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Loading... Writing Fictionby Janet Burroway
None.  ElizabethAndrew | May 13, 2013 |  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. (  ) chrisblocker | Mar 30, 2013 | Non Fiction  debathome | Jan 31, 2013 | Writing Fiction is the Platonic form of college writing textbooks: dense, intellectual, and packed with critically-acclaimed writing to illustrate the points that Burroway is making. (  ) bkohl | Apr 2, 2012 | This text can be a bit overwhelming and unapproachable at first. It is rather dense. However, once you get acquainted with the setup it is a great fiction writing guide. The book is filled with different prompts and exercises, which is great. However, to me, the best part of the text is the thoughtful selection of excerpts and writing examples. ( ) UtopianElle | Jun 3, 2010 | no reviews | add a review
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Wikipedia in English
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"Although these are tricks that can be taught and learned, they partake of the essential nature of creativity, in which several elements are joined to produce not merely a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts, but a whole that is something altogether other. At the conception of an embryo or a short story, there occurs a conjunction of two unlike things, whether cells or ideas, that have never been joined before. Around this conjunction other cells, other ideas accumulate in a deliberate pattern. That pattern is the unique personality of the creature, and if the pattern does not cohere, it miscarries or is stillborn." 312
Because I almost exclusively teach creative nonfiction, and because I write both fiction and creative nonfiction, I found myself looking through Burroway's observations about fiction to the fundamentals of good story-telling, and through craft to observations about our fundamental nature as created beings and as creators. Just an excellent text! (