James Patterson MasterClass Review: Is It Worth It In 2024

MasterClass is an online education platform that brings in experts in many fields to teach online courses on various subjects such as cooking, creative writing, filmmaking, acting, and more.

Today, however, we’ll talk about writing PR, with a special focus on the award-winning author and the writer of 19 consecutive NY Times best-selling books, James Patterson. He has prepared a Masterclass for aspiring writers looking for inspiration and industry insights.

James Patterson Masterclass review is all about books and education about everything.

In the following article, we’ll present an overview of James Patterson’s Masterclass, the pros and cons, and who’s this online writing class ideal for. Let’s begin!

Who is James Patterson

You might have heard the name James Patterson if you love reading novels and books. 

He is one of the world’s best-selling authors and has written 147 novels since 1976, 144 of which are New York Times Best Sellers. He also holds the Guinness Book of World Records for being the first author to sell one million Ebooks on Amazon. 

He’s an incredibly prolific writer. Some titles you may be familiar with are Along Came a Spider, Maximum Ride, Alex Cross, The President is Missing, Honeymoon, and many more.

That said, James Patterson is one of the most eligible people to teach writing and certainly an author you might want to hear a thing or two from about the industry.

Inside James Patterson’s MasterClass

James Patterson Masterclass has 22 videos, ranging between 3 and 17 minutes long. In total, the class has about 4 hours of content. 

On top of that, you also get class workbooks, which sum up every lesson and offer different assignments and extra materials. You get notes containing the most significant points of each lesson. There’s also a community hub where you can join discussion boards with others who have also taken the course. 

Aside from those, you are also eligible to get access to office hours, where you can submit questions to James Patterson. Even if he doesn’t respond to your question, you get access to live recordings of him answering other people’s questions. So, one way or another, you’ll absolutely get access to helpful insights from the author.

Here’s what the lesson plan looks like:

Introduction
Passion + Habit
Raw Ideas
Plot
Research
Outlines: Part 1
Outlines: Part 2
Writer’s Block
Creating Characters
First Lines
Writing Dialogue
Building A Chapter
Writing Suspense
Ending The Book
Editing
Working With A Co-Author
Getting Published
Book Titles And Covers
Marketing The Patterson Way
Hollywood
Move Personal Story Forward
Closing

What I Liked About The James Patterson MasterClass

I was excited to learn from a famous author like Patterson. His idea of keeping chapters short was new to me and got me thinking differently about how I write.

Ideas

James highlights Arthur Koestler’s book, “The Act of Creation,” reminiscing about his time at J. Walter Thompson and how it discussed the generation of new ideas not as spontaneous occurrences but rather as amalgamations of existing, disparate ideas.

He shares a few tools to facilitate creative thinking: “Inspiration Finder” nudges you to venture beyond familiar terrains, while “What-if-inator” sparks imagination by proposing alternate historical scenarios. Additionally, James stresses the importance of having a dedicated space, like a file folder, to compile and sift through working ideas, aiding in the discovery of themes or starting points for further exploration.

Outlines – My Learnings

• Outlining Importance: Essential for organized, coherent storytelling.
• Iterative Process: Embrace revisions to refine the narrative.
• Character-Driven Approach: Useful when facing initial hurdles.
• Flexible Perfection: “TBD” markings keep the momentum going.
• Creative Freedom: Encouraged in initial drafts, refined later.
• Feedback Incorporation: Valuable for uncovering blind spots.
• Pacing and Patience: Dedicate time for thoughtful outlining and revisions.

Writers Block – I Struggled With This

1. Good Train Technique: Navigate through writer’s block by progressing with the draft, marking challenging parts as “TBD” to revisit later.
2. Optimal Noise Levels: Moderate to low music levels can boost productivity, adjusting volume might enhance focus.
3. Exploring Creative Routines: Diving into the daily rituals of other creatives can provide inspiration and new perspectives on managing one’s creative process.

Pros and Cons

What I Liked About the James Patterson MasterClass

Here are some advantages of taking James Patterson’s course on MasterClass.

• Actionable Advice

One of the most admirable things about this class is that it gives you practical and actionable advice. A big disappointment in many courses is that people only teach you how to write vaguely and expect you to figure it out. In this class, however, James Patterson is anything but vague. He tells you how to outline and walks you through his process. He also shows some of the outlines he used for his books and explains why they work and how he chose them.

• Broken down into easily digestible information

The class is suitable for people who prefer to learn by digesting small bits of information at a time. This writing course breaks down novel writing into manageable chunks. James doesn’t group items but discusses them individually, which can be very helpful. 

• Lessons are well-rounded

Regarding the lesson plan, it’s safe to say that the lessons are well-rounded. James tries to cover everything you need to know about the writing process.

• Inspiration

In his Masterclass, James Patterson shares his wisdom on storytelling and how to keep a writer’s attention. He’s been successful at what he does and has been doing this for decades. Therefore, he has many insights about how to do it, where he failed, and how he succeeded. This might be a great inspiration for upcoming writers who need a little extra push.

What Could Be Improved

Some of the course’s disadvantages include:

• Not enough detail

James Patterson provides many details, but there are times when his explanation isn’t enough. For example, he goes into great detail when explaining his outlining process but doesn’t go into as much detail when explaining things like drafting. 

• Meant for intermediate and advanced writers

If you’re considering joining James Patterson’s writing classes with hopes that you’ll learn how to write a novel from scratch, this might not be a good idea for you. James Patterson’s Masterclass course offers great insights and information but isn’t ideal for newbie authors.

• Some principles given are too common

If you rook other writing courses or have read different resources about becoming a professional writer, you might be disappointed. James teaches many principles, but most are not innovative, and chances are you’ve probably heard them from other authors and writers.

Who is This Class for

If you are or want to be a romance or a fantasy writer, this might not be the class for you.  Another thing to keep in mind is that this is not a class about learning how to write lyrically.

Also, this course won’t teach you how to write a best-seller by itself. To write a best-seller, you need to have some natural instincts. And those are required to be able to absorb all the information he’ll be sharing with his students.

At the end of the day, you’ll need to assess if you’re ready to chew all the wisdom and knowledge James puts into this class. If not, you can resort to having external basic training in writing skills before jumping here.

How Much Does James Patterson’s Masterclass Cost

You may be wondering how much the James Patterson Masterclass costs.

Subscribing to the MasterClass platform gives you a year of access to all the lessons offered on the website, including James Patterson’s class.

The annual membership has two plans: Individual at $10/month (billed annually) for one device, and Duo at $15/month (billed annually) for two devices. Both plans offer access to 180+ classes and bonus content, however only Duo and above offer offline viewing.

Users’ Experience 

Here’s what users have been saying online about James Patterson’s Masterclass. 

Review: James Patterson’s MasterClass Course on Writing
—Daily Writing Tips

“If you’ve not come across MasterClass before, it’s a very slick website that offers courses from some huge names in the world of writing (and in quite a few other fields too).” https://t.co/H8wUnaUQc2 pic.twitter.com/KftKu4zOew

— Christopher Ferebee (@caferebee) February 5, 2019

-Christopher Ferebee (Comment from Twitter)

I'm really enjoying the James Patterson @masterclass on #amwriting

Good stuff pic.twitter.com/DlZXDzFFLv

— ⚾ J. Daniel ⚾ (@JDaniel2033) December 4, 2019

-J Daniel (Comment from Twitter)

-Kate Cavanaugh (Comment from Youtube)

Alternative Writing Classes Available

Seeking more than what James Patterson’s MasterClass offers? Dive into a sea of storytelling with classes from seasoned authors ready to guide you! Whether it’s spinning thrilling tales, crafting a heartfelt novel, or expressing yourself through poetry, there’s a class waiting to spark your creativity. Explore this list and let your writing adventure begin!

My Overall Experience and Conclusion

Taking James Patterson’s MasterClass was like getting a peek into how he plans his stories. He talks a lot about outlining starting to write, which I found helpful.

The lessons are short, about 10 minutes each, which is good if you’re busy, but not so great if you want to dive deep into a topic. I liked some of his tips, but at times, I wished he had given more examples to explain his points better.

Is James Patterson’s MasterClass worth it?

Yes, James Patterson’s MasterClass is definitely worth it. With his years of experience as a bestselling author, Patterson provides valuable insights and practical tips that can greatly benefit aspiring writers.

Conclusion

Overall, James Patterson’s Masterclass worth is quite thorough and includes various principles and ideas presented in a concise and easy-to-follow way. As explained above, there are some drawbacks to the course; however, if you’re an aspiring writer or a huge fan of James Patterson who wants to know more about how he crafts masterpieces, this course will be entertaining and helpful.

Frequently Asked Questions