Writing course from NY Times-praised authors, book editors and writing coaches to help you create compelling characters

What you will learn

How to craft compelling characters for a novel, screenplay or graphic novel

Gain an understanding of how conflict creates dynamic and memorable fiction characters

How to create situations for your characters that illuminate their strengths and weaknesses

How to create characters compelling enough to give you the momentum you need to write a commercially successful and publishable novel, screenplay, graphic novel

Learn how “want vs. need” and conflicts help build a transformational arc in your character

Description

Novel Lab co-founders, Ayn & Sam Gailey, take you through ten inspiring lectures to guide you toward the goal of creating memorable commercial characters. Using the same advice they give to their New York Times best-selling clients, they will teach you how to craft characters that will become the heart of your story. You will also gain an understanding of how your characters integrate with plot to create a powerful story. Perfect for beginner writers who want to create more original and moving characters.

Instructors will use the following books to illustrate character development: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn; Deep Winter by Samuel W. Gailey; Harry Potter… by J.K. Rowling; The Girl On A Train by Paula Hawkins; The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins; To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee; Bridget Jones’s Diary by Helen Fielding, and others.

TESTIMONIALS:

Ayn & Sam helped me find the heart of my story and guided me through the writing, editing and publishing process with expertise, passion and a lot of patience. Without them, my book would not have made it onto the New York Times Bestseller list. 

— Lenny Dykstra, Lenny Dykstra: Memoir of Life on the Edge (Harper Collins 2016)

Ayn & Sam are unique and rare. They can write their own riveting books while also helping other writers create and complete their own stories, no matter how complex. They are also a pleasure to work with. 

— Amy Schiffman, literary manager/partner, IPG (Dennis Lehane, Don Delillo, James Ellroy, Michael Connelly, Richard Russo, James Lee Burke, Sue Grafton)

Gailey’s “Deep Winter” is enthralling and suspenseful, like a Michael Connelly or Lee Child crime novel, but more elegantly written.

— Esquire Magazine

 

Thanks to the guidance I received, I was able to hone the concept for my book and sign with a top book agent. Ayn & Sam know how to make the process inspiring and fun. 


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— Shannon Bindler, Life Coach, Celebrity Stylist, Blogger

 

“Deep Winter” by Samuel W. Gailey is beautifully written… 

— The New York Times

Gailey’s work is…so brilliantly done, so artfully underwritten with not a word wasted… 

— Booklist


Skillfully blending memoir and investigative journalism, Ayn Gailey tells a story with hilarious, self-deprecating wit and extreme honesty… 

— Library Journal

Tough, straight, upsetting, and strangely beautiful. One of the best sports autobiographies I’ve ever read. It comes from the heart. 

— Author Stephen King on “Memoir of Life On The Edge”

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Content

How To Create Great Characters For Your Novel or Screenplay

Introduction
Ordinary World
Want vs. Need
God is in the Details (So are Great Characters)
Great Bad Guys Make Great Good Guys
Make It Hard On Them
Great Dialogue Makes Great Characters
Our Favorite Characters
The Importance of The Catapult
Bonus Materials