Writing Fiction: An Introduction to the Craft [Paperback]

Garry Disher (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2003 | ISBN-10: 1865085898 | ISBN-13: 978-1865085890

Useful for writers at any level or age, this guide explains the basic steps to effective fiction writing. From an award-winning author, sound, practical advice is included on the most significant elements of fiction, such as plot, character development, and voice, and strategies are provided for the effective use of tense and the dialogue. All forms of fiction are explored, including novels, novellas, short stories, and crime fiction. In addition, the writing concepts introduced are illustrated with examples from a wide variety of known writers, presenting a candid picture of the pleasure and pitfalls from a wide range of fiction-writing experiences.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A useful handbook for the beginning writer of fiction." -- Library Journal April 1, 2003

"Offers a valuable guide for the beginning writer." -- The Writer

About the Author

Garry Disher is the author of several novels, short story collections, writers’ handbooks, and children’s books, including The Sunken Road, which was nominated for the Booker Prize.

Product Details

• Paperback: 232 pages
• Publisher: Allen & Unwin (April 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1865085898
• ISBN-13: 978-1865085890
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,250,026 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Garry Disher lives in Australia and is the author of over 40 books: novels, short story collections, writers' handbooks, history textbooks and children's fiction. His Challis and Destry police procedurals, and his Wyatt crime from the inside thrillers, are gaining international recognition, winning best crime novel of the year awards in Australia and Germany and appearing on best books of the year lists in the USA. Garry has toured Germany twice and the States once, and counts a scholarship year spent in the Stanford University creative writing school, early in his career, as one of his most important formative experiences.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a very thoughtful reference for the thinking writer, March 21, 2010

By 

A-1 - See all my reviews

This review is from: Writing Fiction: An Introduction to the Craft (Paperback)

Why has this book received no [other] reviews on Amazon? Perhaps because it is from an Australian writer / Australian publisher? In any event, what this proves to me is what I have suspected for some time: sometimes, you should not attribute a great deal of credibility to the quality (number of stars awarded) or the quantity of Amazon reviews, or whether or not Amazon reviews even exist for the book in question. I stumbled across this book at my local library, while looking for other books on writing fiction. Note that I am reviewing the 2001 extensively revised edition of this book.

This is one of the most thoughtful and most thorough books I have found on the core craft of writing fiction - an amazingly complete reference in just over 200 pages! Example: Point of View - where other writing books might devote several paragraphs or maybe one page to POV, this book devotes an entire twenty-plus page chapter to it!

Table of Contents: Authors Note, 1. Becoming a Writer, 2. What is Fiction?, 3. Ideas for Stories and Novels, 4. Character, 5. Dialogue, 6. Point of View, 7. Plot, 8. Planning, 9. Structure, 10. Setting, 11. Writing the Short Story, 12. Writing the Novel, 13. The Words on the Page, 14. Troubleshooting, Further Reading, Sources.

If you are a fiction writer and you are struggling to complete or revise a draft of your novel or short story, the chapter on troubleshooting alone may be worth its weight in gold. Get this book if you can find it. Google the author's name (Garry Disher) if you want more background or credentials.