Books like Make a Scene — picked by fans

Katie Weiland’s book is a must-have if you want to write that great novel. Plotting is all about structure, and even if you don’t like to plot in advance, at some point, you will have to get that plot in hand. I appreciate the way Weiland goes through each important plot point, showing where each one needs to be in a story and what it accomplishes.

I also love that she has a workbook to go with this book to help writers dig deep into their ideas and flesh them out. And you’ll not want to skip over the part where she warns against disaster!

You may be wondering why I’ve listed this 20-year-old book as my top recommendation if you want to write a terrific commercial novel. This was my go-to “bible” when I penned my first few novels. I religiously followed all her advice, as I was and still am an avid fan of her Inspector Lynley detective novels.

Listen: you don’t have to be a crime or thriller writer to learn the best skills for writing a best seller from this book. She shares personal routines and techniques, an overview of the craft, and covers the plot, characters, and scene structure. It’s not extensive but will give any fiction writer new eyes and skills in the art of writing.

One of the most important elements, to me, in a novel is emotionality. Regardless of genre, a great commercial novel in any genre needs to trigger emotion in readers. But it’s very hard to do and do well. Maass’s book is so unique. I love his objective to burrow deep under the surface of the plot, characters, and structure to get to the heart of any story.

If you want to write a great book, you have to engage readers’ emotions—it’s that simple. He explores the inner and outer landscapes of emotion, the emotional world of your story (great for short stories, too), and the important “writer’s emotional state.” Yes, you need to know what your emotions are when you’re writing. And what you want your reader to feel at any given moment. Maass’s book is the only book that will teach you these needed skills.

I’ve been recommending Larry’s book for decades! This book got me hooked on plotting and helped me to see clearly how novels have specific scenes in specific places. It’s all part of expected, time-tested storytelling.

I love how Larry uses architecture and engineering phraseology because that’s what fiction writers are doing: constructing a story. And that story needs to be solid, on a well-built foundation. If you don’t learn and master the six core competencies (you’ll have to check out the book to learn what these are), your novel won’t hold together. 

I'm a fan of intriguing mysteries that really leave me guessing from start to finish. I loved this book because I truly couldn't predict the ending. The story teaches the reader to really pay attention when something doesn't seem right. I felt complete shock with that twist ending.

This series can actually fit into sci-fi as well as shifter romance. The main leads are human experiments whose DNA is spliced with animal DNA. Hence they are stronger with heightened senses with characteristics of animal DNA they have been spliced with. The story opens with their rescue and them being provided a separate compound to reside. Each story follows a rescued species and Smiley is my pick because he’s the most cheerful and free spirited new species among them all. And this story is a heartwarming romance woven with a lot of action that will keep the readers on their toes.

All of Powers’ books are brilliant, for all kinds of reasons. I remember this book when it first came out decades ago. First of all, it’s just great entertainment, a great story with rich characters. Then, at the same time, Powers captures the beauty of science and discovery as he immerses the reader in the time after the discovery of the double-helical structure of DNA when there was a mad rush to figure out how DNA could encode proteins. Powers captures it all and gets the science right and brings in similarities between the DNA code and music and captures what it’s like working in a lab. How is this possible?

How did my ancestry help define me? My great-grandfather created a dairy farm outside of Tacoma, and my mother grew up impoverished in Indiana during the Great Depression. These experiences shaped my family, but how far into the past do such influences arise?

I have been fascinated by history and genealogy since childhood, and even my professional role as a paleoanthropologist is an extension of that interest in prehistory. Christine Kenneally addresses in direct language the implicit questions I was seeking–what roles did genes, ancestry, and history play in shaping me and the populations around me? It is not hard for me to identify with the values of the Puritan farmers from whom I descended, but before I read this book, I didn’t appreciate the persistence of historical experiences in shaping a community. For example, the slave trade instilled a modern community's suspicion of strangers in the worst affected areas… show more.

Carl is an unhealthy old man who gets the break of a lifetime when a strange accident enables him to upgrade his DNA. Not only is it like taking a sip from the fountain of youth, but Carl can also adopt some of the sensory super powers that animals have. But rather than this turning into another boring superhero story, Biomedical Self-Engineering is the story of a nice guy whose positivity brushes off on almost everyone he encounters. Carl’s not out to save the world. He’s just out to make each day a little better for himself and others.

This book teaches the importance of community-building. It celebrates diversity and inclusion as both a strength and asset.

It dispels the myth of race by focusing on our shared humanity and common destiny. It gets to the basics that our DNA is 99.999% similar hence building common ground across differences.

It also encourages each of us to discover the values of love and kindness.

I shared this book with my students as a tool to explore their cultural heritage and build new connections.