HOW TO CRAFT A GREAT STORY takes you step by step through the process of creating a compelling and coherent plot and structure. It covers such basics as the traditional story arcs, and such advanced information as finding balance and marrying structure and form. Each chapter contains a diagnostic test, case studies, practical exercises and Aide Memoire boxes. Each chapter concludes with a reminder of the key points of the chapter (Focus Points) and a round-up of what to expect in the next (Next Step) will whet your appetite for what's coming and how it relates to what you've just read. Covering some of the most commonly raised questions in creative writing courses, it is perfect for anyone who needs the next step on from the basic 'how to write a novel'.

Author Biography

Chris Sykes (London, England) is a member of the British Academy of Composers and Songwriters as well as the Society of Authors and he was at one time Deputy Chair of The Writers Guild of Great Britain. When he is not writing he is also an excellent and popular teacher and currently divides his time between directing summer schools for the University of Sussex and teaching creative writing for a number of institutions including the University of Oxford and the City Literary Institute, London. He has written and extensively published poetry in the UK and abroad, is a former BBC scriptwriter, and has also written and directed a number of plays, in the West End and elsewhere.