July 26, 2008

Speakers: Marilyn Johnson and Anita Gordon

Scenes, Sequels & The Peaks and Valleys of Tension

"The thing that hooks your reader, in the opening, is curiosity. The thing that holds him the rest of the way, straight through to the final paragraph, is suspense."
from Techniques of the Selling Writer, by Dwight Swain.

We build our stories with scenes and sequels. But what's the best way to structure a scene? What purpose does a sequel serve? How do we deliberately create the suspense that keeps readers turning pages? What's the best way to bring a story to an end?

All these questions and more will be addressed by our two speakers in July. In the morning session, our own Marilyn Johnson will present the Principles of Scene and Sequel as spelled out by Dwight Swain in his classic writing text, Techniques of the Selling Writer. In the afternoon, our own Anita Gordon will present Building to Climax: the Peaks and Valleys of Tension.

Marilyn and Anita feel that these subjects deserve their own day as those of us participating in Write for the Roses strive to move our red lines forward on the progress charts. Many writing books, teachers and speakers attempt to address the subjects of these talks, but Swain's approach differs from the majority of them. His book has become many successful writers' favorite guide for good reason.

Marilyn, the chapter's current Vice President, Programs, has been an ardent Swain fan since the 1980s, when Techniques of the Selling Writer finally made sense of the craft of fiction writing after years of futility in classes and workshops as well as reading a multitude of writing books. She attributes her successful sales to confession magazines to the principles Swain teaches. Marilyn is a former government management analyst, teacher, reporter and editor who earned her master's degree in journalism from the University of Arizona.

Anita is an award-winning best-selling author of six historical romance novels. Her first book, The Valiant Heart, set in the 10th century, won RWA's 1989 Golden Heart Award, hit the bestseller lists and went into three printings. The Defiant Heart and The Captive Heart completed the Heart trilogy. Anita penned two late Victorian paranormals under the name of Kathleen Kirkwood--A Slip in Time and Shades of the Past, followed by His Fair Lady, a 12th-century medieval and winner of the Golden Quill Award. Anita attended the University of Arizona where she earned a degree in Art History and met her future husband. Her masters-level studies in History and Humanities were happily interrupted by several surprise bundles of joy, followed by her family's relocation overseas. Several years in Iceland fired her interest in the Vikings and ultimately inspired the Heart trilogy. Long involved in theater, Anita acted stateside and abroad on stage and television, and authored two children's plays. Mother of three and grandmother of four, Anita divides her time working as a Weight Watchers Leader and penning her next book, a mainstream novel set in 13th-century Wales.

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