The Marshall Plan® for Novel Writing    by Evan Marshall & Martha Jewett Order:  USA  Can F+W Media, 2010 (1998) Hardcover, Paperback, e-Book Read an Excerpt     Reviewed by Lyn Seippel The Marshall Plan® For Novel Writing is now an eBook. Even if you have the hard copy, having the eBook on your computer is handy. The Marshall Plan® is a 16-step blueprint for getting your novel written quickly. These steps are broken down into five sections. The first tries to help with deciding what to write and which genre is best for you. Most writers already have an idea in mind when they buy this type of book, but just in case you don't, Marshall explains how to decide. Marshall breaks down the genres, and goes a step further by helpfully breaking each down into different sub-classifications. There are a surprising number of different types of books under each genre. Section two, the Complete Guide to Plotting, guides the reader through taking a story idea and making it into a plot. Secondary plots, building characters, goals for both the protagonist and the villain, and every other aspect of novel writing are listed. The last section on marketing is one of the most important. The thing to remember is that you don't have to take all the suggestions. Pick and choose which are helpful to you. If you're a seat-of-the-pants writer, all of the planning and templates won't appeal, but there's more to the book than just Marshall's blueprint. The synopsis information included in the writing plan is a good example, not to mention the many useful tips that make writing easier. Use what works for you. Review of The Marshall Plan® Novel Writing Software: This software is a template for pulling your story together into a novel. Just enter the information for your novel and the software, using the templates from Marshall's book, will come up with the scenes needed and where to put them. The novel structures itself. Short explanations give the user highlights from the book that will help complete the templates properly. These explanations are just summaries of the information given in the book so you'll still need it. Also included is a glossary of terms and a list of unusual names. The glossary is helpful, but the names included in Naming Your Characters are so bizarre that they are unlikely to be useful. The software doesn't include files where you can actually write the book. The templates are an outline or blueprint of the book. If you liked the book, you’ll probably like the software. For more information, visit Marshall's website. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more NonFiction books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews