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Rating:  Summary: Magnificent insight! Review: Although I have always considered myself to be "a man of letters," I had no idea just how little I knew until I read this guide from the Gotham Writers Workshop. The contibutors' selections were quite good, and the exercises were first rate without being insulting. A few sections dragged a bit (in my opinion, at least), but their content was ultimately worthwhile. I predict that whether you are an old hack (such as myself!) or a relative newcomer, this guide will fast become your companion.
Rating:  Summary: Book helpful; classes not so much Review: An excellent primer to hone your writing skills. The short story offered, Cathedral by Raymond Carver, seemed to me a weak and amateurish example to hold up, but the advice is very sound and practical. Teachers of the Gotham Writers' Workshop trade off in each chapter, expounding by turns on their areas of expertise. They address common problems for beginning writers and offer practical help for resolving those problems. I found the chapter on Theme particularly useful (it is provided by Terry Bain). The book concludes with a useful cheat sheet to help focus the novice writer's work. My only experience with the Gotham Writers' Workshop was overpriced and offered little to no practical help or feedback on my writing examples. So I can't recommend them based on my experience -- just get the book and work on your own is my advice.
Rating:  Summary: Great and Extremely Informative. Review: I have read other books on "How To Write" and they are pale in comparsion to "Writing Fiction". This book gets to the heart of writing. It was easy to read and understand. They have excellent writing exercises. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has desire to write. This book is not only for writing fiction but applies to all genre.
Rating:  Summary: Great and Extremely Informative. Review: I have read other books on "How To Write" and they are pale in comparsion to "Writing Fiction". This book gets to the heart of writing. It was easy to read and understand. They have excellent writing exercises. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has desire to write. This book is not only for writing fiction but applies to all genre.
Rating:  Summary: Superb! Review: It only took a few hours to read this book, and I feel I've learned more than I could have in a whole semester of writing class. It is a witty and entertaining read with many examples and exercises. Highly recommended!
Rating:  Summary: A very good and insightful "how to" book on writing fiction Review: My review is going to be pretty short but I do hope it is helpful. This book has been extremely helpful to me. It addressed some of my fears head on. The "your turn" exercises were great in making this book more engaging, interactive, and instructive. I definately feel it gave me good advice and sound guidence in navigating the process of writing strong fiction.
Rating:  Summary: Extremely helpful Review: This is a great book. It is well organized, concise, and easy to read.
My biggest problem in writing is disorganization. I have many ideas but I prioritize and organize them poorly. I plant so many trees that I forget about how the forest will look. This book helped me by providing a framework for building fiction. It discusses the major components of fiction: character, plot, theme, voice, etc. Then it tells you what the choices are for each. Then it provides you examples of authors who have made each of the choices, and it discusses why they did so. Raymond Carver's short story "Cathedral", in the back of the book, is analyzed throughout.
This book has even improved my READING skills. Now when I read a novel I ask, "why did the author choose to throw in that detail? Why did he use the first person instead of third?"
Great, great book. Highly recommended.
Rating:  Summary: Superb! Review: This one was good for a diversity of opinions. I like the advice and exercises. I happen to edit professionally and would recommend it tp beginning writers. For a more direct and pragmatic approach, try Klim's Write to Publish or Blocks's Novel from Print to Plot.
Rating:  Summary: Writing in a nutshell Review: Unbelievable amount of wisdom in less than 300 hundred pages. I spend an hour flippin through about 50 books at Barnes and Nobles and none come close to this one. Very well organized, great exercises, and just plain good advice. The short story example is great. Another reviewer slammed it, but I think he missed the point entirely.
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