Houghton Mifflin Harcourt is publishing a monthly series of e-only essays to correspond with Katherine Paterson's two-year term as the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. The subjects of the essays include: writing and literature for young people, the wonder and imagination found within great books, common questions novice writers ask, and Katherine's own personal experiences throughout her historic career.

Want to write a fantastic work of fiction? Sometimes getting started is the hardest part. This book takes you through the steps of writing a story from beginning to end. Learn how to gather inspiration and develop a story's characters. Then visualize and organize your story's plot with a writing map. And after you've written a really rough draft, check out tips for revising your work. You'll also be inspired by unique writing exercises and storytelling...

"Need an idea for a short story or novel? Look no further than The Writer's Idea Thesaurus. It's far more than a collection of simple writing prompts. You'll find a vast treasury of story ideas inside, organized by subject, theme, and situation categories, and listed alphabetically for easy reference"--Amazon.com.

"This book helps writers understand and make the most of their creative processes, from getting an idea to producing a finished work. Each chapter explores a single step in the creative process and coaches writers through the challenges in a way that is intuitive and organic"--Provided by publisher.

In his essential writing guide, This Year You Write Your Novel, Walter Mosley supplied aspiring writers with the basic tools and practical advice needed to write a novel in one year. In this complementary follow up, Mosley guides the reader through the fundamental building blocks of fiction to deliver a master class on the writer's craft. In a series of conversational and instructive chapters, Mosley breaks down the art of fiction to its most essential...

"Albert Zuckerman, legendary literary agent, has worked with many bestselling authors, including Ken Follett, Olivia Goldsmith, Antoinette Van Heugten, Michael Lewis, and F. Paul Wilson. Zuckerman is a master at teaching writers the skills necessary to crack the bestseller list. For this revised edition of Writing the Blockbuster Novel, Zuckerman has added an analysis of Nora Roberts's The Witness, which he uses along with classic books like Gone...

Discover the tricks of the trade for writing compelling and concise fiction. Whether you've never written fiction before or are looking to brush up your skills and learn new techniques for crafting your words, this book gives you savvy advice on navigating the writing process.

"How can I become more disciplined? How do I know if I'm talented? Should I self-publish? These are just a few of the perennial and contemporary questions addressed in this delightfully different guide. The authors - from different generations and writing genres - first help the reader assess where they are on their path. They then walk aspiring writers through five universal stages - Dream, Draft, Develop, Refine, and Share. While these stages apply...