If you're like me, you're not looking for your first book about writing--more like your twentieth or thirtieth. So, I'm going to skip the part where I confirm that Mixon has done a fabulous job of covering all the basics. Instead, I'd like to dive into what makes this book about writing better than most.
Awesome Examples
Instead of the unending excerpts that seem to permeate other books about writing, Mixon provides interesting and instructive--delightful even--examples by creating her own. When she does discuss notable authors who are exemplary, it is a discussion, not an extract. She summarizes, interprets, and shines a clear analytical light on the reasons that author is exemplary. I also found the factoids about the private lives of these writers fascinating. (Pet peeve avoided: Although writers are often admonished to be readers, few books about writing will assume that we have indeed read or have access to novels.)
Humor
It's not a laugh-a-minute, nor should it be. But in a process that can be as long, daunting, and difficult as writing, humor isn't just nice, it's needed. Reading The Art & Craft of Fiction never felt like reading a book. It felt like listening to a conversation. Mixon has an engrossing ability to communicate clearly but not pedantically, colloquially but not simply. Also, apart from the humor, every chapter rings true to the writer's outlook and understanding. It wasn't as though she was talking about writing, it felt like she was talking about writing to me.
Microscopic Rules to Universal Truths
In the midst of all the excellent prose, I don't want it to seem as though the nuts and bolts of writing aren't covered. From the decline of the ellipsis to the adverb bugaboo, Mixon not only enumerates what we need to know, she puts it into the context of how we arrived at today's writing climate. More than that, she doesn't shy away from the bigger issues of why we write. For scribblers of all types, deep psychology can be at work, plus the need to make a living. As an aside, I appreciate how she draws from her life and varied background and isn't afraid to be known.
Clever
Albert Einstein said it: "If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough." To wit, her appendix, "Everything You Need to Know About Writing a Novel, in 1,000 Words."
Enough about her.
My Checklist
- I call a writing book helpful if I can glean one completely new thing from it that I can use. My favorite shiny new gem from this book (among several) is the faux resolution. (Don't think I'm going to give up a spoiler here.)
- As I read, I reflected on my WIP and then made notes for it.
- I made many digital bookmarks.
My Wishes
I can appreciate why the digital book is a PDF (purchased from her web site). The interior and exterior design are tasteful and spot-on for the art and craft. As a self-publisher I was intrigued about how the highly polished look worked on a subconscious level. As a reader, though, what I really want is an epub, with a table of contents I can click on.
I would really like this as an audiobook (or podiobook). They're not just for Stephen King.
Excavation
The real reason she had me at excavating is not just because I was an archaeologist (which I was). It's because I've seen archaeology in much the same way that she sees writing: self-discovery, storytelling, and the adventure of finding something you didn't expect.
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION
Excavating the Bones of Storytelling
Seeking Hope
Finding Validation
Creating Art
BOOK I: WRITING
Chapter 1: Writing from the Internal World with Jane Bowles
Chapter 2: Understanding Copy, Line, & Developmental Issues
PART 1: DEVELOPMENTAL ISSUES
Chapter 3: Bewitching Your Reader with Isak Dinesen
Chapter 4: Storytelling
Distinguishing Between Storytelling & Fiction
Writing What You Know
Pushing Your Reader Off the Rainbow
CHARACTER IS CONTENT
Chapter 5: Telling the Truth With Emily Bront'
Chapter 6: Delving into the Mythic Life
Creating the Look of a Character
Creating a Name for a Character
Creating Action for a Character
Creating the Character in a Character
PLOT IS CONTEXT
Chapter 7: Finding a Story to Tell with Edgar Allan Poe
Chapter 8: Plotting Your Way Out of a Paper Bag
Plotting & Pantsing
Plotting to Handel's Largo
Pouring Your Story into the Dramatic Paradigm
Plotting by Domino Theory
Being Sort of Unique
Practicing Literary Jujitsu
Chapter 9: Hooking Them in the Jaw
Starting with Famous Last Words
Pulling Out the Crook-Neck Cane
Chapter 10: Running Them Like Rats in a Maze
Causing Effects
Pacing
Shoving Your Reader Around
Meeting Across the River
Chapter 11: Lulling Them into a Dream, Then Whacking an Epiphany Out of Them
Faux Resolution: Tuning a Harp on a Cloud
Climax: Walking on Water with a Pen
Resolution: Succumbing to Dramatic Overwhelm
PART 2: LINE ISSUES
Chapter 12: Watching Your Language with P.G. Wodehouse
PROSE
Chapter 13: Words
Braving the Dark & Stormy Night of Clichés
Not Going Gently into that Adverbial Night
Indulging in the Passive & the Active--Grammatical Voice
Discovering Your Own Language--Stylistic Voice
Chapter 14: Techniques
Tensing--Past, Present, & Future Tense
Speaking--1st-, 2nd-, & 3rd-Person Narrative Voice
Seeing--Limited, Unlimited, & Omniscient Point-of-View
SCENES ARE SHOWING
Chapter 15: Description
Moving from Proust to Haiku
Creating Layers of Meaning
Chapter 16: Action
Transcending Language
Entangling Your Characters
Chapter 17: Dialog
Structuring & Punctuating Dialog Correctly
Hearing What Your Reader Reads
Getting a Grip on Dialect
Focusing Characters With Their Words
Designing Dialog With Intent
Talking at Cross-Purposes
EXPOSITION IS TELLING
Chapter 18: Sketching in Story
PART 3: COPY ISSUES
Chapter 19: Learning Simplicity with Hemingway
Chapter 20: Grammar
Parsing 101: Making Sense With Sentences
Parsing 102: Writing With Clarity & Manners
Parsing 103: Unwinding Henry James
Chapter 21: Punctuation
Using Punctuation Marks Correctly
Living & Dying by the Period
The Art & Craft of Fiction
PART 4: REVISION
Chapter 22: Gaining Distance with Time with Truman Capote
Chapter 23: Cutting & Trimming
Killing Your Darlings
Fearing the Reaper
Chapter 24: Editing & Critiquing
Chapter 25: Despair
Revising Unto Death
Returning from the Dead
Running with the Chipmunks
BOOK II: BEING A WRITER
Chapter 26: Facing the Bad News with Flannery O'Connor
Chapter 27: The Good News
Aspiring
Loving & Hating the Tools of Your Trade
Writing Sanely in an Insane World
Committing Random Acts of Literature
Chapter 28: Writing for Love or Money
Chapter 29: Career
Chapter 30: Professional Habits
Handling Rejection
Querying
Composting Your Writing Skills
Chapter 31: Stepping into History Through Literature
CONCLUSION
Tilting at Windmills with Miguel de Cervantes
APPENDIX
Everything You Need to Know About Writing a Novel, in 1,000 Words
INDEX
