Marshall has held senior editorial positions at
Houghton Mifflin, Ariel Books,
New American Library,
Everest House and
Dodd, Mead, where he acquired national and international bestsellers.[4] He was also a correspondent for Writer's Digest and covered commercial fiction. He wrote cover stories on blockbuster and bestselling novels[5][6] and how to find and work with agents.[7] Marshall's articles have appeared in reference anthologies and collected works.[8][9] He is often interviewed for his expertise in novel writing, and helping novel writers.[10][11]
Crushing Crystal, Kensington Books, New York, NY, 2004.
Toasting Tina, Kensington Books, New York, NY, 2003.
Icing Ivy, Kensington Books, New York, NY, 2002.
Stabbing Stephanie, Kensington Books, New York, NY, 2001.
Hanging Hannah, Kensington Books, New York, NY, 2000.
Missing Marlene, Kensington Books, New York, NY, 1999.
The Marshall Plan Book Series
The Marshall Plan for Novel Writing: A 16-Step Program Guaranteed to Take You From Idea to Completed Manuscript, Writer's Digest Books, 1998.[14]
The first book in the series describes novel writing as a 16-step process, taking the novel's intended finished length into account from the beginning. Marshall focuses specifically on
fiction, identifying it as the writing genre most likely to be picked up by a publisher. Drawing from
Dwight V. Swain and
Jack Bickham's techniques, Marshall identifies two core plotting units: the action section and the reaction section.[15] Marshall recommends the number, and the type of action and reaction sections in relation to a novel's length. He also recommends the corresponding story arc with plot points all in a specific order, the number and type of viewpoint characters, the type of opposition, and other elements of plot and character development.
The second book in the series concentrates on the fundamental details of producing a novel. The first half of the book assists the writer in building characters, developing plot and setting goals. The second half is the Plan Blueprint, a 58-page section of fill-in-the-blank sheets to help writers produce a novel. The marketing information included focuses on the manuscript itself, how it should look, how many pages, paper weight, etc.
The Marshall Plan for Getting Your Novel Published[17]
The third book in the series focuses on how to take the next step of sending work to editors and agents, and promoting a novel.
Marshall was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and raised in
Sharon, Massachusetts. He graduated magna cum laude from
Boston College. He is married to Martha Jewett,[21] a business book editor, and literary agent who manages The Marshall Plan software. They have two sons.
^Evan Marshall, "Six Classic Elements of the Bestseller," Writer's Digest, November 1988, 28-32.
^Evan Marshall, "Guide to Agents," Writer's Digest, September 1989, 22-25.
^"Producing a Knockout Novel Synopsis" in Meg Leder and Jack Heffron, eds.
The Complete Handbook of Novel Writing, Writer's Digest Books, F&W Publications, Cincinnati, OH, 2002.
^"How to Write Blockbuster Novels," reprinted in Thomas Clark, ed.
The Writer's Digest to Good Writing, Writer's Digest Books, F&W Publications, Cincinnati, OH, 1994.