ll work as a group, applying the principles and brainstorming even MORE ideas for each other’s stories. 

At first you might feel a bit shy and worried about your ideas and abilities. But you’ll soon get over that. By the end of the course you’ll be one of those people that can generate terrific ideas easily. And you’ll be able to do that because you will have put in the work to become a different writer.  

Apply now!

The normal cost of the course is $899. But because this is the first time I’ll be running through it, and we’re likely to run into a few kinks that need to be worked out, I’ve dropped the price to $599. I personally guarantee my course. You’ll be totally oh-my-gosh-I’m-so-happy-I-took-that-class satisfied, or I’ll give you your money back. No questions asked.

Now’s your chance to stop spinning your wheels. I can’t tell you how much I wish I’d had something like this when I’d started:

• The secrets about the true core of story.
• The secrets about how to come up with ideas. 
• Actual work with personal one-on-one feedback. 
• Laser focused on what actually matters, not a bunch of ridiculous writing rules. 

When you finish, you will be a story idea machine. 
 
You won’t know plotting. That’s a different course and set of skills. You won’t know how to write chapters. But you’ll know how to create the engine that powers all the rest of that. You’ll know how to create the core that makes awesome plots and chapters possible. 

If you want to take this course, click the button below and contact me. I will tell you exactly how to apply.

I’m not going to be able to accept everyone who wants to take the class. I have a very strict limit on the number of students I can work with. So you need to get your application in before the deadline of midnight, October 27^th.

Don’t wait!