If you like to write stories, I've discovered a great help. It's "Wired for Story," subtitled 'The Writer's Guide to Using Brain Science to Hook Readers from the Very First Sentence.' As a former psychologist I was intrigued with the idea of using brain research to create plots and characters that would keep readers turning pages. The author, Lisa Cron, is an instructor at the UCLA Extension Writers' Program, has worked as an agent, TV producer, story consultant, and in publishing. I especially liked Chapter 9 "What can go wrong,must go wrong--and then some." Pity the poor heroine or hero whose creator follows these directions. Each chapter contains a cognitive secret and a story secret. In chapter 9, the first is that "the brain uses stories to simulate how we might navigate difficult situations in the future." And the second is that "a story's job is to put the protagonist through tests that, even in her wildest dreams, she doesn't think she can pass." The paperback was published in 2012, but I recently found it at The Book Table, a great little but big book store in downtown Oak Park, IL.
