In this course, we’ll explore the top ten questions that writers need to consider when writing a novel. These questions include “Is my novel idea-based or character-based?” “What details and action will make my characters seem real and genuine on the page?” “How can I best create tension and suspense?” Discovering the answers to them can help writers understand more about their plot points, character development, narrative structure, and beginnings and endings. Designed for both literary and genre writers, this course walks writers through novel preparation and planning with guided exercises, interviews, and discussions. We’ll also compare different opening chapters by writers Jesmyn Ward, Hilary Mantel, and Neil Gaiman to see how talented authors address these same questions and use the answers to write successful narratives. This course is appropriate for novel writers in any stage of their novel drafts. Students will leave with a fresh perspective on their novel project and pages of new material. If you have the first five pages of your book, you may turn it in before the first class for instructor feedback. At the end of the course, each student will receive an email with ideas for moving forward.