Research Guides: Viking Novel Writing Month: February 2026

Ebooks About Fiction Writing Available from the HVCC Catalog

Writing the Novella

Freefall into Fiction: Finding Form

The Handbook of Creative Writing

Telling Stories: The Craft of Narrative and the Writing Life

The Language of Fiction: A Writer's Stylebook

Novel Ideas: Contemporary Authors Share the Creative Process

Curious Attractions: Essays on Fiction Writing

Streaming Videos About Novel Writing Available from the Dwight Marvin Library

Between the Lines: John Grisham produced by CreativeLive
In this interview learn about John Grisham's rise to fame, and his creative process.

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Between the Lines: John Grisham. Produced by CreativeLive, 2017. Alexander Street, https://video-alexanderstreet-com.
Crafting the Story: Beginnings, Middles, and Ends a production by the Australian Broadcasting Company
Topics include: creative book beginnings, structure, propositions for novels, and passion for writing.

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"Crafting the Story: Beginnings, Middles, and Ends." Writers' Workshop: Fiction and Nonfiction, produced by Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 2000. Films on Demand, fod.infobase.com/.
The Great American Read produced by PBS
The country’s 100 favorite novels are announced in this celebration of reading hosted by Meredith Vieira, as celebrities, authors, and book lovers reveal the novels that have most affected their lives. (From video description).

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"Launch." The Great American Read, produced by Public Broadcasting Service, 2018. Alexander Street, https://video-alexanderstreet-com.
Writing the Novel a production by Tin Cat Media
Topics in this video include: landscape, point of view, voice, and developing characters.

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"Writing the novel." The Path to Publication: Advice from Authors, Editors and Agents, produced by Tin Cat Media, 2005. Films on Demand, http://fod.infobase.com.

Articles About Novel Writing Available from the Dwight Marvin Library

5 Writing Tips: Jane Smiley
This Pulitzer prize winner shares her advice for novel writing.

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"5 Writing Tips: Jane Smiley." Publishers Weekly Online, 3 Oct. 2014.
Detective Novel Writing: The Hows and the Whys
Topics in this article include: image of the hero, motive for the crime, and the plot.

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Greenleaf, Stephen. “Detective Novel Writing: The Hows and the Whys.” Writer, vol. 106, no. 12, Dec. 1993.
Novel writing from A to Z
Our A to Z guide of expert tips, inspirational advice and helpful hints will walk you from Page 1 through The End. (Article Byline)

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Grandison, Baihley, and Tyler Moss. "Novel writing from A to Z." Writer's Digest, vol. 96, no. 1, Jan. 2016,
A Pyramid Approach to Novel Writing: Turn an Idea into a Finished Manuscript Using a Basic 7-step Approach.
This brief article describes the pyramid approach to writing, includes helpful resources and a writing exercise.

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Lourey, Jess. “A Pyramid Approach to Novel Writing: Turn an Idea into a Finished Manuscript Using a Basic 7-Step Approach..” Writer, vol. 124, no. 2, Feb. 2011.
What to Pack in your Fiction Tool Kit: a Bestselling Author Takes you Through the Tricks of the Novel-Writing Trade, Starting with Reading the Classics
Topics include: reading great works, character creation, experience and imagination, and heroes and villains.

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Rendell, Ruth. "What to pack in your fiction tool kit: a bestselling author takes you through the tricks of the novel-writing trade, starting with reading the classics." The Writer, vol. 123, no. 12, Dec. 2010.
Our Young-Adult Dystopia
In the bleak wasteland of 21st-century publishing, there is only one hope: The young-adult novel. (Headline).

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Dean, Michelle. "Our Young-Adult Dystopia." New York Times Magazine, Feb 02, 2014, pp. 48-49.

HVCC Campus Coordinator Tara Eaton

HVCC English instructor and Writing Specialist, Tara Eaton earned her MFA in creative writing from West Virginia University in 2007. Tara has been leading VNWM workshops in the region since 2017.