Stealing Hollywood : Story Structure Secrets for Writing Your Best Book

Write and sell your best book – by learning from the movies!

Are you finally committed to writing that novel or screenplay, but have no idea how to get started? Or are you a published author, but know you need some plotting help to move your books and career up to that next level?

Screenwriting is based on a simple and powerful structure that you already know from watching so many movies and television shows in your lifetime. It's a structure that your reader or audience unconsciously expects, and is crucial for you to deliver — whether you’re traditionally published or self-publishing; writing mystery, romance, thriller, science fiction, fantasy, paranormal or cozy.

In this textbook of the internationally acclaimed SCREENWRITING TRICKS FOR AUTHORS workshop, award-winning author/screenwriter Alexandra Sokoloff will show you how to jump-start your plot and bring your characters and scenes vibrantly alive on the page — by watching your favorite movies and learning from the storytelling tricks of great filmmakers:

• The High Concept Premise
• The Three-Act, Eight-Sequence Structure
• The Storyboard Grid
• The Index Card Method of Plotting
• The Setpiece Scene
• Techniques of film pacing and suspense, character arc and drive, visual storytelling, and building image systems.

Every aspect of writing a book is covered, from finding a great idea to final draft: Plot, theme, character development, setting, world building, dialogue, pacing, conflict, suspense — with hundreds of examples from well-known movies, books and TV.

Find extra support from the author on her Screenwriting Tricks for Authors Substack!



WHAT AUTHORS ARE SAYING:

"Alex Sokoloff's STEALING HOLLYWOOD is the owner's manual that belongs in every writer's toolkit. Alex dissects the elements of storytelling with clarity, wit and wisdom. Don't thank me—buy the damn book!"
—Mary Kay Andrews, New York Times bestselling author

"I'd already written fifteen novels by the time I met Alex and discovered her unique approach to structuring fiction. She changed my entire writing process for the better. I couldn't live without my three-act storyboard! Alex is a gifted and generous teacher and author, and STEALING HOLLYWOOD is a must-have book for new and seasoned writers alike."
—International bestselling author Diane Chamberlain

“No one does story analysis better than Sokoloff.”
—International bestselling author Steve Cavanagh

"Sokoloff's advice is spot-on, and her teaching style is direct and effective. A must-have book for authors and screenwriters."
—JA Konrath, bestselling author of A Newbie's Guide to Publishing

"Whether you're an old pro or an apprehensive beginner, Alex Sokoloff offers a sensible nuts-and-bolts approach that puts you in control of your material."
—Margaret Maron, Edgar®, Agatha, Anthony & Macavity Award-winning author of the Deborah Knott mysteries

"Sokoloff is a generous mentor with the gifted ability to address a storyteller's practical concerns while encouraging artistic integrity and every author's unique voice. Only three of my half dozen novels have been written with her unwitting guidance, but I can guarantee that with this book at my fingertips, all my future work—and my reading audience—will benefit from her advice. Recommended without reservation."
—Vicki Pettersson, bestselling author of the Sign of the Zodiac series

Alexandra Sokoloff is the Thriller Award-winning and Bram Stoker, Anthony, and Black Quill award-nominated author of eleven supernatural, paranormal and crime thrillers, including the Thriller Award-nominated Huntress/FBI series (Huntress Moon, Blood Moon, Cold Moon, Wolf Moon). The New York Times Book Review has called her a "daughter of Mary Shelley," and her books "Some of the most original and freshly unnerving work in the genre."

As a screenwriter Alex has sold original scripts and adapted novels for numerous Hollywood studios, for producers such as David Heyman, Laura Ziskin, Michael Bay and Neal Moritz. She has served on the Board of Directors of the Writers Guild of America, west, and on the Board of the Mystery Writers of America, and is the founder of WriterAction.com, an online community and resource center for professional screenwriters. She has taught story structure at Otis College in Los Angeles, and is the author of the writing workbooks Stealing Hollywood, Screenwriting Tricks for Authors and Writing Love, based on her internationally acclaimed story structure workshops and blog: screenwritingtricks.com.

She lives in Los Angeles and Scotland. When she's not writing or transatlantically commuting, she performs with Heather Graham's Slushpile Players, and dances like a fiend. And she always loves talking to readers and writers! You can find her here:

Website: alexandrasokoloff.com
Facebook: facebook.com/alexandra.sokoloff
Twitter: @AlexSokoloff
Goodreads: goodreads.com/author/show/552457.Alexandra_Sokoloff

For information on books, workshops, and free Story Structure extras, go to ScreenwritingTricks.com