The Complete Handbook of Novel Writing
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Book Summary Information
Editor: Editors Of Writers Digest BooksEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2002-07-15
ISBN: 1582971595
Number of pages: 400
Publisher: Writers Digest Books
Book Reviews of The Complete Handbook of Novel Writing
Book Review: the Greatest Fiction book out
Summary: 5 Stars
This I would have to say is the Greatest Book on Writing Fiction. This book is like the solid base you can establish. It goes through every point in writing a novel by all the professionals. This book, you'll simply learn a lot. I can't tell you how much I learned from it. And it's just so true.
The first chapter is about plot. The writer defines plot as the complications go through in steps toward a resolution. He states that plot arises from the orchestration of the protagonist with the antagonist. The better orchestrated the characters, the better the plot will develop. Actually, it will be natural since the characters are so well-pitted against each other. The more different you make the characters from each other, the better plot will flow and develop. The reason why many plots fail is because the protagonist and antagonist are too close to each other.
Other chapters are just as helpful. One writer talks about how he changed to do movies. Being that movies don't use exposition and thought, he could no longer rely on these methods. When he went back to fiction, he saw this creeping into his fiction as well. In the end, he stated how fictions, like movies, should go scene by scene, which would make it more exciting. Long exposition should be eliminated or severely limited. Also, the best devices to utilize in fiction are action, dialogue, and description, while limiting exposition and too much interior monlogue. This is sound advice.
Another great chapter is emotion. The writer in this case tells how eerything through be shown through the emotional filter, meaning we must see how the character reacts to everything in the story. If not, if the character doesn't react, it's meaningless. It's like having a stimulus in your life that doesn't affect you, it's meaningless in that case. We must see how the character reacts for it to have significance. The author then gives us advice how to show this emotional filter such as using verbs to connote emotion. For example, 'he walked out' only shows movement. 'He stomped out' shows anger.
That's about all for now. I'm tired. If you want to know more, read the book. I promise it is priceless.
Summary of The Complete Handbook of Novel Writing
A collection of articles from Writer's Digest and the Market books. The Complete Handbook of Novel Writing covers the basics of a best-selling topic: novel writing. From crafting a story and using descriptive language to breaking through writer's block, mastering genres and getting an agent, this book addresses the spectrum of issues pertinent to fiction writers. Readers will find a number of pieces by best-selling authors, including Janet Fitch, Terry Brooks, Sue Grafton, John Updike, Richard Russon, Evan Hunter, and J. A. Jance, and interviews with others, including Kurt Vonnegut and Margaret Atwood. Both novice and experienced writers will find advice in this book that speaks to their dreams of getting their novels published.Art History Books
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