Is It Worth It? Story Engineering

Story Engineering by Larry Brooks and Clue. Photo by Kate Ota 2024

I'd had my eye on Story Engineering by Larry Brooks for a while before I came across it in a second hand shop. My copy is covered in pencil underlining the most random words and phrases, but it's clear where the previous owner stopped reading, as the pencil disappears. A bit tragic that this other author never finished, but it was a win for me, because I got to have this book at last.

Overview
Story Engineering: Mastering the 6 Core Competencies of Successful Writing is 278 pages (paperback) of explanations of what a story needs, why it needs that, and tips on execution. The six competencies themselves aren't shocking to seasoned writers, but each section discuss a competency in depth, offering examples or exercises. The book ages itself with references to the Da Vinci Code often and a joke about Bill Clinton, but otherwise the advice is fairly timeless. 

My Experience
I highlighted something in most chapters, but the section I've returned to is about character. This book explained one, two, and three dimensional characters in a very practical manner that I'd never seen anywhere before. It changed how I'll see character dimensions forever, and will hopefully help me write deeper ones. A lot of the rest of the information, though useful, was information I've seen before. Story beats and what's happening in them, what is an idea vs a concept, voice, etc. All great reminders, but not exclusive to this text.
My only complaint is that the book hyped itself a lot. It often repeated how the six competencies would make me a better writer--and then not explain what they were, and would go on about how important they were with no other explanation. It happened often enough at the end of chapters that I'd just skip ahead to the next one.

Is It Worth It?
I paid $8 for my used copy from a locally owned independent bookstore. That alone is worth it. If you're looking for a book that gives an overview of what makes a solid story and guides you on how to get there, this is a great option. It's not too in depth on any one topic, so it feels more introductory than I'd hoped, but there were still valuable ideas that helped me as a writer. Overall, I'd say this is worth the read to improve your writing craft.

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Have you read Story Engineering? What about the sequel, which is on my TBR, Story Physics? Let's discuss in the comments!