Plan Your Novel: 30-Day Challenge
Create The Road Map for Your Book to Be Ready to Write Your Novel
Enroll in CoursePlan your novel in 30 days and write with confidence!
"This course helped me get out of my writing rut. I am not one to outline or get to know my characters before writing. By taking this course I learned that plotting and characterization can be fun. Now I find writing to be fun again. Thanks. "
- Kay LaLone, YA Paranormal Mystery Author
We know that you have other activities in your life besides writing, and that writing your novels is important to you.
How can you manage your writing and still meet your other obligations?
Well, you can, in small, manageable bite-sized pieces. Each lesson in this course can be done in as little as 15-20 minutes.
That's why this course is designed for the writer with a life.
You can plan your novel in a way that fits into your life. We know, because we’ve done it, multiple times!
In our 30-Day Writing Challenge, we will help you think and write through the steps to create your novel – from character development to plot structure to story themes and world building — so that you can start NaNoWriMo prepared.
Join us!
Who is this course for?
For: Experienced writers or ambitious writers who want to plan their novel in an organic or step-by-step way, so that on Nov. 1st you can start writing it alongside the NaNoWriMo.org crowd.
With this course, you'll be able to:
- -- Plan your novel
- -- Step into a sense of satisfaction and creative accomplishment
- -- Get excited for NaNoWriMo
- -- Believe that you can write a novel
What can you expect: You'll put pen to paper, or fingers to keyboard and write while you think, in specific ways, with specific focuses. Words will pile up, along with ideas, story questions, and scenes.
You'll be invited to read short lessons, watch some video or listen to the lessons, then write — put pen to paper, or fingers to keyboard and actually do some thinking of your story on the page.
This class is good for you if:
- -- You have never written a novel, and have always wanted to, and still feel lost on how to go from brilliant idea to The End, then you will be stretched in new and different ways.
- -- You're an experienced novelist, with 1 or 2 completed or partially completed novels under your bed. You may find this course structured in a way that's new to you and yet familiar.
- -- You have 3 or more unfinished novels sitting in a drawer, and always hit that sagging middle and lose focus or lose interest. This course will help you dream up exciting ways to torture, I mean challenge, your characters all the way to the resolution of the story.
A 30-day course, structured so you can do it at your own pace.
Your time commitment:
All told, if you follow the curriculum, you will probably spend 4–10 hours over the month to follow through on the assignments and exercises, all designed to help you plan your novel.
Of course, some of you will spend less and some may spend more time on this course.
This course covers:
Week 1: Elevator Pitch & Short Synopsis We help you write the 1-2 paragraph story blurb, also know as the elevator pitch, that you can later use in a query letter. Next we cover the 5-6 paragraph story synopsis that can form the basis of a synopsis agents and editors request. We also touch on the story's theme and genre to help you have a better idea of the focus of your story and also your audience's expectations.
Week 2: Get to Know Your Main Characters We cover getting to know your main characters. Great stories start with great characters that you love! We expand on the "10 Questions to Ask Your Characters" tip sheet (PDF) that you got when you signed up for the course. We also have more character questions to share with you and special exercises to help you get to know your characters so you can bring them to life when you write your novel.
Week 3: Story Plot & World Building We help you design the story's main plot points and get to know the world of your story better, in other words, world building. Plot comes from characters, from knowing your story world, and from asking some good questions. We help you design a plot that will keep readers at the edge of their seats turning pages deep into the night.
Week 4: Scene-by-Scene Outline & Plotting We guide you through the final preparation step of building your story scene-by-scene. We help you create an organic outline from all the notes and thinking that have gone before and also provide tips on a more linear approach to plotting your story. Once you have completed this exercise, and all the ones before, you'll have a good sense of your entire story, and can sit down to write your novel with excitement and confidence.
The Instructors
This course is offered by Beth and Ezra Barany, writing teachers and novelists. We walk the talk.
We're award-winning, best-selling novelists, who have worked with over 100 authors to help them get their books written and published. Happily married for over 17 years, we're passionate about writing, story telling, and guiding authors to achieve your dreams.
Our fiction and nonfiction:
Together we have written and published 18 books, plus 3 audio books. Together and separately, we have taught thousands of students over the years, in both the public and private sector, including overseas in Paris, France. We both teach (and Beth's case, coach) and working on writing and publishing our novels.
Once you sign up, you'll get:
- -- Access to the whole course
- -- Videos
- -- Handouts
- -- Checklists
- -- Quizzes
- -- Surprises
- -- All new updates and lessons!
"I want to thank Beth Barany and Ezra Barany for taking the time ... Their encouragement helped to get me on the stick and get ready to write my novel."
- Carol Malone w/a Jill Tunney, author of Ladies Night, a Fight-Card Romance
Your Instructor
The Instructors
This course is offered by us, Beth Barany, certified creativity coach for writers, writing teacher, workshop leader, and novelist; and, Ezra Barany, novelist, teacher, and mentor. We are married, have 2 cats, and met at a fiction writing group over 20 years ago.
Beth: I'm an award-winning, best-selling novelist in YA fantasy, paranormal romance, and science fiction mystery, who has worked with hundreds of authors to help them get their books written, polished, and published to the delight of their readers. I'm passionate about writing, story telling, and guiding you to achieve your dreams. See you in the class!
I'm also the author of books for writers, including Plan Your Novel Like A Pro, co-written with my husband, thriller writer Ezra Barany.
Ezra: I'm the award-winning best-selling author of 4-book The Torah Codes series. As a teacher for over 14 years, my goal is to see your writer's dream realized with the completion of your book. I look forward to meeting you soon.
Together we have taught and helped thousands of writers and look forward to help you too.
"Beth and Ezra are super accessible... and they have great ideas for guiding an author's success. It's been fun to virtually meet other creative writers as well. The support is fabulous ... a real community."
- Tricia Riel, author of the Zephrum Gates series
Frequently Asked Questions
"Just wanted to say thank-you to Beth and Ezra - I have really enjoyed your course. ... I especially enjoyed the weekly tasks, which allowed me to take time and really delve into my characters' motivations and conflicts."
- Triana Willard, author of Autumn Magic
"The Plan Your Novel course offers a structure that allows for creativity and compassion for the struggles that come with writing. I learned how much more fun writing could be once I had a detailed map to follow. And how much fun you are, and your sense of humor. And how you are willing to share your struggles."
- Carol Powers, Historical Novelist
A Personal Message from Beth Barany: I believe that we are all creative, and that if you dream of writing a novel, you owe it to yourself to start today. Our course is designed to get you moving with small writing activities that directly relate to building your story, so you can step into your creative dream today.