Buy New

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
or
Amazon Prime Free Trial required. Sign up when you check out. Learn More
Buy Used
Used - Acceptable See details
$6.31 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
Fulfilled by Amazon

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
   
Sell Back Your Copy
For a $1.25 Gift Card
Trade in
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Creative Writing, 2nd Edition
 
 
Share your own customer images
Search inside this book
Tell the Publisher!
I'd like to read this book on Kindle

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Creative Writing, 2nd Edition [Paperback]

Laurie E. Rozakis (Author)
4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews) |
List Price: $18.95
Price: $12.76 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
You Save: $6.19 (33%)
  Special Offers Available
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.
Only 9 left in stock--order soon (more on the way).
Want it delivered Tuesday, May 22? Choose One-Day Shipping at checkout. Details
Textbook Student FREE Two-Day Shipping for students on millions of items. Learn more

Formats

 Amazon Price New from Used from
Paperback $12.76   -- --
Mass Market Paperback --   -- --

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2004 | ISBN-10: 1592572065 | ISBN-13: 978-1592572069 | Edition: 2
A creative writing class in a book-REVISED.

Major revisions take this popular Complete Idiot's Guide to a new level- offering readers a better way to unlock their creativity from the first page. Exercises help them explore their talents and experiment with different genres and forms of writing, including short stories, narrative fiction, memoirs, magazine articles, poetry, drama, blogging, and freewriting.

Special Offers and Product Promotions

  • Buy $50 in qualifying physical textbooks, get $2 in Amazon MP3 Credit. Here's how (restrictions apply)

Frequently Bought Together

Customers buy this book with The Everything Creative Writing Book: All You Need to Know to Write a Novel, Play, Short Story, Screenplay, Poem, or Article (Everything (Language & Writing)) by Carol Whiteley Paperback $15.95

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Creative Writing, 2nd Edition + The Everything Creative Writing Book: All You Need to Know to Write a Novel, Play, Short Story, Screenplay, Poem, or Article (Everything (Language & Writing))
Price For Both: $28.71

Show availability and shipping details

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

You don't have to be a complete idiot to glean something from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Creative Writing, but it would help to be a complete novice. In a mere 300 or so large-print pages, author Laurie Rozakis sails through the fundamentals of writing novels, short stories, poetry, biographies, textbooks, reference books, magazine articles, plays, and screenplays. Then she offers primers on getting published, finding and dealing with an agent, and the legal issues involved. Whew! There is a lot of useful information here, but any given section tends toward the basic. The tone is perky and enthusiastic, slaphappy funny, and trying a little too hard to be hip--has poetry's place in the world really "changed more radically than Dennis Rodman's hair color"? Interesting tidbits gleaned: Margaret Mitchell originally planned to call Scarlett, the protagonist in Gone with the Wind, Pansy; John McPhee "accumulated fifteen years of New Yorker rejections before the magazine began buying his articles." Best quirky advice: if you're a romance novelist looking for a pseudonym, try combining the name of your first pet and your mother's maiden name; if you're a soap opera scriptwriter with the same quandary, combine your middle name with the street you lived on as a child. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Dr. Laurie E. Rozakis has published dozens of books, including Shaum’s Quick Guide to Writing Research Papers, Study Skills for the Utterly Confused, and The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Grammar and Style. She is a full professor of English and humanities at State University of New York at Farmingdale, and has taught English and research skills for more than 15 years.

Product Details

  • Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  • Paperback: 384 pages
  • Publisher: Alpha; 2 edition (June 1, 2004)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1592572065
  • ISBN-13: 978-1592572069
  • Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.3 x 0.9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #63,531 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

More About the Author

› Visit Amazon's Laurie E. Rozakis Page
Laurie E. Rozakis
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
36 of 36 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
As someone who is thinking of writing both fiction and non-fiction, I found this book to have lots of good information about how and where to start writing. From writing fiction, non-fiction, poetry, screenplays and the like, the author offers a lot of good information. I'm also a technical writer and one thing that is stressed there is the need for brevity. Well the author also stresses that for good prose, you also need brevity in writing. Keep it simple in other words. There are also "charts" to use in writing a fictional piece, be it novel or short story. From characters, main and minor to settings to conflicts to resolution. The author also stresses the use of outlines when writing fiction. Again just like what technical writers do when they start writing a manual of some kind.

There's also a chapter about writing biographies and autobiographies, with tips on the information you need to gather before you start in on one. And a chapter on writing text and reference books. I had no idea there was a need for books like these. And too another important point the author stresses is the need to decide the audience you are writing for. Still another parallel to the technical writing world, where determining your audience beforehand is a crucial part of the process.

The book's last few chapters could be called the most important, because they deal with selling your work, from fiction and poetry to nonfiction. There's a chapter about literary agents, and whether or not you need one. Also one on legal contracts and fees, and ways to find out about writing contests and getting government grants for your writing work.

Finally, the book talks about editors which at times I've felt were a "necessary evil" to writing. As great as you think your work is (including this review), it can always be improved upon by a good editor. Finally, there's a chapter on overcoming writer's block. This is a good thing, as any writer has encountered this beast at one time or another.

I found this book to be entertaining and informative and would recommend it to any writer, especially beginning writers.

Was this review helpful to you?
31 of 33 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
I never like to think of myself as an "idiot" or a "dummy." After so many years of therapy (we won't go there), it's a bit demeaning for me to go after a book that tells me I think of myself this way...however...

Lauire E. Rozakis, Ph.D. is probably the most refreshing voice I've read on creative writing to date. She gives a note of authority to every form of creative writing - including nonfiction. Throughout the book, Rozakis says one thing repeatedly - and even an "idiot" would know this, but it doesn't hurt to say it over and over again - in order to be a successful writer, the writer must WRITE. Her step-by-step guidelines are concise and the little sidebars of added information are informative and witty.

Rozakis writes with seeming ease and with charm. I found myself nodding my head "yes" to information on every page. This book is worth three times the cost. No - actually, I think it's priceless.

Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful
great for beginners February 7, 2004
By A Customer
Format:Mass Market Paperback
This guide is for the ultimate beginner who is thinking of being a writer. It covers the very basics of creative writing. She starts the book off by saying anyone can be a writer and the point is to not get intimidated and just do it. She covers the process of writing, the other sections cover fiction, poetry, nonfiction, drama, scripts, and screenplays, she then tells you how to go about selling your work. How to deal with literary agents, contracts, fees, and bookkeeping. There is even a section on contests and grants. In the last chapter the author talks about editors and writer's block. This book is packed with info for the very beginner, so if you're thinking about being a writer and are just starting out then get this book to guide you.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Most Recent Customer Reviews
English made fun....SAY WHAT?!
"The Complete Idiot's Guide to Creative Writing" is an eye opening and amazingly fun book to learn and follow from. Read more
Published 7 months ago by BoomerBud
Creative writing
This book is an organized aid for writers new and old... I am hopingto use this book as a text book for my writing.
Published 12 months ago by Liliabea
creatively writing
I found this book very informative, more so than I expected, even if I am an "Idiot". The "Idiot" books are some of my favorites and I will enjoy having this as part of my... Read more
Published on September 9, 2009 by Raymond S. Trower
Great book! A section of internet and blogging was needed though
I wanted to take a creative writing class this spring but the class was closed. There's also an online class but it's too expensive so I ought to buy this book by the same author... Read more
Published on January 5, 2008 by E.Vargas
Creativity in Detail
I started a creative writing club and I thought... Hmmm how can I begin? So, I ordered this book, which became essential to the lessons and gave good tips on creativity and how to... Read more
Published on November 24, 2007 by Shalizeh
Trying to do too many things at once...
The first part of this book deals with overcoming all the mental obstacles people may have in writing... Read more
Published on September 20, 2007 by mads619
Excellent Beginner's Creative Writing Guide
If you are a beginning creative writer, or experimenting with a new style, poetry for example, this is an excellent book. Read more
Published on September 6, 2002 by chemikalguy
Will help release the artist in you
That book helped bring out my artistic skills. It is very easily read, and understood, great lessons and a great way to get lost for a few hours.. Read more
Published on July 13, 2002
Keeper
This book was well worth the money. It is not directly to the point. This is probably the only draw back. But this is a definite keeper.
Published on October 11, 2001 by "swj98"
Inspiration and Practical Advice
I've read a lot of books on writing, but this is the first to combine motivation, practical advice and humor so effectively. Read more
Published on October 26, 2000
Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:
Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
It is a delicious thing to write, to be no longer yourself but to remove in an entire universe of your own creation. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
transgressive fiction, indirect characterization, fine blanket, omniscient point
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
All the Write Stuff, New York, The Least You Need, Long Island, Wrong Turn, Emily Dickinson, Writing Short Stories, Mark Twain, Stephen King, Washington Irving, Edgar Allan Poe, Miss Emily, Truman Capote, United States, Virginia Woolf, Charles Dickens, Rip Van Winkle, Robert Frost, George Bernard Shaw, Jack London, James Joyce, Jim Smiley, Tale of Two Cities, The Tyger, Tom Jones
New!
Concordance | Text Stats
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 100 books:
See all 100 books this book cites

Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 
(5)
(3)
(2)
(2)
(1)
Agree with these tags?

Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
Related forums


Look for Similar Items by Category

Look for Similar Items by Subject

Search Books by subject:















i.e., each book must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...