Joel Friedlander runs The Book Designer blog, where he teaches writers how to navigate the modern world of self-publishing through his decades of experience in the small publishers’ industry. He’s an expert on typefaces, cover design, social media, and self-marketing. He’s the author of The Self-Publisher’s Companion: Expert Advice for Authors Who Want to Publish. Plus he’s promised me a cup of coffee the next time I drive through his town in the rolling green hills just north of San Francisco. And today he’s hosting me with a guest post excerpt from The Art & Craft of Story: 2nd Practitioner’s Manual.
Please join us as we talk about Hook—what readers throughout the ages have always looked for in a Hook, why industry professionals refuse to take more than a few seconds over your Hook, what cheap vintage pulp has in common with canonical literary greats, and why the Hook, even though it’s not the most important moment in your novel, is the most important moment in the career of your novel. Writers: How to Open with a Big Bang!