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Lisa Cron on the Misbelief of Your Protagonist and Why It Matters to Your Story
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Lisa Cron is no fan of how the writing world teaches writers to craft stories. She has several beefs with the standard ways novel writing is taught, including starting your project with "plotting." In this episode, Lisa offers a fresh, practical perspective on the key to writing a compelling story. Lisa has written three books on story, including Wired for Story, Story Genius, and Story or Die. She has worked in publishing at W.W. Norton, as an agent at the Angela Rinaldi Literary Agency, as a producer on shows for Showtime and Court TV, and as a story analyst for Warner Brothers and the William Morris Agency.
Great Moments in the Episode
(5:06) The two things that the writing world has gotten wrong about writing stories.
(7:00) Page one of the novel is the first page of the second half of the novel.
(10:05) The biggest lie that the writing world tells you: "Use backstory sparingly and only when the reader needs to know something."
(14:25) What are "misbeliefs" and the importance of knowing the origin story of the misbeliefs of your main character.
(19:20) The art of writing is to take what is inchoate ... and put it into language.
(25:35) Story structure is a byproduct of a story well told. And the story polishes the prose, not the other way around.
(30:01) Story is story, whether you're writing nonfiction, a memoir, or fiction.
(39:03) The mark of a writer is being able to throw stuff away.
(43:08) Words of the Episode
Pluviophile - someone who loves rain and rainy days - and the fresh smell of rain.
Mercurial - subject to sudden or unpredictable changes of mood or mind.
Visit Lisa's Website
Lisa's Books
Wired for Story: The Writer's Guide to Using Brain Science to Hook Readers from the Very First Sentence
Story Genius: How to Use Brain Science to Go Beyond Outlining and Write a Riveting Novel (Before You Waste Three Years Writing 327 Pages That Go Nowhere)
Story or Die: How to Use Brain Science to Engage, Persuade, and Change Minds in Business and in Life
Follow Journey Sixty6
https://www.journeysixty6.com/
https://www.youtube.com/@journeysixty6writingforpub
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