The Complete Idiot's Guide to Writing a Novel

by Tom Monteleone

Alpha Books, March, 2004.
Trade paperback, 328 pages.
ISBN: 1592571727

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Writing a Novel by Tom Monteleone

For many aspiring writers, it's hard to know where to begin. The world of publishing is a complex one. Enter Tom Monteleone, who is just the man to explain the process to beginners. The author begins by helping writers understand writing and creativity, and explains the different genres and the bestseller lists. The second part of the book covers the elements of a novel, including plot, characters, setting, dialogue, etc. Part three of the book discusses the process of writing the novel, including research, grammar, style, presentation, voice and time management. A final section in the book looks at writing mistakes, revisions, finding help, book promotion and publishing. The text of the book offers practical advice geared towards the beginner, with sidebars and boxes offering additional tips and words of wisdom. The book also includes interviews with some bestselling authors including Whitley Strieber, Peter Straub and Janet Evanovich.

Tom Monteleone is the author of over 100 short stories and thirty books, including The Blood of the Lamb, which won a Bram Stoker award. Monteleone has also edited fourteen science fiction and horror anthologies. Tom has a great sense of humor, which makes this instructive writer's aide also enjoyable to read. His reply to the commonly asked "Where do you get your ideas?" question is, "I subscribe to an Idea Service -- and for only $9.95, they send me 10 new ideas each and every month." Tom's tone is construction, helpful and kind which should be very encouraging to the novice writer learning the process of writing a novel. Writers will enjoy Tom's humor and they will also learn a great deal about the process of novel writing from this book. As Tom himself says, "You've come to right place, because I know how to write novels and when you finish this book, you will too."

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Writing a Novel is available for purchase on Amazon.com

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This review was published in the May-June, 2004 of The Internet Writing Journal.