Studying published novels, movies, and TV series episodes to improve your own works of fiction

by Lisa Miller

I’m a story junkie. Always looking for powerful elements in the books I’m reading, or movies or TV shows I’m watching. 

The Power of Breaking Down Stories

My desire to break down books and movies came out of necessity. I got overwhelmed when I tried writing fiction. A novel felt like this complicated concoction of characters and story elements. It was so BIG, daunting.

Then I discovered Four-Part Story Structure and realized dealing with these smaller, one-quarter chunks, of a novel were much easier to manage. That eventually led me to create my Story Structure Safari class. Guiding students through the four parts of a story. 

I later created my Creating a Constellation of Characters to Inhabit Your Story or Series to add focus on character creation and development and relationships in stories. 

Personal Explorations of Creative Guides

I’m a practical teacher. Find examples from successful writers or filmmakers. Study what an effective scene or character looks like on the page or in a show. 

During my classes, I ask students to find a book that is similar to what you are writing or wanting to write. It might also be a TV show or series episode, or a movie that may have characters, a plot, tone, setting, time- period or other elements that resonate with them. I call these books, shows, or movies Creative Guides. 

I ask my Constellation students to reflect on how their Creative Guide author/movie/episode may have handled a particular element we are studying in the lessons.

One powerful answer I got:

“There was so much conflict in the scene. It made me realize I didn’t have near enough in my story.”

That level of self-discovery of a student’s writing is something I want to encourage. 

Students learning for themselves what their stories or characters need to have or are missing is a skill all writers can use. 

By studying the work of others, it will spark your thinking and creativity in different parts of the character and story development process. Identifying what attracts you to a particular character or keeps you turning those pages to find out what happens next will help you plan your own characters and stories. 

Becoming a Part of My Reference Library

Some books have multiple good examples and I know I need to buy that book and dissect it for future reference and examples in one or both of my classes. 

Published novels, movies and TV episodes are all potential resources for boosting our own creativity and understanding of what makes a compelling story and creates an unforgettable character. 

Writers must also be mindful of how a story and its characters meet reader expectations of a genre. If I’m wanting to read a cozy mystery, I don’t expect multiple grisly murders and a former Navy Seal who is now a police detective.

Dissection: Without the Blood and Guts

This is where the skill of dissection can be so helpful. Dissection is the process of separating or cutting apart something, often for detailed examination or analysis. For most people, that suggests medical students studying cadavers in anatomy class. 

I want to help create Story Surgeons. Experts in the field of story dissection.  

The skills I teach don’t have to take much time or call for too many materials and best of all, no blood and guts. 

Selecting A Creative Guide

The first time you try the dissection process, you may want to select an author, book or show that you are familiar with. That way you may already have some understanding of the setting and the characters. 

For this dissection, I’ve picked Susan Wiggs’ novel Between You & Me. Wiggs is one of my go-to authors for personal reading. 

In this story, Wiggs weaves the Romance genre with Society (Domestic) and Status genres. These three genres woven together give the story greater depth, intensity, and makes me wonder and worry what will happen. 

Many of her elements were dramatic and easy to understand. It fits into the selling category of Women’s Fiction. Reader expectations is something writers always need to be aware of. 

The Dissection Process: Finding a Framework

When dissecting a story, the first thing to do is break it into four parts. I call these Zones. Each zone has its own functions and characteristics. I taught science so the process of dissection made perfect sense. This gives us a framework or skeletal-like system for our story. Each of those quarters is much easier to wrangle and study than the novel as a whole. 

Helpful Tools 

• Notebook-spiral, bound, or 3-ring
• 4 x 4 Post It notes or larger
• Post It Flags
• I use a pencil to make notes in the book while I’m writing. 
• Colored pens
• Calculator

Designate a specific Dissection notebook to keep close by where you read or watch TV. That way you can make quick notes of a character or a part of a story that is of interest. I write down my calculations of the book or show here first. 

Dissecting a Book: Between You & Me

Between You & Me is made up of 356 pages. I start counting with the first page of the story and end with the last page of the story. Not including blank pages before or after the story. Divide those total pages by 4. 

356/4= 89 pages per zone

The two Pinch Points occur at the middle of Zones 2 and 3. 

89/2 = 44.5 pages per ½ Zone.

Zone One begins on page 1 and ends on page 89=1^st Plot Point-Side Flag it

Zone Two ends on page 178=Midpoint of book - Side Flag it

1^st Pinch Point 133.5    89+ 44.5 = 135.5 – Up Flag

Zone Three ends on page 267= 2^nd Plot Point/All is Lost-Side Flag it

2^nd Pinch Point 222.5 178 + 44.5 = 222.5 – Up Flag 

Zone Four ends on page 356

Keep in mind these story page numbers may not be exact locations of events within the story. But they should be close. An excellent starting place to look. 

Flagging the Book 

Once I have my calculations, I transfer them to a 4” x 4” Post it note on the free (not glued down) endpaper when I open the book’s cover. Easy to refer to when I’m wanting to go to a specific Zone or element in the book. 

On that Post it, I write the title of the book. Below that I show my mathematical break down which includes some of the story landmarks which we’ll discuss in more detail. 

I use Post it flags to physically mark these points in the book. 

I put a flag on the right fore-edge peeking out from the side at the end of Zones 1, 2 and 3. 

This shows me where all four zones begin and end. 

Pinch Points are specific landmarks, associated with the antagonist, in the middle of Zones 2 and 3. I have them peak out from the top of those pages. 

Dissecting eBooks

Making note of these divisions and landmarks in an eBook isn’t as clear cut. Because the font size can be changed, to best suit the reader’s needs, the number of pages for the book will vary. You can find the four Zones, but they may vary slightly from a physical book. 

Zone One: The Set-Up of Between You and Me

There are two main characters:

Caleb Stolz, a 30’s Amish farmer and horse expert. He’s raising his teenage niece and around 10-year-old nephew at the family farm. Caleb’s brother and sister-in-law were murdered, and Caleb had promised to raise their children within the Amish community. 

Reese Powell is a 4^th year medical student doing a trauma rotation at a major hospital in Philadelphia. Her doctor parents run a successful pediatric practice and Reese is expected to get into an elite residency program and then join them in their work. 

The Zone 1 Protagonist is referred to as The Orphan. That fits Caleb because his mother abandoned the family when he was a young boy. The father was abusive to her. Caleb’s brother protected him from his father’s abuse. So, it was another big loss when Caleb’s brother was killed. 

Caleb was estranged from his parents and felt like an orphan. His niece and nephew are literal orphans after their parents die so it is important to Caleb to take on that role of parent and protector of them. 

Reese is no literal orphan but feels somewhat separated from her parents because of their high expectations that she follows their career choice of being a part of their pediatric practice. Go to the best schools and get into the most prestigious resident programs. She’s realizing that’s not a life choice that will be fulfilling and make her happy. 

The Ordinary World

The setting of Zone 1 illustrates the Ordinary Worlds of the main characters. Caleb’s Amish community and beliefs have dominated his life and work. Though we learn that he had plans to leave the community for good. Teens can experience the outside world during a time call rumspringa. 

Most want to experience driving cars, smoking cigarettes and weed, listening to loud music and going to shopping malls and movies.  Caleb went to the library and read books not available in his community. He wanted to learn and not live the Amish life. His brother’s deathbed request changed that. Asking Caleb to raise his children in the Amish way. 

Jacob is seriously injured in a farming accident. His recovery forced Caleb to leave the community for life-saving help. This brings him to the Exotic world of a modern city. 

By getting to know Caleb and Jacob, Reese learns about the lifestyle of the Amish and other rural people. Making her more aware of a rural and simpler type of medicine. Different from the sterile work she would do as a pediatric surgeon. 

Landmark scenes: The Inciting Incident

The Inciting Incident kick starts the story. 

Jacob is seriously injured when his arm gets caught in some farming machinery while helping neighbors with their corn crop. The only hope to save his life is to take a rescue helicopter flight to a major hospital for immediate care. 

Caleb feels he must go with Jacob. Jacob has never been outside of his Amish community. It is against Amish rules to fly in a helicopter and that goes against Caleb’s father’s expectations. 

Reese Powell is on the trauma team at the hospital. She grew up in the big city and has no real knowledge of Amish life. Meeting Caleb and working on Jacob before he goes to surgery are her Inciting Incident. She is drawn to help this man who is clueless about hospitals and how to navigate the terrible injuries Jacob has and dealing with the hospital staff. 

The Defining Moment

The Defining Moment is another Landmark scene. It’s often a conversation between the protagonist and another character that brings clarity and focus to an Internal dilemma. 

Reese and Leroy, a neighbor in her apartment building, have this conversation. They are in her apartment, and he points out the lack of any social life noted on her calendar hanging on the refrigerator. No dates. Not even just meeting friends for fun. 

Reese realizes she doesn’t really have any friends. Just work and the people there. Nothing personal. Leroy becomes more important to her and Caleb because he grew up Amish and knows their ways and how to talk in their language. He left that life and is a physical therapist at the hospital. 

Caleb will stay with Leroy during Jacob’s early recovery at the hospital. Leroy becomes a translator of the foreign worlds that Reese and Caleb need to learn. He is an encourager of them building a relationship. 

Reese and Caleb spend time together. Learning what it’s like to enjoy the company of another person and discover a way to love and accept who they each are to themselves. 

The Call to Action

Jacob is fearful of being alone in this strange place and with his arm amputated. Caleb can’t leave him, so he agrees to stay with Leroy, across the hall from Reese. 

Both Reese and Caleb feel an attraction to each other. In this big city and hospital and feeling this attraction to a non-Amish woman is so different than he’s ever felt before. This Call to Action is allowing himself to be close to a woman. 

The First Plot Point

The First Plot Point is an event or occurrence that flips the story toward a new direction. 

Caleb and Reese go on a date together. He’s staying away from his Amish community and willing to learn about the Exotic world in Philadelphia but also the possibility of a relationship with a woman. She’s learning to open up and enjoy being with a man and have some fun together. 

Story Dissection: One Zone At a Time 

Starting with one Zone of the story makes the process much less intimidating. Then moving to that next quarter and focusing in on it. Looking for the Landmark scenes in each Zone. Seeing how Zone 1 leads into Zone 2 and recognizing if there are holes and planning how to add to or make changes in Zone 1 to help it do its job better. 

Making the Process Personal

In my Safari class, I ask students to find the four Zones of their Work In Progress (WIP). It helps them get a good look at where they are and decide what changes and additions or editing may be needed, depending upon the genre of their story. This process gives them a big picture look at where they are, verses where they need to be when the story is complete. This gives them goals to work on during the class and beyond. 

Pick Up That Story Scalpel and Give Dissection a Try

Is there a book or show you would enjoy dissecting?

For me, the new Ballard series on Prime has these fascinating characters I want to dig in to. I love police procedurals and this one is based upon a character from Michael Connelly’s Bosch novels. 

About Lisa

A veteran teacher, as well as certified counselor, Lisa's passion for teaching met her love of writing contemporary, young adult fiction. A native Texan, her stories take place in Texas with strong, smart female protagonists in an ethnically diverse cast of characters. Lisa writes what she knows, what she lives, and what she cares about.

After not finding the writing classes she needed, Lisa spent several years on a deep study of story structure. She then merged her passions into a powerful and well-loved online course Story Structure Safari. She has joined the staff at Deleyna Marr’s No Stress Writing Academy  where she is developing new classes. Her Creating A Constellation of Characters is available there now. An updated Story Structure Safari will be available in 2026. Dissecting Creative Guides will be expanded into a class in 2025. 

by Penny C. Sansevieri

In the world of book marketing, authors are often dazzled by the allure of bestseller campaigns, major media coverage, and influencer partnerships. These high-visibility strategies certainly have their place, but they're built upon something far less glamorous yet infinitely more important: foundational marketing elements. 

Foundational elements, while seemingly unsexy are critical components that can make or break a book's success.

5 Foundational Elements

Your Amazon Retail Page

The cornerstone of foundational marketing starts with your Amazon retail page. This digital storefront is where most book sales happen, yet surprisingly, many authors fail to fully optimize this crucial platform. 

From professional book descriptions that focus on buyer psychology to utilizing all available features like the "Look Inside" function, author bio sections, and editorial reviews - these elements signal to potential buyers that you're serious about your work. When readers land on your page, they make split-second decisions based on what they see. 

An incomplete or amateur-looking Amazon page immediately undermines trust, regardless of how brilliant your actual content might be.

Your Professional Author Website “Must-Have”

Another foundational element that cannot be overlooked is a professional author website with a dedicated media page. This doesn't need to be elaborate - even a simple, clean one-page site is better than nothing. 

The website serves as your home base, a place where media contacts, readers, and industry professionals can learn more about you and your work. For authors seeking media attention, a media page is particularly crucial. It provides journalists and producers with easy access to your background, talking points, and previous media appearances. 

Without this foundation, high-level media outreach becomes significantly more challenging, as media professionals have nowhere to verify your credibility or access materials they need.

Your Email List

Email lists represent perhaps the most powerful direct connection between authors and their readers. As highlighted in my podcast, one traditionally published author who transitioned to independent publishing managed to generate 7,000 ratings and reviews within 48 hours of release - all through strategic use of her email list. 

Unlike social media, where algorithms control who sees your content, email provides direct access to people who have explicitly expressed interest in your work. Many authors struggle with what to include in newsletters, but even simple updates about writing progress, behind-the-scenes insights, or personal reflections can foster connection with readers who become advocates for your work.

Your Reviews

Reviews are another critical foundation that directly impacts sales. Contemporary readers rely heavily on social proof when making purchasing decisions. Books with few or no reviews are often passed over, regardless of quality. 

A strategic approach to gathering honest reviews through advance readers, review teams, and thoughtful outreach can dramatically improve a book's visibility and credibility. Our podcast emphasizes that passivity is not an option - authors must actively develop and implement review strategies rather than hoping reviews will materialize organically.

Your Social Media Presence

Social media presence, while not mandatory for every author, is another foundational element that should be approached strategically. The key is consistency rather than omnipresence. It's better to maintain one active, engaged platform than to spread yourself thin across multiple neglected accounts. 

For many genres and author goals, some social media presence is beneficial for connecting with readers, building community, and sharing updates. Authors should identify which platforms align best with their target audience and focus their efforts accordingly, rather than feeling pressured to be everywhere at once.

Final Thoughts

The most compelling argument for investing in these foundational elements comes when considering return on investment. While many authors eagerly spend thousands on publicity campaigns or advertisements, this money is essentially wasted if the foundational elements aren't in place. 

I often tell authors that "houses built on sand generally don't survive." Each marketing effort builds upon these foundations, and without them, even the most expensive campaigns will yield disappointing results. 

We often share stories of authors who invested heavily in high-level marketing while neglecting basics like author photos or optimized retail pages, only to wonder why sales remained stagnant. 

How many of these elements do you already have in place? Which ones are still in the planning phase? Do you have any questions for Penny? Please share them down in the comments!

About Penny

Penny C. Sansevieri, is a powerhouse in the publishing industry. As the Founder and CEO of Author Marketing Experts, Inc., she has revolutionized book marketing, shaping the careers of authors and guiding them to bestseller status. Penny's influence is undeniable—named one of New York Metropolitan Magazine's Top Influencers of 2019, she's known for her cutting-edge Amazon campaigns and innovative strategies that catapult exceptional books onto bestseller lists. She is also the author of 24 books. To learn more about how Penny can help you amplify your book’s exposure, visit her website at: www.amarketingexpert.com

Tune into her podcast at: www.amarketingexpert.com/podcast

Image Credits

Featured Image purchased from DepositPhotos.

Second image by Darwin Laganzon from Pixabay

Final image by Stefan Schweihofer from Pixabay

By Deleyna Marr

In Part One, we explored how SEO changed the way we write. In Part Two, we looked at how GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) is shifting how readers discover stories in an AI-driven world. But what comes next?

Let’s talk about what it means to build a sustainable future as an author, even as bots outnumber humans online and discovery tools keep evolving.

The End of the Open Web?

Once upon a time, the internet felt like a wide-open frontier. Authors built blogs, linked to one another, and hoped search engines would help curious readers stumble onto their words. For a while, that worked. Sometimes it was annoying and hard, took up too much of our energy, but it worked.

Now things are changing. GEO is here, and it’s reshaping how people use the Internet. Instead of browsing, they’re asking AI tools for answers. Those tools often summarize without ever pointing readers back to the original source.

Traffic is vanishing. Blogs with great content are seeing major drops in visits. Not because people aren’t interested, but because they’re not even seeing the page.

For years, authors played the SEO game. We stuffed in keywords. We blogged on tight schedules. We bent our creative work around what we thought the algorithm wanted.

And here’s the worst part: It didn’t really work well for fiction. It just burned us out.

I’ve seen the same thing happen in other industries. Ever looked up a recipe online and found what you needed, but had to scroll through ads, life stories, and endless paragraphs on the history of mozzarella before reaching the actual ingredients? That was SEO at work. Recipe writers padded their content to rank better and earn ad revenue. But now, with GEO, those same tactics are turning people away. And the ads? They aren’t generating nearly the income they used to.

It’s time for a new strategy.

Human Connection Is the New (or Original) Discovery Engine

Readers trust other readers. And that trust? That’s our new marketing secret weapon.

Word of mouth has always been gold, but now it’s the whole mine. Enthusiasm spreads faster than any search result. Connections like a book club email, a social post from a friend, or a chat in a fan group help stories get discovered.

Let readers become signal boosters and cheerleaders. When someone loves our work, they’ll talk about it. They’ll carry it farther than any algorithm could.

From Content to Connection: New Paths Forward

So what works now?

• Newsletters: Still the most direct path to our people. Talk to them like friends. Our email list may be the greatest asset for our careers.
• Fan spaces: Create or join reader communities on Facebook, Discord, or elsewhere.
• Voice-first platforms: Substack and Patreon are great examples. These are places where our unique tone can shine instead of being flattened by formulas.
• Collaboration: Bundles, co-author promos, group giveaways. We don’t have to do marketing all alone. Working together gives us strength.

These aren’t just tools. They’re ways to stay human in an increasingly automated space.

Your Brand Is Your Voice

You don’t need a fancy brand kit or logo. You need you.

In a sea of auto-generated sameness, your humanity stands out. Your sense of humor. Your turn of phrase. Your quirks and quiet moments. Those squirrels and plot twists that delight your readers.

That’s what readers remember. That’s what makes them stick around.

We don’t have to reach everyone. We just have to reach our people, our ideal readers.

The Future Isn’t in the Feed

Social media still has a role, but it’s definitely not what it used to be. Algorithms change daily. Platforms throttle reach unless you spend money on ineffective advertising. And soon, AI agents may bypass those feeds entirely.

But we don’t have to chase that chaos.

We can build spaces where people choose to come and find us. Where they trust what they see. Where they stay.

Keep Writing. Keep Loving the Work.

We’ve weathered SEO. We’re navigating GEO. And we still have the most important thing: a voice that can touch a human heart.

This shift isn’t an ending. It’s an opportunity. We don’t have to write for bots anymore. We get to write from our hearts, from our joy, and to our readers.

Keep going. Keep telling the stories only you can tell.

Build a future where fiction comes alive and readers are delighted to discover amazing new story worlds and websites.

What do you want your readers to feel when they finish one of your books? And how will you make sure they get the chance to read it?

About Lisa

Lisa Norman's passion has been writing since she could hold a pencil. While that is a cliché, she is unique in that her first novel was written on gum wrappers. As a young woman, she learned to program and discovered she has a talent for helping people and computers learn to work together and play nice. When she's not playing with her daughter, writing, or designing for the web, she can be found wandering the local beaches.

Lisa writes as Deleyna Marr and is the owner of No Stress Writing Academy. She also runs Heart Ally Books, LLC, an indie publishing firm.

Interested in learning more from Lisa? Sign up for her newsletter or check out her school, No Stress Writing Academy, where she teaches social media, organization, technical skills, and marketing for authors!

Top image from depositphotos.