The Marshall Plan® Writing Workshop

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Comment by natalie abraham on September 30, 2009 at 3:47pm

yes. thank you very much.

natalie

Comment by Evan Marshall on September 30, 2009 at 11:37am

Hi Natalie,
The system is not really geared to first-person, but you could adapt it. The way to do this is (1) put your lead in every section, and (2) switch any sections that would be from the viewpoint of another character to your lead's viewpoint. Make sense?

All the best,

Evan

Comment by natalie abraham on September 30, 2009 at 11:14am

hi, i am using your book to help me write my book. i hit a brick wall. i was wondering what do you do when you are writing in the first person? what happens to every viewpoint characters?

Comment by John Broadwater on May 3, 2009 at 2:15pm

Thanks, Evan.

That sounds like a good solution. The rest of the story takes place in the present and from two viewpoints, so I should be okay.

I think you're great for devoting your time and talent to this workshop, and I look forward to being an active member!

Regards,
John

Comment by Evan Marshall on May 3, 2009 at 2:05pm

Hi John,

The software is set up to begin with a section from your lead's viewpoint. I think the best way to handle your situation is simply to write it separately and add it when you export your template to Word.

I hope this is helpful.

All the best,
Evan

Comment by John Broadwater on May 3, 2009 at 1:57pm

Hi Evan,
I just purchased your software and have been trying to get started on a novel this weekend. I've skimmed through this "Workshop" and have already found the comments to be very helpful.

Now I have a specific question: My chapter one is actually a prologue, set 100+ years before the VP comes into the picture. Will the software handle that situation?

Comment by Evan Marshall on March 8, 2009 at 6:54pm

There's nothing like it!

Comment by Evan Marshall on March 8, 2009 at 5:35pm

Hi Renee,

What we've done with the software is to indicate the minimum number of sections your VP characters should have, and where these sections should be. We did this to make sure your VP characters not only had a minimum of sections but also that these sections were spaced so that no VP character would be "out of sight" for long.

It is true that in the original NovelMaster, VP3 in a 65,000-69,000 novel would have 10 sections. But when we developed the software, this seemed too confining. So what we did was provide a number of sections where you as the author can select the VP character (when you highlight these sections, the Select VP Character button appears).

You can shoot for a total of 10 if you want to take the purist approach, or you can select VP characters for the flexible sections as your story develops. I hope this helps. Thanks!

Best,
Evan

Comment by Evan Marshall on February 19, 2009 at 12:27pm

I think this is really good, Renee. It's fresh and hooked me. My only thoughts are that it feels like there's too much small talk when Megan arrives in the office, and also that the information about her counselors that you give in that long paragraph might work better broken up and fed to us in small pieces.

Comment by C D Knox on February 8, 2009 at 2:44pm

Well that's the problem. It's no longer her story - it's now his. It's got more depth this way too. And I think I'm okay with just having a romantic subplot. I'm going to explore it and see where it goes. It's a lot darker and I like that! Also about only being able to use 2VP characters - I was having this same problem. I need a little forshadowing by my Opposition character even though he's mostly hidden. To accomplish this I just write the 3PV's name in the Where section so I get it all in the right place.

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