October 3-28, 2011

Building the Right World for Your Novel

by CJ Lyons

Whether your novel is set in the here and now or in a galaxy far, far away, national bestseller CJ Lyons will show you new tricks to building character-driven worlds for every genre. Think of how James Bond's Cold War world differed from that of George Smiley...or how Candace Bushnell's Manhattan feels like a different planet than the Manhattan of Jeffery Deaver. All accomplished through world building. In addition to the traditional techniques of constructing a physical environment for your characters, CJ will also discuss creating new societies, philosophies, art and architecture, biology, mythology and more. Lessons include: 

• World Building 101: finding visceral, evocative, and telling details

• 3D characters: adding dimension, diversity, and depth to your characters

• Darwin's rules: creature building

• Taboo topics: sex, religion, and politics

• Power of myth: creating archetypes for your world

• Show, don't tell: the essence of world building

• Atmospheric conditions: geology, climatology and their impact on your world

• Living history: finding the right details from your world's history

As a pediatric ER doctor, CJ Lyons has lived the life she writes about in her cutting edge suspense novels. Her award-winning, critically acclaimed Angels of mercy series (LIFELINES, WARNING SIGNS, URGENT CARE and CRITICAL CONDITION) is available in stores now. Her newest project is as co-author of a new suspense series with Erin Brockovich. Contact her at www.cjlyons.net

To register for the October 2011"Building the Right World for Your Novel" course, click HERE.