If you want to break into the Young Adult or adult genre market, your novel has to be compelling from the opening lines. Many first time writers start their manuscripts with passive scene setting, unprompted backstory, or meandering dialogue. Today’s readers demand more.
In this talk, author and writing coach Eric Elfman will guide you through examples from the masters of YA and adult genre fiction (mystery, thriller, romance, etc.), to explore how they successfully grab their readers by their opening page.
Eric will then ask for volunteers to read their opening paragraphs for discussion and analysis of strengths and weaknesses.
In this lesson, we will note the need for:
• An active, relatable protagonist
• the Active (vs. the Passive) voice
• Raising the Stakes
• Conflict
$10 at the door for Non WORK Members – help us keep the lights on and keep great programs coming your way! WORK Members FREE including Friends of WORK!(a special membership level for you regular attendees)
Noon-1 PM in the WORK Library. Feel free to bring a bag lunch.
Bio: Eric Elfman is the award-winning author of fourteen books for kids and adults. His most recent, Tesla’s Attic, Edison’s Alley and Hawking’s Hallway (all co-written with Neal Shusterman), are the three novels of the Accelerati Trilogy, a Middle Grade series from Disney-Hyperion Books. Eric and Neal are now developing a TV series based on Tesla’s Attic for DisneyXD. As a screenwriter, Eric has sold projects to Dreamworks, Universal, and Walden Media. Also a private writing coach, Eric has a number of award-winning and New York Times bestselling authors among his clients.