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Creative Writing Teacher, Novel Writing Teacher, Published Novelist

Kim Purcell MFA

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In this 14-week flex (asynchronous) class, I help students finish a chapter book, novel, or novella, developing their writing skills and building their creative confidence to help them achieve a huge life goal at a young age. 

You will learn how to write an exciting novel or chapter book using examples from books you love. When you're done your story, you can design your book cover, order your book separately, and get a hardcover book in the mail!

Today, you'll learn everything you need to do when writing a chapter book. I will answer any of your common questions and explain how you can finish a book in twelve weeks. 

BRAINSTORMING WEEK:  
Welcome to the Chapter Book Class

Introduction and Brainstorming Your Book

In case you are looking for videos all in one place or the uploaded videos don't work for some reason, here are all of the links on YouTube for these same lessons. 

ALL VIDEOS FOR THIS CLASS IN ONE PLACE

You will come up with a solid story idea today, one that will be exciting to write. 

Brainstorming Your Story Idea

You will decide on a main character and brainstorm the other key characters, figuring out their details. 

Brainstorming Your Characters

You'll brainstorm your story's world and the settings for your scenes. You'll learn how to describe the settings from the main character's perspective. How do they see this world? 

Brainstorming Your Story's World

I will give you an easy way to plot your book and also a more advanced way. 

Plotting Your Book

Let's avoid making the same mistakes throughout your whole book. In this lesson, you'll learn how to set up your document and you'll learn the common mistakes kids (and adults) make when they write their books. 

Basic Grammar and Punctuation Rules 

Today, we'll look at the basic elements you need for this week: writing chapter one and possibly the prologue, but you may not need a prologue. 

CHAPTER ONE 

The First Quarter of Your Book:
The Set-Up and The Big Shock

What should you choose - first person, second person, or third person point of view? 

POV - Point of View

This is one of the most important elements of fiction writing. It's how you show who the character is and how you make the reader care about what happens. 

Perspective, Thought, Opinions, Voice

We'll look at the five key things you need in every chapter: setting description, a character's personality, a way to make the reader curious, the character's goal, and an obstacle or problem.

The Most Important Elements of Every Chapter

The most important thing to do in the beginning is make us love your main character. Show readers their kindness, humor, and heroism. I'll give you ideas for how to do this. 



Make Us Love Your Character

What are the basic things you need to consider so that your dialogue is not boring?

Dialogue: What Do Characters Talk About?

This is the next big moment after the set-up of your characters and story - now you make a shocking thing happen. It's the reason for your story. It's the big change in the character's life that causes the rest of the story. Learn how to write this key chapter!

CHAPTER TWO

This is a key skill for all descriptions in your book, and you need it on every page. 

Using All of the Senses

Are they afraid of the monster in the closet? Learn how to how to show how the character sees the world, what they want and their opinions and reactions to what is happening in this key scene. 

Thoughts, Opinions, Desire, Reactions

Describe characters fully from the point of view of your main character. What clothing do they wear? What is your main character’s opinion of them? 

Character Descriptions

Every person responds differently to shocking events, as does your character and everyone they know. Look at examples in your favorite books and then do it in your own. 

Reaction to a Shock

Brainstorm a chapter in which your character pursues their goal with allies. 

CHAPTER THREE

From the moment the big event happens, your hero has a new desire and there are stakes or consequences if they don’t get what they want. What could happen to your poor main character?

What Do They Want? What Are The Stakes?

If you're ever stuck, go to this list. Do each step and soon you'll be done. 

Eight Steps for Writing a Chapter

Think about light and how it can reflect the mood, just like in a movie. We need to know if it’s day or night and how the characters can see.

Descriptions of Light

If you want an exciting book with lots of tension and excitement, you need a big obstacle or problem in every chapter. But not a hundred obstacles! Learn how to build one big problem up. 

Obstacles, Problems, Cliffhangers

Brainstorm Chapter Four! They will face difficulties and obstacles in achieving their goal, and meet the antagonist if they haven’t met them yet. How will the antagonist challenge them? What other possible obstacles could they encounter? How can you show their thoughts about these challenges?


CHAPTER FOUR

The Second Quarter of Your Book: 
Pursuing the Goal

When odd things happen, the reader gets curious! What strange things do the characters do?


Weirdness and Complications

One of the best ways to hook the reader is to plant questions in their mind. Something strange happens and the character wonders about it…then the reader wonders too. What will the reader be wondering? 


Scene Questions

Nouns are the objects, people, animals, and places in a sentence. Learn how to write using specific nouns and lists.

Specific Nouns

Here are more tips for strong dialogue. Show your characters developing through their dialogue and advance the plot through revealing information in the dialogue. 


Dialogue: Plot and Character

This will start out as a happy, hopeful scene with a cliffhanger, leading into the twist or disaster of Chapter Six. What wonderful thing could happen right before the twist or turn?

CHAPTER FIVE

In the middle of the book, you’ll have a happy scene followed by a shocking reveal or a disaster.
Opposites are really powerful throughout the book. Here, you'll see examples from Harry Potter about how to create opposite scenes.


Opposite Scenes

Describe objects, characters and actions using unusual metaphors and similes, ones you’ve never seen before. Look at The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate for some wonderful examples. 


Unusual Metaphors and Similes

You’ve probably heard “show, don’t tell.” One way to do this is by showing the body language of your characters. Here, I show you the scientific research behind body language and  examples in many kids' books. 


Body Language: Are they comfortable or NOT?


One of the most common mistakes writers make is they start many of their sentences with “I” in the first person or with the name or he/she in the third person. Learn how to avoid this problem. 


Avoid a Common Mistake:
Change the Beginnings of Your Sentences

Yay! You are halfway! You’re at the midpoint, which is another before-and-after moment: a twist, a betrayal, a fire, a natural disaster, a serious injury, a mysterious magic, or a new setting. What will be the twist?



CHAPTER SIX

In the middle of a story, there is a shock or twist. Something we didn’t expect happens. It’s usually not a good surprise. 

The Importance of the Shock or Twist

Foreshadowing indicates that something bad will happen. What will happen in your book? 


Foreshadowing



In every scene, there are characters who have more power or confidence and characters who have less. How can you show this? 


Showing Power

What is the difference between external and internal conflict and how can you show both in your storytelling?

External and Internal Conflict

In response to the shocking twist or turn at the midpoint, the character will make a new plan, and maybe have a new goal. What bad plan could your character make? What obstacle will they meet?


CHAPTER SEVEN

Writing the Third Quarter or Act of Your Book:
Failures and Disasters

You will brainstorm the characters' flaws, fears, failures and flashbacks in order to figure out what challenges they might face. You will also think of what could be funny to provide some balance. 

Five Fs: Flashback, Flaw, Fear, Failure, Funny 

After the twist, your character will make a bad plan or mistake and this will lead to more failures. Learn how to head down the failure path with your characters. 

Bad Plans and Mistakes

At this point in your story, the antagonist becomes a bigger threat and this challenges your character to grow. Let's look at ways your antagonist can cause problems. 


The Antagonist Threatens

Internal conflict happens when a character struggles with worries, fear, or insecurities. What are your charcters' worries, fear, or insecurities and how will you show this?

Internal Conflict and Character Development

Things get worse for your hero and their allies. What bigger obstacle could they face? What will be their failure? 
What mistakes will they make?



CHAPTER EIGHT

Dilemmas are when a character has two hard choices. What hard dilemma can your character face?


Dilemmas and Hard Choices

Colors are important because our world has colors and the colors you choose can reflect the mood. Start your chapter with description and include colors in that description. Examples from Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper and Charlotte's Web by E.B. White. 

Using Colors for Mood

Look at what and who they love. Learn how to show this love and then get the reader worried about them. 

Putting Love on the Line

What is your character’s biggest fear? What is their biggest need? How can the fear and the need cause problems?

Fear and Needs

You've reached the all-is-lost moment at the end of third quarter of your book. Your character will feel like they’ve lost everything. They could be trapped, hungry, desperate, alone. What is a terrible thing that could stop your character? Who will help them at their lowest point?

CHAPTER NINE

Think of every way to challenge your character in this chapter so that they grow enough to meet the big challenge of the book and get what they really want. 


The All is Lost Chapter

In the all-is-lost moment, your character is not only sad or terrified, but they are also thirsty or hungry or they have a broken arm or they’re stuck under a house with spiders crawling on them. What is a physical challenge for your character?


A Physical Challenge

Your hero is at their low point now. How can your descriptions match their emotions?


Descriptions & Emotions

How can you use reveals to make things worse?


Reveals

Your character will rise up, ready to get what they want. What will be the final challenge of the climax?


CHAPTER TEN

The Fourth Quarter or Act of Your Book: 
Your Ending and the Climax

This week, your character will recover from their sadness or all-is-lost moment and prepare for the climax, gathering allies and supplies and forming a good plan. Brainstorm how they'll do this. 


Recovery and Preparation

Verbs are the action words in a sentence. Learn how to make your book more exciting with stronger action words. Examples from Percy Jackson by Rick Riordan. 

Use Powerful Verbs


Remember to show all the characters growing and changing as you write. In this lesson, you'll learn how to show the changes.

Character Arcs

A very long sentence can be an effective way to show emotions. See examples in The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman. 

Power of a Long Sentence

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Think of an exciting setting for the climax and ending. Then, answer the questions to brainstorm this key scene. 


Planning The Climax 

Learn how to show us what the character feels with their hands, feet, and the rest of their body. This is an action scene: give us their physical experience. Examples from Lord of the Flies by William Golding. 


Sense of Touch
 

Aim for shorter sentences and sentence fragments for an action scene. See examples and learn how to do this in your own writing. 


Short Sentences and Fragments

In your climax, you’ll likely have a crowd or action scene. Remember to write from the character’s body and show their perspective. 


Crowd and Action Scenes

CHAPTER TWELVE

Everyone reacts differently to big events. Show all of the reactions. Also, consider whether there is a downside to the climax's result. 


The Reaction to the Climax and the Downside

Repeating a word or phrase within a sentence can create a powerful effect.  See examples in books like A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle.


Repetition for Emotions

The ending is your chance to show how all the characters will react to what just happened, especially your main character. What are their thoughts? How do they feel? What do they do now? How do they see the world differently? 


Emotions and Description in the Ending

Your hero’s growth is the key element that makes a story satisfying in the end. Show their thoughts. How has their thinking changed? How do they see their world differently? How do their actions reflect that change? 


Character Growth

How can you make your book better? You will be thinking about the story and characters. We'll be focusing on chapter beginnings and endings. 

EDITING

Editing and Publishing Your Book

Now, you’re at the next step of editing your book. You’re improving individual lines, adding details, and checking to ensure it flows. Follow the steps to strengthen individual sentences. 


Punctuation and Line Editing

Here are ten easy steps to format your book on Google Docs so that it’s ready to be printed or published. 


Formatting

Should you print or publish your book, and what is the difference? I suggest all of my students print it first on Lulu.com and then decide if they want to publish it. 

Printing Your Book

How can you publish your book on Amazon.com?

Publishing Your Book on Amazon.com

In this lesson, I answer any common final questions.

Congratulations! What's Next?

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