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Writing Fiction, Tenth Edition: A Guide to Narrative Craft
More than 250,000 copies sold!A creative writer’s shelf should hold at least three essential a dictionary, a style guide, and Writing Fiction. Janet Burroway’s best-selling classic is the most widely used creative writing text in America, and for more than three decades it has helped hundreds of thousands of students learn the craft. Now in its tenth edition, Writing Fiction is more accessible than ever for writers of all levels—inside or outside the classroom.This new edition continues to provide advice that is practical, comprehensive, and flexible. Burroway’s tone is personal and nonprescriptive, welcoming learning writers into the community of practiced storytellers. Moving from freewriting to final revision, the book addresses “showing not telling,” characterization, dialogue, atmosphere, plot, imagery, and point of view. It includes new topics and writing prompts, and each chapter now ends with a list of recommended readings that exemplify the craft elements discussed, allowing for further study. And the examples and quotations throughout the book feature a wide and diverse range of today’s best and best-known creators of both novels and short stories.This book is a master class in creative writing that also calls on us to renew our love of storytelling and celebrate the skill of writing well. There is a very good chance that one of your favorite authors learned the craft with Writing Fiction. And who knows what future favorite will get her start reading this edition?
240 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1987
694 people are currently reading
4,989 people want to read
About the author
Janet Burroway
31 books70 followersJanet Burroway is the author of seven novels including The Buzzards, Raw Silk (runner up for the national Book award), Opening Nights, and Cutting Stone; a volume of poetry, Material Goods; a collection of essays, Embalming Mom; and two children's books, The Truck on the Track and The Giant Jam Sandwich. Her most recent plays, Medea With Child, Sweepstakes, Division of Property, and Parts of Speech, have received readings and productions in New York, London, San Francisco, Hollywood, and various regional theatres. Her Writing Fiction is the most widely used creative writing text in America, and a multi-genre textbook, Imaginative Writing, appeared in 2002. A B.A. from Barnard College and M.A. from Cambridge University, England, she was Yale School of Drama RCA-NBC Fellow 1960-61, and is Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor Emerita at the Florida State University in Tallahassee.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 341 reviews
May 11, 2011
Excellent, with some quibbles--
Used by creative writing programs all over the U.S., this book pretty much covers everything about the craft. The contemporary short stories at the end of each chapter were really good, especially starting from Chapter 4 with "Mule Killers" by Lydia Peelle.
The main focus of the book is literary fiction and is admittedly biased against genre fiction with a convincing reason: "whereas writing literary fiction can teach you how to write good genre fiction, writing genre fiction does not teach you how to write good literary fiction." She further draws a comparison between realism and drawing of still life in painting, which analogy I found to be pretty compelling.
There are limitations to the book, however. First, there are other books that cover certain topics much more in depth, such as characterization (see Swain's Techniques of the Selling Writer), point of view (see Orson Scott Card's Characters and Viewpoint), description (Monica Wood's Description), story and structure (James Scott Bell's Plot & Structure and Donald Maass's books), revision (Self-Editing for Fiction Writers), etc. Also, the students are left to find all the topics implemented in the short stories at the end of each chapter, and yet it's sometimes difficult to pinpoint why exactly those stories were selected. Some guidance on how those stories used the techniques discussed could have been beneficial.
There are other shortcomings. In certain parts, the author also asks questions to the reader without providing answers, which is a shame because feedback is one of the most important factors in learning. The section on "psychic distance" was not entirely clear, especially the examples she gives to illustrate using abstract nouns and generic details increases a sense of distance while using concrete nouns and specific details increases intimacy.
Another misguiding thing about the book is when it covers the "golden" rule of contemporary fiction: show and tell. She pretty much tells you, "Show, don't tell," which is misleading because you should definitely show and tell where appropriate and simple vilification of telling does more damage than good, since telling can be a powerful tool, too, and she doesn't cover when it's good to tell and instead gives the false impression that telling is always bad--a preposterous stance if you stop and think about all those authors who use a hell of a lot of telling (Marquez, Chabon, Murakami) and still manage to be fascinating. She does, however, cover what makes good telling in a wholly different chapter under a different name: summary.
Also, she covers some topic and doesn't tell us any rule of thumb for knowing when it's good to use it. For example, she says filtering should be avoided. But a lot of stories--even those included in the book--use filtering at some point. When is it okay to use any technique she cautions us against? Should we always avoid them? But why are the stories she herself selected use them? So some explanation on that aspect of each technique would have been illuminating.
All in all, this is a really good book on writing, and I think everyone who is serious about the craft should read it.
Good stuff.
Used by creative writing programs all over the U.S., this book pretty much covers everything about the craft. The contemporary short stories at the end of each chapter were really good, especially starting from Chapter 4 with "Mule Killers" by Lydia Peelle.
The main focus of the book is literary fiction and is admittedly biased against genre fiction with a convincing reason: "whereas writing literary fiction can teach you how to write good genre fiction, writing genre fiction does not teach you how to write good literary fiction." She further draws a comparison between realism and drawing of still life in painting, which analogy I found to be pretty compelling.
There are limitations to the book, however. First, there are other books that cover certain topics much more in depth, such as characterization (see Swain's Techniques of the Selling Writer), point of view (see Orson Scott Card's Characters and Viewpoint), description (Monica Wood's Description), story and structure (James Scott Bell's Plot & Structure and Donald Maass's books), revision (Self-Editing for Fiction Writers), etc. Also, the students are left to find all the topics implemented in the short stories at the end of each chapter, and yet it's sometimes difficult to pinpoint why exactly those stories were selected. Some guidance on how those stories used the techniques discussed could have been beneficial.
There are other shortcomings. In certain parts, the author also asks questions to the reader without providing answers, which is a shame because feedback is one of the most important factors in learning. The section on "psychic distance" was not entirely clear, especially the examples she gives to illustrate using abstract nouns and generic details increases a sense of distance while using concrete nouns and specific details increases intimacy.
Another misguiding thing about the book is when it covers the "golden" rule of contemporary fiction: show and tell. She pretty much tells you, "Show, don't tell," which is misleading because you should definitely show and tell where appropriate and simple vilification of telling does more damage than good, since telling can be a powerful tool, too, and she doesn't cover when it's good to tell and instead gives the false impression that telling is always bad--a preposterous stance if you stop and think about all those authors who use a hell of a lot of telling (Marquez, Chabon, Murakami) and still manage to be fascinating. She does, however, cover what makes good telling in a wholly different chapter under a different name: summary.
Also, she covers some topic and doesn't tell us any rule of thumb for knowing when it's good to use it. For example, she says filtering should be avoided. But a lot of stories--even those included in the book--use filtering at some point. When is it okay to use any technique she cautions us against? Should we always avoid them? But why are the stories she herself selected use them? So some explanation on that aspect of each technique would have been illuminating.
All in all, this is a really good book on writing, and I think everyone who is serious about the craft should read it.
Good stuff.
August 11, 2016
This is THE classic how-to on writing fiction.
I used this both as a student and teacher. The examples are incredible.
Update, Aug 2017:
I just bought the 8th edition of this book, and started rereading several chapters again. (I also went back and reread 10 years ago.) Even an experienced writer can really benefit from a quick refresher on techniques I've left behind. We each fall into our own writing ways, doing the stuff that has worked for us, and it's remarkable how many things I'm NOT taking advantage of. Or techniques that I spurned at another time, didn't feel right for me, but I'm in the right place for now.
And exceptional book. A true gift for writers.
Note: It's really expensive, but thank God for used books. I find that if you go back one edition, it's dramatically cheaper. The 9th edition is out, so I bought the 8th for $30. Still pricey for a paperback book, but this is unique, and a steal at that price. (And I imagine they have to pay very high fees for using all the short stories, and long excerpts.) So I'm not getting all the latest stories, but so what? They have changed dramatically from the last edition I got. And I don't really need new ones anyway.)
I used this both as a student and teacher. The examples are incredible.
Update, Aug 2017:
I just bought the 8th edition of this book, and started rereading several chapters again. (I also went back and reread 10 years ago.) Even an experienced writer can really benefit from a quick refresher on techniques I've left behind. We each fall into our own writing ways, doing the stuff that has worked for us, and it's remarkable how many things I'm NOT taking advantage of. Or techniques that I spurned at another time, didn't feel right for me, but I'm in the right place for now.
And exceptional book. A true gift for writers.
Note: It's really expensive, but thank God for used books. I find that if you go back one edition, it's dramatically cheaper. The 9th edition is out, so I bought the 8th for $30. Still pricey for a paperback book, but this is unique, and a steal at that price. (And I imagine they have to pay very high fees for using all the short stories, and long excerpts.) So I'm not getting all the latest stories, but so what? They have changed dramatically from the last edition I got. And I don't really need new ones anyway.)
November 28, 2014
Unhelpful waffle.
September 25, 2012
I cannot in good conscience give this text anything higher than a two. The advice is solid, I'm not going to argue against that, but there is far too much meat in the writing that comes across less as solid writing advice and more as a formulaic approach to writing.
This text is full of bland approaches to writing and repeats the same things I've read in other books. The exercises are tedious and boring; there is no sense of adventure or experimentation. It's a methodical, bland, autopsy of writing and what works, supposedly, in making writing better.
If your goal is to understand the craft of writing, this is not the book for you. I recommend Jerome Stern's Making Shapely Fiction, Stephen King's On Writing, or The Truth of the Matter: Art and Craft in Creative Non-Fiction for the sake of actual method and practice material.
This book is for you only if you're goal is to be a "write by numbers" kind of person. If you need the formula, if you need every single little aspect of writing to be laid bare for you, then read this. If you're purpose is to understand writing, well, you'll get that from this but it's a longer journey to take and can be done better and more succinctly via other paths.
If you wish to be a good writer, well, write. That's the best advice anyone can (and will, in every writing guidebook) tell you. After that, read. Then, if you're lucky and have talent, you can be a successful writer. No formulaic approach will make you better than what you inherently are. That's where practice and work come in.
This text is full of bland approaches to writing and repeats the same things I've read in other books. The exercises are tedious and boring; there is no sense of adventure or experimentation. It's a methodical, bland, autopsy of writing and what works, supposedly, in making writing better.
If your goal is to understand the craft of writing, this is not the book for you. I recommend Jerome Stern's Making Shapely Fiction, Stephen King's On Writing, or The Truth of the Matter: Art and Craft in Creative Non-Fiction for the sake of actual method and practice material.
This book is for you only if you're goal is to be a "write by numbers" kind of person. If you need the formula, if you need every single little aspect of writing to be laid bare for you, then read this. If you're purpose is to understand writing, well, you'll get that from this but it's a longer journey to take and can be done better and more succinctly via other paths.
If you wish to be a good writer, well, write. That's the best advice anyone can (and will, in every writing guidebook) tell you. After that, read. Then, if you're lucky and have talent, you can be a successful writer. No formulaic approach will make you better than what you inherently are. That's where practice and work come in.
June 19, 2017
"Almost any reader can identify with almost any character; what no reader can identify with is confusion."
October 25, 2016
I am beginning my last semester of a Creative Writing BA program in San Francisco, and out of the many writing books I read (Anne Lamott, Stephen King, David Morley, Natalie Goldberg...) this one came close to perfection. It provides students a grounding vocabulary. With this book students can discuss the elements of writing rather than rely on anecdote or discuss talent. As a student myself, I've been frustrated by authors and teachers explaining writing as a boundless art form that cannot be learned by a conventional curriculum
Writing Fiction does not try to contain writing in a concrete definition, but the book makes creative writing possible to study and discuss with others. As craft.
Any aspiring or established writer should spend time with this book. It's dense with information and fantastic examples.
Writing Fiction does not try to contain writing in a concrete definition, but the book makes creative writing possible to study and discuss with others. As craft.
Any aspiring or established writer should spend time with this book. It's dense with information and fantastic examples.
February 21, 2023
*3.5 stars
While I don't agree with all the author said (and the chapters were much to long for my taste 😛), I still think this is a good book for writers, full of information, advice, and writing prompts.
This book could have been made much shorter, and I think the author went too deep in ways that weren't necessary and repeated herself.
But there were some good writing quotes featured in this book—many that I copied onto my notepad to inspire me later.
Read for my creative writing class.
While I don't agree with all the author said (and the chapters were much to long for my taste 😛), I still think this is a good book for writers, full of information, advice, and writing prompts.
This book could have been made much shorter, and I think the author went too deep in ways that weren't necessary and repeated herself.
But there were some good writing quotes featured in this book—many that I copied onto my notepad to inspire me later.
Read for my creative writing class.
September 26, 2020
This text joins Sol Stein's Stein on Writing and Ursula LeGuin's Steering the Craft among my absolute favorite craft texts. Clear, readable, with superb and diverse examples (something Stein doesn't do as well), this book is full of inspiring insights and analysis, punctuated by terrific exercises and -- this might be my favorite part -- reprinted complete short stories, a whopping three per chapter, selected to illustrate the concepts discussed in the chapter. It's a terrific craft book and a superb short-fiction anthology all in one.
(One caveat: It is a textbook, intended for college students of creative writing, which means that some of the advice is rather geared toward young people -- I found this mildly annoying, though I worked instead on finding it amusing.)
(One caveat: It is a textbook, intended for college students of creative writing, which means that some of the advice is rather geared toward young people -- I found this mildly annoying, though I worked instead on finding it amusing.)
December 6, 2010
Clearly this book is written for the beginning English major in undergrad; the author herself even says so. Anyone outside of this demographic probably won't care or will grown bored. I fell into the latter group. While there were many kernals of good advice, it was all information I had heard before. Good reminders, perhaps; beyond that, it offered little more for me.
Overall, this is a good textbook for the undergrad English major. I would suggest being cautious with the author's opinions, however. There are few things I despise more in English craft books than "This is the way to do this and it is the only way" which Burroway alludes to from time to time. Which is ironic considering that the first chapter is entitled "Whatever It Takes" and is the same chapter in which the author tells the reader to "keep a journal," freewrite, and so forth. While these may be good practices to try out, they're not for every writer.
Overall, this is a good textbook for the undergrad English major. I would suggest being cautious with the author's opinions, however. There are few things I despise more in English craft books than "This is the way to do this and it is the only way" which Burroway alludes to from time to time. Which is ironic considering that the first chapter is entitled "Whatever It Takes" and is the same chapter in which the author tells the reader to "keep a journal," freewrite, and so forth. While these may be good practices to try out, they're not for every writer.
June 9, 2011
I love Janet Burroway's writing-I want to read all her work. Such a great presence shining through the words. And very motivating. Just what it says-a guide and a very good one. It teaches as much about how to read as how to write. I've read it several times & want to read it again. Soon.
May 22, 2018
If your goal is to improve your fictional writing know that this volume is filled with great advice and beautiful examples to help you learn the ways. In addition to in depth explanations of how to work with setting, characters, time, space plot and point of view; it offers many intriguing writing exercises and fun prompts. It's an excellent source of advice to any writer aspiring to be published, or even just if your creative writing is limited to your own entertainment. It offers methods to shape, enrich and enliven the stories by discussing, throughout the book, the main concerns with planning fiction, in its multiple aspects, going beyond outdated advice like Faulkner's "kill all your darlings".
I was impressed by how the book really seemed to cover all possible realms of the writing process and loved Burroway's airy narration along it. One of my favorite textbooks by far!
Favorite short stories:
"Bullet in the Brain" by Tobias Wolff
"Reply All" by Robin Hemley
“Binocular Vision” by Edith Pearlman
“Mud” by Geoffrey Forsyth
"We Didn't" by Stuart Dybek
*"Like a Pilll" by Nicole Rivas
I was impressed by how the book really seemed to cover all possible realms of the writing process and loved Burroway's airy narration along it. One of my favorite textbooks by far!
Favorite short stories:
"Bullet in the Brain" by Tobias Wolff
"Reply All" by Robin Hemley
“Binocular Vision” by Edith Pearlman
“Mud” by Geoffrey Forsyth
"We Didn't" by Stuart Dybek
*"Like a Pilll" by Nicole Rivas
July 9, 2019
Excellent treatment of the elements of fiction, with clear examples, like characterisation, show don’t tell, point of view. If you do not understand it after reading this book, you will never get it.
July 12, 2020
What a wonderfully informative book on the craft of storytelling. I learned so many helpful habits that I plan on applying to my own writing immediately.
November 8, 2023
Theorie valt mee, nu nog deftig toepassen 🙈
October 30, 2024
Chock-full of practical tips and writing exercises. My professor assigned some of these writing prompts/exercises to us, and while the twenty minutes she assigned per prompt produced something every time, the prompts likely need more time devoted to them. Or not. It really depends what you're trying to achieve. Anyway, this book is on its tenth edition for a reason.
Full disclosure, my class only read about half of the book.
Full disclosure, my class only read about half of the book.
May 6, 2019
2.5 stars really....
This book is good for a class setting, if the professor is providing supplemental material. This comes as a very step-by-step manual, but doesn’t really touch on all the bases. It also doesn’t leave much room for authorial decisions.
I’m sure there are better guides out there, so I won’t be too quick to recommend this one.
This book is good for a class setting, if the professor is providing supplemental material. This comes as a very step-by-step manual, but doesn’t really touch on all the bases. It also doesn’t leave much room for authorial decisions.
I’m sure there are better guides out there, so I won’t be too quick to recommend this one.
November 19, 2011
This is a very helpful compendium on all the ways a beginning fiction writer can go awry. Helpful examples abound, and included in each section (characterization, point of view, structure, etc.) are excellent stories from top-tier writers. This book is a keeper.
November 27, 2024
4/5
A book full of inspiration, tips, and prompts.
I loved so much about this book. I love that there's prompts and suggested readings! There's also quotes sprinkled throughout the text. The tone is friendly and so the writing never came off as dense, academic, or boring to me. The formatting was beautiful and made it enjoyable and easier to absorb everything. It's packed with information, but there's clever use of white space that breaks up the walls of text and sections them in ways that gave my eyes the perfect break. Such a tiny thing, but I noticed it really mattered to my brain.
Burroway talks about a lot of important topics like setting, plot, showing and telling, POV, and two chapters on characterization. It's perfect for new writers as I find many struggle with telling and everyone struggles with POV. It's also a great refresher for more seasoned writers. It's a perfect reference to read cover to cover or only sections you need. I'll definitely be keeping it close at hand.
This is a wonderful resource! I'm so glad my library purchased this book this year. I will run to the store and purchase it because it worked really well for me. Check your local libraries! Request they purchase this and put it on hold!
A book full of inspiration, tips, and prompts.
I loved so much about this book. I love that there's prompts and suggested readings! There's also quotes sprinkled throughout the text. The tone is friendly and so the writing never came off as dense, academic, or boring to me. The formatting was beautiful and made it enjoyable and easier to absorb everything. It's packed with information, but there's clever use of white space that breaks up the walls of text and sections them in ways that gave my eyes the perfect break. Such a tiny thing, but I noticed it really mattered to my brain.
Burroway talks about a lot of important topics like setting, plot, showing and telling, POV, and two chapters on characterization. It's perfect for new writers as I find many struggle with telling and everyone struggles with POV. It's also a great refresher for more seasoned writers. It's a perfect reference to read cover to cover or only sections you need. I'll definitely be keeping it close at hand.
This is a wonderful resource! I'm so glad my library purchased this book this year. I will run to the store and purchase it because it worked really well for me. Check your local libraries! Request they purchase this and put it on hold!
September 18, 2021
This is a lovely book that touches on both technical and philosophical aspects of writing. There are many examples and quotes from other writers, which supplement the discussion of the fundamentals such as structuring, character development, plot and story.
This is my favourite quote from the book, which really resonated with me: 'It might seem dismaying that you should see what your story is about only after you have written it. But try it; you'll like it. Nothing is more exhilarating than the discovery that a complex pattern has lain in your mind ready to unfold.'
This is my favourite quote from the book, which really resonated with me: 'It might seem dismaying that you should see what your story is about only after you have written it. But try it; you'll like it. Nothing is more exhilarating than the discovery that a complex pattern has lain in your mind ready to unfold.'
January 20, 2025
A super insightful read!! I learned so much. I'm definitely gonna have to keep coming back to this book as I keep writing.
February 19, 2025
Good stuff. Some of it, I suspect I've already heard, but I probably needed to hear it again. Gets me in the mood to write. What more can you ask of a book about writing?
July 8, 2021
Very useful. Very nice prompts.
I read very slowly digesting little but good ideas and working through the prompts.
I read very slowly digesting little but good ideas and working through the prompts.
March 7, 2016
This is a comprehensive book on craft that starts with the basics and works deeper with solid examples that drive the point home. With detailed chapters on the process of writing, showing vs. telling, and creating three-dimensional characters and settings, this may be the penultimate book for beginning writers. Even intermediate writers will find reminders about all the things we're doing wrong that we knew were wrong, but forgot we were doing. Filled with vivid examples to illustrate every lesson, the book even has a few things for more seasoned writers.
New writers often have the hardest time grasping the concept of showing vs. telling, and this section in Writing Fiction is one of the best yet I've read, teaching the difference between the two with well-written examples perfectly re-written to ensure the lesson is learned. The section on characterization is exceptionally thorough, delving into great detail on what makes good characters and what makes great characters. All stories need good characters, but the best stories have great characters.
With about one-third examples and writing exercises and two-thirds instruction, I firmly believe this is the first book every aspiring fiction writer should pick up and study.
Bottom Line
Writing Fiction is expensive, but worth every penny. This is the textbook every aspiring novelist needs to read.
New writers often have the hardest time grasping the concept of showing vs. telling, and this section in Writing Fiction is one of the best yet I've read, teaching the difference between the two with well-written examples perfectly re-written to ensure the lesson is learned. The section on characterization is exceptionally thorough, delving into great detail on what makes good characters and what makes great characters. All stories need good characters, but the best stories have great characters.
With about one-third examples and writing exercises and two-thirds instruction, I firmly believe this is the first book every aspiring fiction writer should pick up and study.
Bottom Line
Writing Fiction is expensive, but worth every penny. This is the textbook every aspiring novelist needs to read.
November 11, 2008
I've used this text for two semesters now, but will be retiring it in the Spring in order to try out Making Shapley Fiction + a contemporary short story anthology still TBD. The craft essays at the beginning of each chapter are too in-depth and analytical for beginning fiction writers, I think. As a textbook, this be perfect for students coming in with more experience/skills. I certainly learned a lot, though, and I plan to use some of these terms and explanations of craft elements in relation to each other in future lectures.
The contemporary short stories in here are absolutely wonderful, in particular "Tandolfo the Great" by Richard Bausch, "Every Tongue Shall Confess" by ZZ Packer, "Gryphon" by Charles Baxter, "Winky" by George Saunders, and "Orientation" by Daniel Orozco. And the essay "Shitty First Drafts" by Anne Lamont, which I first discovered here, will remain a mainstay in my curriculum. Seems to really break the ice at the beginning of the semester and introduce creative writing students to the ardorous process of draft/revision, no matter what the genre, in a humorous way.
Oh, and the writing exercises are excellent. I used a lot of these, both the individual and collaborative, with great success.
The contemporary short stories in here are absolutely wonderful, in particular "Tandolfo the Great" by Richard Bausch, "Every Tongue Shall Confess" by ZZ Packer, "Gryphon" by Charles Baxter, "Winky" by George Saunders, and "Orientation" by Daniel Orozco. And the essay "Shitty First Drafts" by Anne Lamont, which I first discovered here, will remain a mainstay in my curriculum. Seems to really break the ice at the beginning of the semester and introduce creative writing students to the ardorous process of draft/revision, no matter what the genre, in a humorous way.
Oh, and the writing exercises are excellent. I used a lot of these, both the individual and collaborative, with great success.
February 25, 2021
Some of the advice was good, especially in regards to characters. The section on plot was abysmal, though, and her assumption that writers can't tell stories (because we all apparently only want to convey ideas, just like she does) explained why the section was so bad. Clearly this author isn't good at making stories because she can't manage to create a cohesive chapter about how to do it. What tripe.
Character, revision, the opening chapter of this book... Those were fine. There were some good exercises that have produced fun short stories for me.
But man oh man that plot section was so bad that it made me wary to read anything else she's written
Character, revision, the opening chapter of this book... Those were fine. There were some good exercises that have produced fun short stories for me.
But man oh man that plot section was so bad that it made me wary to read anything else she's written
March 21, 2015
Every writer needs this book. It's like a text book but not at all dull and full of great instruction on how to discover and execute your story on to the page: showing vs. telling, the writing process, character text and subtext, methods of character presentation, fictional place and fictional time and more. I especially like Burroway's chapter on Story Form as an Inverted Check Mark. Here she talks about Freitag's famous pyramid of five actions and moves to how the "story shape" can work as an inverted check mark. She asks '"where should your narrative begin?" Her distinctions between 'story' and 'plot' are very precise. Need help with story conflict, crisis, and resolution? This is the book that will crystallize it for you. I just loved this book as my own little writing workshop. One that you can reread once a year to sharpen up those skills.
July 27, 2014
Wow! A truly comprehensive guide full of exercises and examples to hone an author's skills. The short stories included are brilliant and well worth reading and I know that I will refer to this book again and again. This is my first time through and I plan to re-read it in the near future. I must admit that if I had read this before submitting writing anywhere, I may have been too intimidated to attempt the process, but I am on track to continue to learn by writing and reading.
Read
November 29, 2008This is for committed writers only. Expensive, and hard to find on library shelves. A highly valuable textbook on the writing process, covering story form, plot, structure, building character, place and setting, and a detailed look at point of view. Each section comes with examples of how things do and do not work. A graduate course all by itself.
September 26, 2022
I agree with some of her advice and disagree with others. There were only a couple of example stories I enjoyed; they were decent examples on what she talked about. But the rest of them? Awful. If anything, I saw those as "what not to do when it comes to writing."
Overall, as the rating on Goodreads says, "It was ok."
... I guess.
Overall, as the rating on Goodreads says, "It was ok."
... I guess.
Currently reading
August 9, 2009This is one of my "I'm not in an MFA program so I'm learning from books" book. It offers a load of information and is well written; it has lots of examples from good writing to illustrate points it makes. I like it and find it helpful as I work on stories.
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