James Scott Bell

Murder, betrayal, and a trial that feeds a media frenzy. Can one woman stand against the forces that threaten to tear her family apart? Pastor Ron Hamilton's star is rising. His 8,000-strong church is thriving. His good looks and charisma make him an exceptional speaker on family values. And his book on pornography in the church has become an unexpected bestseller. Everything is perfect. Until a young woman's body is discovered in a seedy motel room....

How far will a father go to get back his only daughter? And how will he survive in a legal system that crushes those who can't afford to fight back?Mark Gillen has the storybook life other men dream of, complete with a beautiful wife and an adoring five-year-old daughter. Then his wife announces she's leaving him. And taking their daughter with her. The other man is a famous film director with unlimited funds and the keys to stardom and wealth for...

A cold-blooded killer is destroying all who oppose him. Will there be a final witness to the truth? Young, idealistic law clerk Rachel Ybarra has just been handed a career-making opportunity-helping in the prosecution of an infamous leader of the Russian Mafia. But when the star witness turns up dead, Rachel discovers the case is not merely a battle for the truth-it's a battle for her life.

Mr. Bell challenges you with exercises like determining the opposite of what a reader would assume a response should be, curving the language, and assigning "roles" to your characters to better form relationships, conflict, and realistic conversations. Also, gain tips for invoking silence, such as white space and inner monologues, and dive into the nuts and bolts of grammar in dialogue.

Jump-start your creativity with a selection of fun exercises, including "What-If Moments" and "The First-Line Game." Mr. Bell cites best-selling authors such as Alice Sebold and Mickey Spillane to demonstrate the importance of creating unique elements: a twist, a character, a setting, a relationship. Find out how to create the ever-important elevator pitch.

Mr. Bell shows you how to map the hot spots so you don't get bogged down writing it. He unpacks the power of authors who have mastered delivering an emotional punch, such as John Steinbeck, John Harvey, and Raymond Chandler. He also introduces an exercise that helps you create strong yet concise emotional moments, and examines the power of metaphors to deepen emotional connection.

Dive into the writing styles of "pantsers" versus "plotters" and get a better understanding of whether you want to aim for a plot-driven or a character-driven story. And using the writings of John Grisham, Ernest Hemingway, Lee Child, and others, evaluate the traditional mythical structure of a three-act story.

Mr. Bell unpacks the most important parts of a book proposal that you would send to an agent or a publisher (query, synopsis, and sample chapters) by defining each and breaking down what you should and shouldn't do. He also gives invaluable advice on what to look for in an agent, how to negotiate a contract, the importance of copyrights, and the most important component: getting paid.

Learn how to use unpredictability so your readers don't get bored with cliche characters or trite traits, and see how to develop flaws and baggage to make your characters relatable and human. Plus, get hints about building secondary characters, villains, and what it takes to keep a character interesting through an ongoing series.