Includes bibliographical references and index.

How to hook the reader -- How to zero in on your point -- I'll feel what he's feeling -- What does your protagonist really want? -- Digging up your protagonist's inner issue -- The story is in the specifics -- Courting conflict, the agent of change -- Cause and effect -- What can go wrong, must go wrong - and then some -- The road from setup to payoff -- Meanwhile, back at the ranch -- The writer's brain on story.

"This guide reveals how writers can take advantage of the brain's hard-wired responses to story to captivate their readers' minds through each plot element"--Provided by publisher.