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Sisters in Crime · Talk Resources
Both tools from the talk are below — no signup required.
The scene-by-scene mapping template I use to chart a novel's tension arc — annotate it as you read or draft.
Open the SpreadsheetA printable one-page worksheet for applying the EKG method to any novel you're reading or writing.
Download PDFThe Blue Garret Newsletter
The Blue Garret is my twice-monthly letter for fiction writers: craft and structure — including my Novel Study analyses, like today's EKG method — honest notes from the editing trenches, and encouragement to keep your own work alive. Plus a Thing of Joy in every issue, because we all need one.
Come join us!
You’re joining The Blue Garret, a twice-monthly newsletter about craft, editing, and the writing life. Unsubscribe anytime.
Three newsletter issues that apply EKG-style analysis to contemporary fiction.
Craft Analysis
A close read of how Cosby keeps both the plot and the emotional stakes moving simultaneously.
Read the Issue →Craft Analysis
How Okorafor builds a layered, multi-perspective structure that still coheres with a single emotional pulse.
Read the Issue →Craft Analysis
How McEwan uses a confessional narrator to control what the reader knows and when — and how that creates dread.
Read the Issue →I’m Kristen Tate — a developmental editor and the author of Novel Study, a close-reading project examining how contemporary novelists construct captivating fiction. I hold a PhD in English literature and work with writers at all stages, from first drafts to final polish.
Learn more about Novel Study and my editorial work at thebluegarret.com/novelstudy.