What writers can learn from James Patterson

Each week, Evan Peterson rounds up stories from across the Web that scribes of all stripes should check out. You can learn about writing from James Patterson and Ernest Hemingway, how grammar can be fun, and are men more sought after by book publishers?

Learning from James Patterson: Whether or not you’re a fan of his writing, James Patterson has something to teach writers about telling a story. Joyce Maynard, an accomplished author in her own right, took Patterson’s 3-hour course through MasterClass and came away with a new appreciation for Patterson. She also gained some new knowledge about writing. Writers are traditionally suckers for structure and grammar. Patterson says don’t worry about it so much:

A person can write the most beautiful, lyrical sentences (as James Patterson will be the first to tell you, he does not), but if the story doesn’t grab a reader by the throat, and—having grabbed on—hold her there, none of the rest may matter all that much.