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Plotto: The Master Book of All Plots
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Plotto: The Master Book of All Plots Paperback -

by William Cook; Foreword by Paul Collins

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Reader reviews for Plotto: The Master Book of All Plots

From the publisher

In the 1920s, dime store novelist William Wallace Cook painstakingly diagramed and cataloged his personal writing method--"Purpose, opposed by Obstacle, yields Conflict"--for the instruction and illumination of his fellow authors. His effort resulted in an astonishing 1,462 plot scenarios, and Plotto: The Master Book of All Plots was born. A how-to manual for plot, hailed by the Boston Globe as "First aid to troubled riters," Plotto influenced Erle Stanley Gardner, author of the Perry Mason books, and a young Alfred Hitchcock.

At first glance, Plotto operates with a machinelike logic, but from its endless amalgamations writers will find inspiration for narratives with limitless possibility. Open the book to any page to find plots you may never have known existed--from morose cannibals to gun-wielding preachers to phantom automobiles.

Equal parts reference guide and historical oddity, Plotto is sure to amaze and delight writers for another hundred years.

Details

  • Title Plotto: The Master Book of All Plots
  • Author William Cook; Foreword by Paul Collins
  • Binding Paperback
  • Edition Reprint
  • Pages 480
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Tin House Books
  • Publication date November
  • ISBN 9781941040553 / 1941040551
  • Weight 1.34 lbs (0.61 kg)
  • Dimensions 8.5 x 5.5 x 1.5 in (21.59 x 13.97 x 3.81 cm)
  • Category Language Arts / Linguistics / Literacy
  • Library of Congress subjects Plots (Drama, novel, etc.)
  • Library of Congress Catalogue Number 2017299334
  • Dewey Decimal Code 808.394

About the author

William Wallace Cook was born in Marshall, Michigan, in 1867. He was the author of a memoir, The Fiction Factory, as well as dozens of Westerns and science-fiction novels, many of which were adapted into films. He was nicknamed "the man who deforested Canada" for the volume of stories he fed into the pulp-magazine mill. He spent five years composing Plotto before finally publishing it in 1928. Cook died in his hometown of Marshall in 1933.

Paul Collins is a writer specializing in history, memoir, and unusual antiquarian literature. His nine books have been translated into eleven languages, and include Sixpence House: Lost in a Town of Books (2003) and The Murder of the Century: The Gilded Age Crime That Scandalized a City & Sparked the Tabloid Wars (2011). Collins lives in Oregon, where he is chair and professor of English at Portland State University.

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Plotto : The Master Book of All Plots
Stock photo: cover may vary

Plotto : The Master Book of All Plots

by Cook, William

  • Used
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Used
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9781941040553 / 1941040551
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1
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Description:
Tin House Books, LLC. Used - Very Good. Former library copy. Pages intact with possible writing/highlighting. Binding strong with minor wear. Dust jackets/supplements may not be included. Includes library markings. Stock photo provided. Product includes identifying sticker. Better World Books: Buy Books. Do Good.
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Plotto: The Master Book of All Plots
Stock photo: cover may vary

Plotto: The Master Book of All Plots

by Cook, William

  • Used
  • Paperback
Condition
Used
Edition
Reprint
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9781941040553 / 1941040551
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1
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Tin House Books, 2016-11-01. Reprint. paperback. Used: Good. 5.50x1.50x8.50. Buy with confidence. Excellent Customer Service & Return policy.
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A$44.95
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Plotto: The Master Book of All Plots
Stock photo: cover may vary

Plotto: The Master Book of All Plots

by Cook, William

  • Used
  • Very good
  • Paperback
Condition
Very good
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9781941040553 / 1941040551
Quantity available
1
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Item price
A$63.59
A$8.73 Delivery to USA

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Description:
Tin House Books, 2016-11-01. paperback. Very Good. 5x1x8. Very Good text and cover, minor reading wear to text and covers/edges.. US orders shipped via US Mail. International orders shipped via Asendia or DHL. Additional postage may be required on oversize books and sets. NO prison orders.
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Item price
A$63.59
A$8.73 Delivery to USA
Plotto: The Master Book of All Plots
Stock photo: cover may vary

Plotto: The Master Book of All Plots

by Cook, William

  • Used
  • Good
  • Paperback
Condition
Good
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9781941040553 / 1941040551
Quantity available
1
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Item price
A$99.72
Free Delivery to USA

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Description:
paperback. Good. Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items. May be an ex-library book.
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Item price
A$99.72
Free Delivery to USA