I wrote this book for the authors who are obsessed with their favorite stories and who wish they could write stories like their favorite books, and who feel overwhelmed because how could they a first-time or even second-time author ever write something that compares to the book they love so much? And this book is my way of showing you, or showing that person, that it's absolutely possible. Welcome to the Fiction Writing Made Easy podcast. My name is Savannah Gilbo and I'm here to help you write a story that works. I want to prove to you that writing a novel doesn't have to be overwhelming, so each week, I'll bring you a brand new episode with simple, actionable and step-by-step strategies that you can implement in your writing right away. So, whether you're brand new to writing or more of a seasoned author looking to improve your craft, this podcast is for you. So pick up a pen and let's get started.

In today's episode, I'm sharing some very exciting news. At this exact moment, you can pre-order my brand new book, the Story Grid Masterwork Analysis Guide to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. And I'm so excited to share this with you today because if you've been following this podcast for a while, then you know this has been a labor of love. I started this project all the way back in 2017 and it's been put on the shelf multiple times since then, so the fact that I finally get to share it with you today is amazing. I am absolutely in love with the final result and I can't wait to share it with you. If you like the information that I present on this podcast, I think you will really love this book. So today I'm going to talk a little bit about what's inside the book and who it's for, and all of the different pre-order bonuses that are available and things like that.

But first I wanted to share what I told Tim Grawl, who is the CEO of StoryGrid. We were doing an interview for StoryGrid's YouTube channel and he asked me what I took away or what I gained from writing this book, and I said that originally, I really wanted to study Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone because it's one of my favorite books and I just wanted to know what made me love it so much. I wanted to write my own fantasy series and I knew that there was a lot I could learn from JK Rowling. So fast forward all these years later because, like I said, I started this back in 2017 and, for the record, it did not take me seven years to write this book, but it did get shelved multiple times for various reasons and life happened and things like that.

So all these years later, I told Tim that not only do I have a way better understanding of why and how the story works, from the big picture all the way down to every single scene and page, but, more importantly than that, I have gained a ton of confidence in my own ability to write a novel, and that is huge. I didn't really anticipate how much confidence I would gain in my own ability to write a novel, and that is huge. I didn't really anticipate how much confidence I would gain in my own ability to write a book. And I'm telling you this because part of why I'm so excited to share this book with you is so that you can take everything I've learned while studying the first Harry Potter book and apply it to your own writing. So I've literally put everything I've learned while analyzing Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone into this book for you. It's essentially like a study guide for writers, and I'm excited for you to get your hands on it and for you to take all of those lessons I've learned and use it to fuel your own writing, and I hope it gives you that sense of courage and confidence as well. So let me tell you what this book is all about, because I'm sure you're wondering what's in it and what's it all about.

So, like I mentioned, this book is essentially my analysis of why Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone works and what makes it work from a craft perspective. So I use the StoryGrid's tools, like the Action Genre Framework, the Five Commandments of Storytelling and things like that, to show you how and why this story works and what makes it resonate with readers, 25 plus years later after it was originally published. So in the beginning of the book, I walk through a high-level look at the story and I talk through the action genre framework. So things like what makes an action story unique, the key scenes and conventions an action story needs to work and how those show up in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone the 20 skeletal scenes that make up the backbone of the story. So, if you're familiar with the story grid, these are the five commandments for each one of the quadrants. So the inciting incident, the turning point, crisis, climax and resolution for each, the beginning hook, middle buildup, middle breakdown and ending payoff.

If you're not familiar with story grade, don't worry, it's just their way of defining the spine of the story. It's basically plot structure. So I talk through all of that in the introduction and then I talk about world building and the characters that Rowling created and I explain how we're going to analyze each one of the scenes in the book. So it starts very high level and then I literally break down every single scene in the book and share my findings about the scene structure and any other craft element that the scene in particular does a good job with. So, for example, there are certain scenes where Rowling sets up Snape as the red herring to hide what Professor Quirrell is up to. So I call out things like that or little setups that pay off later. So, for example, the chocolate frog card that later tells the kids who Nicholas Flamel is and things like that. And, yeah, there's a breakdown of every single scene in the entire book. That's like that.

So if you love to nerd out about the craft of writing as much as I do, you will absolutely love it. And then, after I go through every single scene, I recap the 10 key takeaways I learned from analyzing this book at the very end. So it is kind of a meaty book. It's not something that you sit down and read in five minutes. It's something you'll probably want to read alongside the Harry Potter book. So you know, read a chapter and then you know, flip over and read my analysis of that chapter and really it's like a peek inside my editor's brain as I explain to you how and why Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone works, and I think the whole draft is around 40 to 50,000 words. So it is a good-sized guide for sure.

Now you might be thinking this sounds cool, but I don't write fantasy, or I'm not writing a book for middle grade readers, or my content genre isn't action. That is totally fine. You will still like this book. If you're someone who wants to see how a character grows incrementally over time, we've called that out in each and every scene. If you want to learn how to write red herrings to misdirect readers from the truth of things, we've shown you exactly how Rowling did that on a scene-by-scene basis. If you want to learn how to make all the details in your story count like an object or a piece of your setting or whatever it is, we've shown you how Rowling does that too. So this is not a book that's just meant for fantasy authors or just for middle grade readers or authors writing in the action content genre. I really do think you will like it and learn something from it, no matter which genre you're writing in.

And the other thing I'll say is that Abigail and I made sure that anyone could read it, whether they're familiar with StoryGrid's tools or not. So whenever we use a StoryGrid term or tool, we have explained what it is or why it's important right there in the book. So if you're worried about that, you do not have to be totally well-versed in StoryGrid's tools or terminology to read this book. We have made it very accessible for all kinds of readers and writers. Now let's talk about pre-order bonuses, because there are a handful of other really cool things you get if you pre-order the book.

So let's say, you go and pre-order the book right now. If you do that and you go to savannahgilbocom forward slash masterwork and input your name and your order number and things like that, you will also get to come to a live two-hour workshop and Q&A with me and Abigail K Perry, where we're going to take you through exactly how we analyze the climactic event of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. So this is the part where Harry and his friends navigate the tunnels under the school, defeat all those challenges and then ultimately face Voldemort in the final chamber. So we're going to talk through all of that, including how we analyzed it, lots of tips for you when it comes to writing your own amazing climactic moment, and then we're going to open up the floor for Q&A so you can ask us anything about the book, the Harry Potter series or writing in general. It's going to be super fun and this is my most favorite bonus so far. So that's just bonus number one.

The second thing you'll get when you pre-order the book is you'll get access to my notes on chapter 11, which is called Quidditch, and it's the all-important midpoint scene. So you're going to get a copy of the chapter with my notes in the margin explaining the structure, how certain things are set up and paid off, how Rowling hides clues in plain sight, how the stakes are raised and so much more. My partner, nathan, was looking at it the other day and he says the document looks like a peak inside of my brain, and he's not wrong. That's exactly what it is. So that's bonus number two. And then bonus number three is an exclusive invite to our virtual book launch party that we're hosting on Zoom. So this is going to be super fun as well.

Abigail and I are going to host our own launch party and everyone who purchases a copy of the book is invited. So we'll hang out on Zoom, do some Q&A, chat about the book and writing in general, and then do some really cool giveaways. And even though I want to give all the details away, I'm not going to spoil anything, but I have the most fun prizes ready for this book launch. So it is going to be a really, really fun time. So you'll get an invite to come join us for that, and you'll also get access to the StoryGrid spreadsheet I use to track the movement of each scene, plus the StoryGrid infographic that shows you on an actual graph how the external plot of the story and the internal character arc moves over the course of the story. It's pretty interesting to look at, especially if you're someone that has both an analytical and a creative brain. So that's all I'm going to share with you for now.

I do have a few other surprises up my sleeve, but the sooner you pre-order, the sooner you'll get access to all of these bonuses Now because you listen to this podcast. I want to put something out there that I think isn't discussed enough, and that is that pre-orders are really important, and again, this means ordering the book before the official publish date, which in this case is July 31st. So if you would be so kind to pre-order my book, this tells the publisher, who in this case is StoryGrid, that people want this book, and what this does is it helps them to know what to do more of and what to prioritize. Abigail and I are rearing and ready to go with her analysis of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and we want to do the whole series, but focusing on book one and two for now. So we are ready to write that book for Chamber of Secrets and to get it in your hands, and for the best shot at making that happen, we need to show StoryGrid, through pre-orders, that there is a demand, that there's desire for this kind of book, before its official release date. So, ultimately, I am asking a favor of you to spend the time now to get the book, even though you have to wait for it to officially come on July 31st, because it means a great deal to my success to get this book into as many hands as possible.

I wrote this book for the authors who are obsessed with their favorite stories and who wish they could write stories like their favorite books and who feel overwhelmed because how could they a first-time or even second-time author ever write something that compares to the book they love so much? And this book is my way of showing you, or showing that person, that it's absolutely possible. You can write a book like the Ones you Love. It's possible, and by deconstructing Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in the way that I have, I'm hoping to prove that to you, and I want this book to find as many people like this as possible and this could even be you, if you relate to what I'm saying. I wish I had a book like this when I first started writing my fantasy series, because I would have spent a lot less time and energy feeling overwhelmed and like my ideas weren't good enough and things like that. So if you can, please pre-order my book.

My goal is to help more aspiring writers find the courage to start writing their books, and in turn, that means more amazing stories will get written and shared with the world, and this is something I'm really, really passionate about, and I know that you are too. That's why you listen to this podcast, and that's probably part of why you want to write books. You know the power that stories can have and the good that stories can do for the world. So please pre-order the book, and if you could help me spread the word about this book, I would truly appreciate it. Now, I know this episode was a little different than what you're used to hearing, but I wanted to share my excitement about this book and why I wrote it, and you know my bigger vision for how I think it can help writers, and I'm equally excited to share all the pre-order bonuses with you as well. So, with that being said, head over toannagilbocom, forward slash masterwork to learn more and to pre-order your copy.

And thank you so much for letting me share this today and for all of your kind words and encouragement. I've seen them flooding the inbox and on social media, and it just means the world to me, so thank you so very much. So that's it for today's episode. As always, thank you so much for tuning in and for showing your support.

If you want to check out any of the links I mentioned in this episode. You can find them in the show notes listed in the description of each episode, inside your podcast player or at savannahgilbocom forward slash podcast. I'd really appreciate it if you took a few seconds to leave a rating and a review. Your ratings and reviews tell Apple that this is a podcast that's worth listening to and, in turn, your reviews will help this podcast get in front of more fiction writers just like you. And while you're there, go ahead and hit that follow button, because there's going to be another brand new episode next week, full of actionable tips, tools and strategies to help you become a better writer. So I'll see you next week and until then, happy writing.