A Wordsmith's Guide: Planning the Perfect Plot by Elizabeth M. Hurst

Thursday, 16 October 2025

A Wordsmith's Guide: Planning the Perfect Plot by Elizabeth M. Hurst

Series: The Wordsmith's Guides #4

Release Date: 2nd September 2025

Genres: Non-Fiction / Reference

* DO YOU STRUGGLE TO FINISH WRITING A NOVEL?
* DO YOU RUN OUT OF MOMENTUM BECAUSE YOU DON'T KNOW WHERE YOUR STORY IS GOING?

The Wordsmith’s Guide to Planning the Perfect Plot is your trusted companion for turning story ideas into structured, compelling narratives. In this fourth instalment of the Wordsmith’s Guides series, Elizabeth M. Hurst takes you through popular plotting methods—including the Snowflake Method, Save the Cat Beat Sheet, and The Inside Outline—helping you choose the right approach for your writing style. You’ll also find practical advice on troubleshooting common pitfalls, crafting satisfying endings, and keeping your plan adaptable as your story evolves.

Inside, you’ll discover:

Clear explanations of proven plotting methods
Guidance on choosing the right structure for your novel
Tips for overcoming plot issues and staying on track
Advice on writing satisfying, well-rounded endings
A practical appendix full of tools and templates to support your planning process

Whether you're a planner, a pantser, or somewhere in between, Planning the Perfect Plot will help you shape your novel with clarity and confidence.

As someone who has been at this writing lark for a number of years, although still unpublished, I am always on the lookout for good books about the subject of writing. The opportunity to review this book couldn't have come at a better time for me. I have just started writing novel number 4 and already my writing has stalled. Usually a plotter, I just jumped straight into this one and now the creative side of my brain has gone on strike.

Elizabeth Hurst's book offers brilliant insight into the many different forms of plotting and I have now realised that I'm more of a Plantster! A bit of a plotter / panster hybrid. Who knew! While reading through this really helpful guide to plotting I was making lots of notes in relation to my own writing that I feel will be so useful. The guide offers practical advice that really does seem manageable and I can feel the panic I was having over my current work in progress ebbing away slightly. The book is well laid out and easy to jump back into if you are stalling over certain elements of plotting. It's definitely one of those books I will refer back to time and time again. The book is part of a series that I will seriously think about adding to my reading pile. Thank you Elizabeth Hurst for helping me move on with my writing with this really informative guide. The only thing that would make it even better is if it was in print form to add to my bookshelf. A recommended read.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Elizabeth was born and bred in the picturesque harbour town of Whitehaven in the northwest of England, where the long, wet winters moulded her into a voracious reader of fiction to escape the dismal weather.

She graduated with a degree in Business Studies and a string of jobs followed, after which she finally settled in the automotive industry, where she spent twelve happy years.

Having already started writing around the age of 40, she had begun to dream of a more creative lifestyle and set about creating her freelance editing and proofreading business, EMH Editorial Services. In 2018, she quit the corporate world and concentrated her energy full-time towards her love of the written word.

Elizabeth now lives with her husband in the warm and sunny south of France, where the wine is cheaper than the water, and the cats spend their days hunting lizards and dreaming of the birds that roost on the roof.

Social Media Links

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ElizabethMHurstAuthor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lizhurstauthor/

Website: https://elizabethhurstauthor.com/

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