While learning the basics, there is quite a bit of learning by example. “Hold the violin like this. Curve your fingers so the tips are on the string. Your left elbow should be under the center of the violin body. The violin should be parallel to the floor.”

Once you’ve got some of these basics in as a “training pattern” which is conscious and under your control rather than a “habit” which is not under your control, you can adapt them to work the best for you.

The last video I saw of Issac Stern (violinist) showed his violin pointing somewhat down. “Gee, if I do it that way, I can get $500,000 per performance.” Flunk!

Some of an author’s writings are “better” than others, as Larry pointed out. Some might be pot-boilers and don’t give you quite the emotional experiences as others. If that happens, your job is to find out why. Concept not as high? Sloppy structure? Characters a bit flat? By now you probably have a good grasp of at least what Core Competencies you should be looking at. If a story “hurts” you because it’s not as good as some of the author’s others, you can find out why. You can end up with positive “do this” rather than “don’t do that.” Always go for the positive “do” rather than the negative “don’t do.”

So, is there anything you can copy? Sure. Get Larry’s Story Structure Demystified, his 101 Tips and his Three Dimensions of Character. Read and save all his posts on doing a sysnopsis and a deconstruction. Now you’ve got something to copy and work with; soon you can find your own drumbeat that works for you.

Get in your Six Core Competiencies, skill at your production tools and the story structure as positive virtures. Then, just maybe, you too can be successful enough to write and get paid well for pot-boilers.

Go write something.

Of course I read good books too, and the odd book that doesn’t fit your structure, but the latter usually stand out because of exceptionally beautiful writing or exquisite, unique talent. Even then, if a maverick book doesn’t follow your character, arena and empathy guidelines or doesn’t have a compelling, satisfying structure, I don’t persevere with it.

I used to be a mentor coach, helping already good life coaches become certified, masterful coaches. In order to do that, I had to make candidates very aware of what the examiners were expecting to hear in the recorded sessions they submitted, and how the exam standards defined mastery. I also had to convince candidates that they had to get over their resistance to performing and jumping through hoops, as they saw it. “Don’t attempt the exam, then, if you don’t think they’re worthwhile hoops,” was my response.

Your approach, Larry, not only improves our ability to jump through the hoops of publishers’, producers’ and the public’s expectations, it improves our writing, and that’s why I always think of this site as one that helps good writers become masterful writers.

Either way, good advice, as always.

PS: You must be an early riser. I got today’s posting at 7:15!

I enjoy breaking down movies; the relationships between the many story elements REALLY come into focus when I approach a story as a student.

I highly recommend the exercise.

Honestly, from my viewpoint at least, it seems like a lot of people who dream of escaping the dreary world of 9-5 think they just have to TRY, and everything will fall into place. Though I’m not sure which is worse, the ones who say that, and then fail, or those who say that, then never try at all?

About the only group I can think of that seems to have any clue of the reality is a lot of would be Sports Pros. After all, they have to survive the process of getting through the lower tiers and those structures first, from little league to high school to Div I college, then either the minor leagues or straight to the pros, depending on the sport.

Makes me wonder if similar concepts for writers (how you would pull this off, I don’t know) would be worthwhile. Minor leagues of writing? Getting called up to AAA league?