Customer Reviews

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

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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.

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.

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.

Sexton's book, Master Class in Fiction Writing, is well-organized, clear and concise while being very entertaining. This isn't your college lit class but you'd wish it were. Each chapter takes you through a different work (reprinted) with Sexton using the example to demonstrate different aspects of fiction writing. A 'class' like this could run to the purely academic but Sexton is a very entertaining writer and it's difficult to stop reading at the end of each chapter. If you are interested in learning more about writing in general and/or improving your own writing, you will get a lot out of this book and enjoy yourself while doing so.

It's hard to imagine a better book on fiction writing craft than this one. As the author points out, one learns the fiction writing art form by example. In this book, each element of fiction writing craft -- plot, point of view, character, etc. -- is clearly broken down to its fundamental "rules", and then the author reveals how the great fiction writers of the last two centuries -- Austen, Joyce, Updike, Conrad, and others -- made use of these rules (and in some cases broke them).

The best thing about the book is the way it looks at fiction writing as a kind of problem-solving exercise -- which of course, like all art forms, it is. The most important quality of any book, according to Sexton, is the way in which it creates a compelling and satisfying reading experience. By seeing how the greats took the fundamental elements of their stories and crafted them into masterpiece works of literary art, the reader of this book learns the artistic process of fiction writing.

Let me recommend most enthusiastically both to writers and readers Adam Sexton's new book MASTER CLASS IN FICTION WRITING: TECHNIQUES FROM AUSTEN, HEMINGWAY, AND OTHER GREATS (LESSONS FROM THE ALL-STAR WRITER'S WORKSHOP). The idea of the book is that you can learn to be a better writer by studying specific techniques of excellent writers: Hemingway for voice, Austen for characterization, etc. He puts in all the sections you'd expect- structure, plot, characterization, dialogue, description, point of view, etc., and each section focuses on one work- a short story, long story, or novel. He actually tells you to "Stop now and read...." so you've got an excellent guide to reading or re-reading some twentieth century classics plus SENSE AND SENSIBILITY.

Master Class in Fiction Writing is an invaluable resource for high school teachers of liteature. As Adam Sexton guides writers in making sound choices in developing their stories, he demystifies for students the befuddling abstract concepts of structure, point of view, style and voice. Students understand and long for the practical. Why they wonder would a writer choose to bedevil a reader with an unreliable narrator? Aside from other considerations, Sexton explains because, "...readers take satisfaction in observing between the covers of a book what we suspect to be true in life: people lie, often at length and in great detail." Resentful students can almost be heard murmuring, " Oh, it that all it is. That's why he did that. Why didn't anyone just say so?" But Sexton has done far more than say. Taking his own best advice, he has made his own story concrete and dramatic through extensive examples of accomplished writers. Furthermore, his exemplars are drawn from the writings of Joyce ("Araby" not Ulysses!), Hemingway, Faulkner, and Conrad, often included in high school curricula and quite accessible to most students.

It's clear that reading will never be the same after Master Class in Fiction Writing - Adam Sexton's most recent book. There's a price to understanding the writing craft. One becomes more demanding, more unforgiving of bad writing. One, perhaps, even misses the essence of a book, while distracted by problems with its technique. That's a cost aspiring writers must be willing to bear. Yet, the reward is priceless: They will be blessed with that occasional rapture that is reserved to the real connoisseurs, that ability to recognize something truly special, to discover the extraordinary. And as a bonus, they'll become better writers. Sounds like a good deal to me.

In this easy to read, fascinating book, Adam Sexton teaches the best way to read - if one wants to write well. Master Class in Fiction Writing, a book on reading from the point of view of the writer, is an interesting, well structured "How To" book, full of practical advice and excellent example-based pointers. It's a must for those looking to improve their writing skills.

This is one of the best (possibly THE best) book about writing that I've read so far. It is divided in chapters each covering a particular theme (structure, characterization, Plot, etc.) explaining it through the analysis of the work of an accomplished writer.

The book is a reference of inestimable value, you'll want to keep going back to it because it is so rich with ideas and insights that it is not possible to assimilate it in one read.

While it is not a how-to book about writing, it is something better, it shows you how to analyze literature in a way that reveals the process to you, so you can create your own reservoir of tools and resources to learn from any book you read, as well as to use in your own writing.

Besides the wealth of information and insight it contains, the book is a delightful read in and of itself.

this is a good book for people who need training on fiction writing. I didn't give it a five because it requires the reader to read a number of books while also studying/reading this one. It's more of a class than a book so I'd suggest that anyone buying this book also purchase the books recommended beforehand.