How To Write Great Scenes That Keep Readers Engaged \\ Writing Great Scenes, Video 1
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- čas přidán 19. 06. 2024
- I am so excited to finally bring you a full 5-part series on Writing Great Scenes!
In the writing world, we talk a lot about plot and overall story structure, but I think where a lot of writers get stuck is in the process of figuring out how to write scenes. In this video series, we’re going to go over the 5 components of great scenes, 6 questions to ask when thinking about your character’s role in every scene, how to pack scenes with conflict that keeps readers turning pages, and more! I can’t wait!
To grab your free “How To Write Great Scenes” Workbook, sign up for my mailing list on this blog post: heartbreathings.com/how-to-wr...
You’ll get instant access to my entire HB Resource Library!
✰✰✰My Favorite Craft Books That Helped Me Learn To Write Great Scenes✰✰✰
"Plot and Structure" by James Scott Bell: amzn.to/3nYuTX2
"Scene And Structure" by Jack M. Bickham: amzn.to/3Iz9L3a
"Story Genius" by Lisa Cron: amzn.to/3Pmni0J
"The Anatomy of Story" by John Truby: amzn.to/3z61Ze5
"Structuring Your Novel" by K.M. Weiland: amzn.to/3AOfPTr
Feel free to please add your favorite resources in the comments! We all learn from each other!!
Also, I’ll be speaking as part of the Authortube Writing Conference this weekend. All videos and presentations will take place here on CZcams, FREE! Replays will also be available to watch if you can’t attend live. Find all the details and playlists here:
AWC Website: www.authortubewritingconferen...
AWC Publishing Track: • Authortube Writing Con...
AWC Writing Track: • Authortube Writing Con...
AWC Feedback Form: forms.gle/wm14ZBJqyAJ17JBG8
My presentation will be on Saturday at 3PM Eastern. Hope to see you there!!!
Interested in Publish and Thrive? Find out all the details about what’s covered in the course before we open enrollment on Sunday! The price is $399 with a 6 and 12 month payment plan option available. Have other questions? Put them in the comments! heartbreathings.teachable.com...
Chapters:
00:00 Intro
00:30 Writing Great Scenes
03:54 What Is A Scene?
08:31 Character With A Goal
09:07 Clear Setting
09:57 Conflict or Obstacle
10:54 Purpose and Connection
11:54 Outcome and Change
13:02 The Series
15:30 Final Thoughts
✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰
SUBSCRIBE NOW -- / heartbreathings
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I’m truly so honored and appreciative of when you want to send me Happy Mail! It touches my heart more than I can say. Thank you all so much!
My mailing address is:
Sarra Cannon
445 E FM 1382
Suite 3 - 419
Cedar Hill, TX 75104
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BLOG -- heartbreathings.com/blog
INSTAGRAM -- / heartbreathings
FACEBOOK -- / heartbreathings
TWITTER -- / heartbblog
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Heart Breathings, Episode 348
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About Me: My name is Sarra Cannon, and I've been indie publishing since 2010. In that time, I have published 26 books and sold well over half a million copies.
I've made some mistakes along the way, but I've also learned some valuable lessons that I think will help you reach your goals. I can't wait to help you learn to make money writing what you love.
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MY BOOKS -- www.sarracannon.com
THREE FREE BOOKS -- sarracannon.com/book/beautiful...
My Author \ Vlog Channel - / sarracannon
#authortube - Jak na to + styl
A new series!!! I've been working hard on this and I hope you find it helpful! Don't forget to grab the free workbook and subscribe to my channel for the rest of the series!!
Sorry to be a bother, but I don't see the new workbook.
I figured it out. Thank you for the workbook. Great video
@@debpaynepurnell6131 glad you found it!!
I love how you "teach" this material. I read and use the books you recomend as a textbook as you teach the material and have worksheets that help to organize and learn that material better.
I wont be ready for publish and thrive this year but have it in my HB90 😉 for next.
Thank you for all the hard work you put into this curriculum and for sharing it with your community. ❤
You're so welcome. Excited to have you in the course next year!
Thank you for creating this. You are the only one who explain it clearly and precisely. Most videos try to hype it up and over complicate it to the point of confusing the watcher.
Sunday, Yay!! P&T
I floundering in the second half of act II, so this is perfect timing for me.
Conflict in every scene is the hardest part for me. Especially the setup at the start where you're establishing the status quo.
We are going to have a full video on conflict that I hope will be helpful! That will be video 3!
Will surly comeback and rewatch this a dozen times.!!
I can't even tell you how much your videos have helped my husband and myself when writing and editing ❤️ we appreciate you!
Thank you! That means a lot to me!
I recently discovered short chapters from authors like Dan Brown. Easier to read, convenient resting point for readers. I'm now converting scene breaks into chapter breaks, even splitting long scenes into multiple chapters.
I like reading and writing this way too. An 85,000 word book from me will have 50 chapters haha.
Thank you Sarra, have a wonderful day! 😊
I write non fiction and short fables. But this video is encouraging me to write a novel that I’ve been thinking about. ☺️
Hi Sarra! This is crazy! I've been watching videos, reading and taking notes since the beginning of the week on what all goes into writing really good scenes. And here you are with a whole new series on this! I searched all your Heart Breathing's videos to see if you had anything on scene writing just a few days ago. Crazy! Talk about perfect timing. Thanks so much!
Wow perfect!!
I cant wait for the rest of this series! I have always written in chapters instead of scenes so this is something very new for me and slightly scary.
You might just intuitively be breaking your chapters into scenes! It will be interesting to hear what you think after you watch!
@@HeartBreathings Normally my process would be to fill out a 30 chapter outline. After that I would take each bullet point in the chapter and turn them into their own bullet points. Pretty much making a coloring page and all I need to do is color in the lines. If that makes any sense.
Perfect timing! Currently working on an outline and this information helps a lot. Thanks for all you do!
I am so excited about this series! It couldn’t have come at a more prefect time as I am plotting my third book and starting my scene cards today! Thank you for bringing yet another valuable resource to us authors! 💚 Looking forward to the rest in the series.
Could you make a few examples?? If you plan them ahead, do you just write a short summery? One sentence? I'd love to see some examples, so I know how I should plan my scenes.
This will be a full 5 part series so we're just getting started! Lots to come!
Longtime viewer, first time commenter! :) I just wanted to say how incredible I think what you do is. Not only do you have family responsibilities and writing work to get done, but you take so much time from your busy schedule to create helpful videos and tools for others. As a writer who has so much difficulty sitting down and doing the thing (writing), I find your content so heart-warming. Thank you so much for doing what you do. I see you working to make writing and self-publishing more accessible for people! Rock on, lady.
This is so sweet thank you!!
Thanks for this. I'm working on show don't tell & I hope this helps me. I have a love/hate relationship with Story Genius. I see where her assignments really help with backstory. But I don't like her example, the author of her example, the main character of the example. Consequently, I only reluctantly pick up the book.
I watched this video, got to the end, and ordered Scene and Structure by John Bickham to read between these episodes coming out. That was actually the only one I had left to buy from your list! I'm excited for this. I always feel like I need more help with scenes.
I can't wait for this series. I have been stuck in my first chapter for weeks.
Damn! This is exactly what I'm currently working on AND struggling with! I'm so excited!!!
I really like the way Sarra puts it, that she thinks of scenes as transitions. I can work for a few weeks on that idea alone.
So excited for this series of videos! You have such a way of motivating me to get going on things!
Thanks, Sarra! I’m excited for this series. I have Lisa’s book.
I've been thinking more in terms of scenes with my planning, and it has been a huge help. Thank you for this advise for how to solidfy them further. It's guiding me through some scene rewrires with me rebrands!
I'm so glad!
As always thank you!! For every5hing you share, for the way you talk and for the vibe you put in everything you make!!! ❤️❤️❤️
I am currently working on my CampNanoWriMo project and this could not have come at a better time. Thank you for all you do!
ohh this is so good! thank you!
Love "teacher Sarra". I love learning a new way of seeing something. Makes me think and brings out my creative bug. :)
This is an awesome start to this series. I love all the information and am looking froward to your next video! ❤❤
When I read Story Genius it really helped me understand the purpose of scenes but it's still so hard so I'm so excited about this series you're doing!
I've never thought of scenes as mini-stories. That is a paradigm shift for me. Thanks!
I really love that you take time to make these kind of videos and handbooks for us. I have learned so much from you and hopefully some day I get (or make) time to sit and figure out what my world is called and how it works so that I can tell my story in a way that makes me excited and proud.❤ But for now I will keep enjoying watching and rewatching your content while I find a way towards my goal. Hugs
super excited for this!
I'm excited about this series. This video was so helpful. Especially #4. I really need to work on connecting some of my scene. Can't wait for the next video!
Yay, loving it so far! Cannot wait for the other videos to drop :) Thank you Sarra!
Thank you Sarra. The 5 components are very useful to me right now. For Camp Nano I'm editing my first novel, completely overwhelmed of course, and your video just gave me a new perspective on how to look at the story as a series of clear parts rolling down the hill, gathering speed until the clash at the bottom. I've also made a tab for your video on How to Edit your Novel. Love the way you make complicated things seem simple.
I'm glad you find them useful!
This is so awesome Sarra! All the books you mentioned are so good! Techniques of The Selling Writer, by Dwight V. Swain, has a great section on scene sequel that is very helpful as well. (Fun fact, Swain was one of Jack Bickham's teacher's.)
I'm very excited about this series! Thanks for all of your hard work. What helps me when dealing with and thinking about scenes is to actually think of them as moments. Moments in my characters lives, moments in the story and so on. For whatever reason that helps writing feel a little less overwhelming for me.
Thanks sooo much! This was really helpful as I was stuck . Now continuing the story seems so doable.
this was so helpful! thank you 🥰
What a great concept for a series! Thank you!
Thank you for giving us the workbook and information. We appreciate you so much.
Any time!
Hello - I loved this video, it really helps to tick things off to ensure my writing is air tight. I write sci-fi/high fantasy, and so one chapter can be anywhere between 3000- 7000 words with multiple scenes as there are multiple POV's. Layering conflict - so important. You look great, keep up the good work .
I just wanted to say a quick thank you and I love your videos and I hope this new workbook will help me understand exactly what a scene is and I'm looking forward to more videos in this series I have a question or a request you can call it can you do about naming conventions because I find it hard to come up with names of places that are not already taken thanks again for the workbook
Very excited for this series! I think scenes are a weak point/growth opportunity for me as a writer :)
So excited you’re starting this new series! I love how you teach writing and have been rewatching your older series. Thank you so much!
You are so welcome!
Hi Sarra, I've got all the books you've mentioned, but sometimes it's still so difficult to put it all together - thank you for doing this!!!
I am SO happy that you are doing video series' like this again! I love your workbooks because they are so much fun to use and super easy to follow and fill out. Thank you so much! PS I love the office. It's the perfect background.
Thank you so much!!
Love! Can't wait for Publish andThrive
Thanks for signing up!!
I’ve always thought of my stories as “scenes” too so I’m excited for this! Quick question, I couldn’t find the link to your newsletter, where is it again?
Ahh looks like I forgot to add it above! It’s on this blog post just scroll down! Sorry about that!! heartbreathings.com/how-to-write-great-scenes-that-keep-readers-engaged-writing-great-scenes-1/
This is so exciting. I am looking forward to this series. Thank you so much for all that you do for this community! Your timing is stupendous! I'm currently working on editing my first book and was trying to tighten up the scenes with the overall plot. So grateful for your teachings!!! 🥰 Thank you, thank you, thank you!💜💜💜
You are so welcome!
you. freaking. rock!!! thank you!!!
Thank you for sharing this that was a brilliant video.
Glad it was helpful!
I a so excited for this series. Just read through my rough draftfor editing and my scenes have lagged and feel dry if that makes sense. And Sarra you are glowing, girl. You look fabulous☺
Thank you so much!
How are you this perfect with your timing? I have 13k words so far and was starting to feel like I needed more guidance on scenes. Thank you for all the work you do! Can’t wait for the rest of this series 💜
You got this!
Perfect timing cause I'm rewriting.
Perfect timing for Camp NaNoWriMo.
Hi! Love your channel and have been following for more than a year. I’m planning to take your course this coming February. As a new writer who has always loved reading and writing yet has never really finished anything, I feel like it’ll really help me get started. On my own, I haven’t accomplished as much as I had planned this year, other than one short story which I had actually started last year. It’s not edited yet but I’m still amazed I actually finished something. I really want to get into this career as I have so many ideas but I have a lot of doubt and I’m too obsessed with getting everything perfect that I hardly make progress. There’s so much to learn and I was wondering if your course covers anything more in-depth on the craft of writing? You’ve got a ton of videos on your channel about this but I guess I’m looking for something more in depth and more guided approach for learning how to actually write a story because I really like your teaching style.
Sarra, I am so excited about this writing series! Thank you for the free workbook!
Hope you enjoy it!
@@HeartBreathings 💜💜💜
Right. On. Time. 🥳🥳🥳
How do you break up your scenes in your books? Page breaks, natural "next paragraphs" or something like chapters?
All of the above. I will use a page break if there's a jump in time or location but I don't yet feel I've reached the cymbal crash moment of the chapter. I'll just move into the next paragraph if that feels like the right transition. Or if I've reached a cymbal crash kind of moment, I'll start a new chapter. I'll cover this more in another part on pacing!
@@HeartBreathings Yay, I'm glad you go indepth. I was just sectioning out my novel this week and nrealized I had no idea how I was going to break them up. lol
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❤️
Hi, I'm subscribed to your newsletter, but I couldn't find the link to get the scenes workbook. How can I get access to it? Also, by chance are going to mention how to take your over-all plot and turn it into a scene list?
The link is in the most recent email from Thursday or if you still have your original welcome email, the link to the resource library is the one you need!
@@HeartBreathings Thank you, I actually found that I have the resource library saved in my favorites section, thank you for replying!
Where is the link for the new workbook for this series??? Not finding it. 🤔
Sorry! I forgot to add it to the description! You can find it on this blog post heartbreathings.com/how-to-write-great-scenes-that-keep-readers-engaged-writing-great-scenes-1/
First!
What are your thoughts on writing backwards? Have you ever dabbled? 😊
I primarily write out of order at the beginning of a new book! Sometimes I start with the ending but I rarely work backwards sequentially. I do often plot backwards though!