What I've Been Reading

This summer I've been doing a lot of reading. Here's the highlights from my recent blog post about this topic. Find the complete post at Tales of Elsewhere.

I've been focusing on fiction this summer as I've been working on writing a novel. Three books and a podcast here for you all this time through. Enjoy!

Nevernight

A novel by Jay Kristoff.

I recommend this book for adult readers looking for a fast paced adventure. It's Harry Potter if Harry Potter wanted to kill a bunch of people and Hogwarts was a murder cult. The world building is amazing in Nevernight. The city of Godsgrave really comes to life with the city locations being clearly pictured in your mind (sights, smells, sounds, all the good stuff). The inhabitants in Nevernight are just as lively as the settings (until they die...that happens a lot). Kristoff leverages enough description to paint a picture while leaving enough open for your mind to make the characters your own.

In storytelling, no matter the medium, world building is critical. When giving presentations, or providing direction to clients, I try to implement storytelling techniques like world building. Creating a vision of where we are going (in time, in space, in potential) requires the ability to describe a world people can understand. Books like Nevernight give me tools and sometimes direct words I can use to paint the new world I'm storytelling about. If you are a storyteller at work, read more fiction to see models for how to build compelling worlds for your audience.

I wrote more on my blog but check out the book here: Nevernight by Jay Kristoff @ Barnes & Nobles.

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

a series of short stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

I'm amazed by the dialog driving the story. Again, in A Scandal in Bohemia, much of the story is Holmes talking to Watson. I enjoyed how this kept the pace fast, conveyed character through actions + word s and makes the reader feel like a fly on the wall - the story happening in front of you not being told to you. Listening to how Holmes talks to Watson, what words are used between the characters paints a picture of who each person is and how they see the others.

Mystery is a powerful weapon in your storytelling arsenal. Reading master mystery authors like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, examining how they build and release tension is time well spent. When telling stories, think of tension like a wave that surges and sinks throughout your tale. Build tension with the words you use, the actions you take or don't take (silence can be a might mystery tool). Any presentation, no matter how boring, can be brought to life with some mystery. I'd encourage you read some Sherlock Holmes or any great mystery story to see how the authors weave mystery and tension together to keep the pages turning.

Check out this book at Barnes & Nobles.

And Two Other Things...

I have another book and a podcast on my blog. Make sure to check it out for more detail. I'm trying to centralize my content on my blog for writing (both fiction & non-fiction). Head over to Tales of Elsewhere for my review of these books and others.

Enjoy these books! And if there is something you think I should be reading, let me know in the comments. I'll be posting more books in the coming months so stay tuned.