Customer Reviews

Narrative Design: Working with Imagination, Craft, and Form

5 star:		(1)
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2 star:		(1)
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I saw that pitiful lil stankin azz review and HAD to say something because this book deserves way more than two stars. For anyone SERIOUS about writing and actually *wants* to be in a class, this is the only book that I can think of that will actually deconstruct a story line by line and break down its significance into sections that make you discover how they work and WHY they work so well. The notes are so detailed that you will be shown things that you would have never figured out on your own, and it will teach you to read ALL work like that. You learn on a sentence level, a structural level and a thematic level and how to combine those crucial elements together, yet make it look effortless (if you're lucky).

I was sold with the very first story by Mary Gaitskill, who I positively adore. Then a Peter Taylor story? AND Ernest Gaines? Forget it! Bell combines greats with unknowns and offers up a true MFA level lesson on craft, with some amazing stories. I haven't seen a book like it and am SO glad that it exists. This is a must-have, which I say about a lot of the books I review, but if you think about all the writing books out there, there are only a few you really need and this is one of them. I don't write reviews for books I am indifferent about - I don't even READ them. So if you know what's good for you and your writing, you will get this jont! LOL

I had to buy this book for a writing class, and did not find it very helpful.