Dynamic Characters
by Nancy Kress
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Book Summary Information
Author: Nancy KressEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2004-06-15
ISBN: 1582973199
Number of pages: 272
Publisher: Writers Digest Books
Book Reviews of Dynamic Characters
Book Review: Do You Want to Write a book--read this
Summary: 5 Stars
Book Review
Dynamic Characters
by Nancy Kress
Dynamic Characters is the fourth book on Characterization I've read. I have two to go. I've been beating my head against the wall of traditional publishing for almost forty years. Instead of taking creative writing classes at UCLA, and other universities, I should have been reading books like this one. I would have learned so much more. When I recently started on this quest to improve my craft for developing characters in the fiction I write, I thought that all the books I was going to read would echo and reinforce each other. I was wrong in my assumptions. So far, each book stands alone just like characters in a novel are unique individuals. Nancy Kress does an admirable job in showing the connection between character and plot. The book is divided into three parts. Part one focuses on creating strong and believable characters through such externals as choosing descriptive details, naming the character, how to use dialogue and the pitfalls of basing a character on real people. She actually answered a question I had in chapter eight. Part two of this book covers the internal workings of a character. Chapter thirteen was a learning experience for me, as I had never really considered it important to make your villain as real as your hero. Chapter fifteen provides a system for investigating your character in depth and Kress explains how such a system should be used. Part three focuses on character and plot and how both interact. I found chapter twenty-two specially rewarding when Kress addressed basing plots on real-life events--her advice was priceless. If I had read and studied this book decades ago, my writing would have been different and a lot of grief possibly avoided. Robert Frost wrote a poem about two paths in the woods and choosing which one to take. Forty years ago when I started to take creative writing classes instead of studying books like this one, I went the wrong way. I don't see how I can do justice in reviewing her book in such a way that it would convince all aspiring writers that you should buy this book and devour it, and then keep it on a shelf for support when needed. Once you have done that, don't stop there. Use [...] and the rating system it has to find other books that will teach and guide you to improve and polish your craft so the odds that the rejections slips that keep coming will stop and turn into acceptance. The books on the craft of writing I purchase were all highly rated and only one has disappointed me.
Summary of Dynamic Characters
In this guide, award-winning author Nancy Kress explores the crucial relationship between characterization and plot, illustrating how vibrant, well-constructed characters act as the driving force behind an exceptional story. In teaching writers the fundamentals of creating characters that will keep their readers spellbound, Kress utilizes: Dozens of excerpts from well-known fiction; Enlightening exercises to help writers build strong characters starting from the outside-in; Beginning chapters that focus on the physical elements that comprise a character, providing techniques for using external qualities to reflect personality; Building skill upon skill, writers blend these qualities with emotional and mental characterization, forming multi-dimensional characters that initiate exciting action, react to tense situations, and power the plot from beginning to end.Art History Books
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