Novelist's Essential Guide to Crafting Scenes

Book excerpt: Writing page-turning fiction depends on your ability to create rock-solid, believable scenes. Scenes act as dynamic structures that thrust both your characters and readers forward through conflict, baiting them with goals that may–&break;In Novelist's Essential Guide to Crafting Scenes, Raymond Obstfeld leads you through the creation process, examining all the elements that go into making scenes successful, cohesive and compelling. Tackling topics like finding a scene's "hot spot," identifying its dominating purpose and avoiding a cliched ending, Obstfeld provides essential reading for novice and novelist alike. Using examples from film, short stories, and best-selling fiction, he documents why and how scenes work. You'll learn: &break;&break; what is (and isn't) a scene&break; how to make scenes memorable&break; how to use point of view&break; how to focus on character, plot and theme&break; how to make scenes pay off&break; how to structure a scene&break; how to use setting&break; how to revise a scene&break; the importance of first impressions &break;&break;Every page of Novelist's Essential Guide to Crafting Scenes opens a new window of opportunity for writers by offering valuable insight, articulate advice and expert examples. It's a reference, a road map and a romp, all rolled into one. So go on–make a scene. And make it unforgettable.