Master Class in Fiction Writing: Techniques from Austen, Hemingway, and Other Greats [Paperback]

Adam Sexton (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Do you want to take your fiction writing to the next level?

LEARN FROM THE MASTERS

...Jane Austen, Ernest Hemingway, John Updike, Toni Morrison, William Faulkner, Joseph Conrad, Vladimir Nabokov, James Joyce, and Iris Murdoch.

"Adam Sexton taught me how to read like a writer--and, in a way, how to write like a reader. For without first considering the experience of reading stories--seriously, thoroughly, the way Sexton does--you can't possibly write one worth reading."--Tara McCarthy, author, Love Will Tear Us Apart

Many writers believe that if they just find the right teacher or workshop, their writing will reach new heights of skill. But why not learn from the best? In his popular workshops in New York City, creative writing instructor Adam Sexton has found that the most effective way for any writer to grasp on the elements of fiction is to study the great masters. Master Class in Fiction Writing is your personal crash course in creative writing, with the world's most accomplished fiction writers as your guides.

You'll learn the art of characterization from Austen, style and voice from Hemingway, and dialogue from Murdoch. You'll discover the timeless techniques of plotting in the work of Conrad and the ingenious structure of Joyce. These are the most important lessons any writer can learn--a truly "novel" approach to writing that will enrich, inform, and inspire.

About the Author

Adam Sexton teaches writing at the New School and New York University. He has also written on arts and entertainment for the New York Times, the Village Voice, and the Boston Phoenix.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (October 17, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071448772
• ISBN-13: 978-0071448772
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #83,780 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

More than fifty of my articles and short-stories have been published in the New York Times, the Village Voice, the Boston Phoenix, the Bellevue Literary Review, and elsewhere; and I have read from my work and/or appeared on panels at NYU, SUNY Binghamton, the Knitting Factory (N.Y.C.) and Pete's Candy Store (Brooklyn). I have lectured on writing and literature at the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., Kelly Writers' House at the University of Pennsylvania, the Penn Club in New York City, and in Central Park. I have been interviewed about writing and literature by Time, the Washington Post, Poets & Writers, and npr.com, and one of my classes was broadcast on BBC radio.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 54 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pragmatic, accesible and entertaining writing guide, November 1, 2006

By 

B. Musler "History Gamer" (New York, New York USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Master Class in Fiction Writing: Techniques from Austen, Hemingway, and Other Greats (Paperback)

I stumbled on this book browsing in B&N and couldn't put it down...so I bought it, read it and later even enrolled in a course. Most useful writing book I've encountered including those by Eudora Welty, Natalie Goldberg, Anne LaMott, Steven King, Orson Scott Card, Lawrence Block, Sue Grafton, Noah Lukeman, Lou Stanek, Marcia Golub, Robert Olen Butler and Francine Prose. All those folks had interesting and helpful things to impart, it's Sexton's book I turn to when I get stuck...which is why I was perusing the writing section of B&N that day to begin with.

Sexton's unique approach is the reason "Master Class in Fiction Writing" stands out. In each chapter he "workshops" a different book or short story written by a GREAT writer (instead of just anybody who can afford to pay tuition.) What originally drew me in, for example, was his discussion of the descriptions in John Updike's "Rabbit, Run." I admire Updike almost as much as Nicholson Baker (see "U and I") but Sexton showed me that his descriptions add up to more than the sum of their respective parts. He showed (by way of Updike) how good description is an integral themetic element, not poetic diversion. (BTW, he'd never inflict you with a phrase like "integral themetic element" which just shows you why I needed this book.) Anyway, when I revise now I know exactly what to keep and cut because I better understand how to measure its contribution to the overall work.

Didn't some of those other writing books make a similar point? Well sure, but Sexton got it to penetrate my brain. Both his own prose and prose examples resemble good description: concrete, specific, precise and original. I also valued the chapter on literary style because he brought out how Hemingway's voice is NOT merely a matter of short staccato sentences, but based on long compound sentences and a distinct diction too. That may sound abstract but when he breaks "A Farewell to Arms" for you, you'll be able to gauge where your work falls on a stylistic spectrum (giving appropriate credit to John Gardner, btw) and whether that suits your purpose.

The greatest strength of this book however is the immensely useful discussion of point of view. Nearly every "how to write" book touches on this topic, but the explanation in this book is where "Master Class" pulls away from the figurative pack. In two chapters Sexton not only gives a taste of the many flavors of 1st, 2nd, 3rd person (did you know there is more than one way to do 2nd person?) and omniscent but he helps you match them to the type of work you are writing. Again, I've read many, many discussions of POV that use cameras etc...but Sexton's gave me new insights into whether the strategy I'd chosen was appropriate for the interior life of my characters as well as the timescale of my novel.

"Master Class" is also a good read despite it's somewhat forbidding title. As writing books go there's relatively little jargon, but lots of humor. Perhaps because Sexton doesn't seem to have any particular axe to grind its inordinately accessible. Well, that's not quite true. He does insist that if people can be taught brain surgery they can probably learn (by reading great writers) how to write better fiction too. So if you find yourself getting frustrated with writing workshops save yourself a few hundred dollars next semester and read this instead. It's -- forgive the cliche -- like having your cake and eating it too.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Kick-start your writing, February 7, 2006

By 

Nicole Berger (Brooklyn, NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Master Class in Fiction Writing: Techniques from Austen, Hemingway, and Other Greats (Paperback)

As a wannabe writer who read far more than I wrote, this book was the perfect way to kick-start my writing. By reminding me that yes, there are things about writing fiction that can really be learned, "Master Class" helped me get past my insecurities as a writer. And now that I've really started writing, I keep turning to "Master Class" for tips and reminders about what is essential to each element of the craft. It's a fantastic tool for writers and a wonderful guide for readers interested in what makes good fiction tick, and on top of all that, it's compulsively readable.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Required Reading!, August 9, 2006

By 

Sara Goff (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Master Class in Fiction Writing: Techniques from Austen, Hemingway, and Other Greats (Paperback)

I read MASTER CLASS IN FICTION WRITING and wanted to go back and reread every work of literature I ever loved. I would get twice as much out of my old favorites reading them from the perspective of a writer, the authors themselves. Sexton uses the works of Austen, Hemingway, Joyce, and Morrison, among many others, to demonstrate how to write like a genius of the craft - even if, as he states, you aren't one, but merely sensitive, intelligent, and hard-working. The premise of MASTER CLASS - that writing can be learned - is heartening.

Sexton's passion for and knowledge of literature, his humor in it all and his ability to laugh at himself (he's a writer, too, after all) make MASTER CLASS both constructive and entertaining; think being in a class taught by a teacher everybody loves and respects. I learned and I laughed reading MASTER CLASS. And since Sexton seems to have memorized every classic ought to be read, it is a great save on time for those of us who have forgotten what A farewell to Arms is about or don't feel like getting into Faulkner. In this `class' the instructor does the work for you, giving the answers on how to structure a sound story, create `round' characters, keep plot in motion, and make the most of description, dialogue, point of view, voice and style - until, of course, the real work of writing your story begins. But Sexton makes sure you're prepared for that.

MASTER CLASS IN FICTION WRITING is a must read, and not just once. I will return to it each time I sit down to write a new story, the way I reference yearly my mother's unfailing instructions on how to cook a turkey before tackling the almighty bird. A fiction writer's gift to give is a good story; one would like to see it in print. With discipline and years of work, there's a chance it can happen. Sign up for Sexton's book, MASTER CLASS IN FICTION WRITING, and it's a near guarantee.