Characters & Viewpoint (Elements of Fiction Writing)

by Orson Scott Card (Author)

74 ratings

ISBN-13: 978-1599632124

ISBN-10: 1599632128

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Vivid and memorable characters aren't born: they have to be made

This book is a set of tools: literary crowbars, chisels, mallets, pliers and tongs. Use them to pry, chip, yank and sift good characters out of the place where they live in your imagination.

Award-winning author Orson Scott Card explains in depth the techniques of inventing, developing and presenting characters, plus handling viewpoint in novels and short stories. With specific examples, he spells out your narrative options—the choices you'll make in creating fictional people so "real" that readers will feel they know them like members of their own families.

You'll learn how to:

Draw characters from a variety of sources
Make characters show who they are by the things they do and say, and by their individual "style"
Develop characters readers will love—or love to hate
Distinguish among major characters, minor characters and walk-ons, and develop each appropriately
Choose the most effective viewpoint to reveal the characters and move the storytelling
Decide how deeply you should explore your characters' thoughts, emotions, and attitudes

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

About the Author

Orson Scott Card is an award-winning science fiction novelist whose credits include the Hugo Nebula and World Fantasy Awards. His novels include Ender's Game, Shadow of Hegemon, and Speaker for the Dead, among others.

Series: Elements of Fiction Writing
Paperback: 240 pages
Publisher: Writer's Digest Books (1988)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1599632128
ISBN-13: 978-1599632124
Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.7 x 9 inches
Shipping Weight: 15 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 74 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #95,934 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #110 in Writing Skills Reference
- #149 in Authorship Reference
- #157 in Creative Writing & Composition

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Just Me

Opened my mind to new possibilities

September 25, 2015

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Firstly I'm an Orson Scott Card fan. His stories made me want to write characters of my own that other people could relate to, believe in, and care for. I don't buy many writing instruction books because there is so much good and FREE instruction on the web. But I knew that Mr. Card would offer something special. He did. The thing I absolutely loved was the many examples and demonstrations in this text. This is an invaluable reference for the beginner like myself. But, I can't imagine ever getting to the point as a writer when this text would cease to be valuable.

8 people found this helpful

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Waycoldness907

Fantastic

November 4, 2016

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I struggle with POV in my writing. Keeping it consistent and thoughtfully choosing the correct POV is difficult for me. This book is a life saver. It has armed me with knowledge - practical and deep. If you are a novel writer, you need this book.

5 people found this helpful

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James TTop Contributor: Writing

Unless you are already a successful author, read it.

April 27, 2015

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Books like this on writing by authors that are as well known and successful as Orson Scott Card are fairly rare. It's written by a prolific author who teaches instead of a teacher with a book or two published that no one has heard of before.
Practically a textbook, this is not a memoir, it's not about life as a writer, and it's not even about how to get published.
It is more than just developing characters, though. It's about developing a story about those characters. It's about how to tell that story about the characters you develop. There are some great methods in here of developing a story.
Like any good book, you wish there was more when you finish. Ti's a decent sized book and there is no fluff. Card covers the subject very well but that does not mean that this book covers everything about writing. There is more to learn after this book.
Lots of great advice. Lots of examples of both good and bad. I suspect those that would give this book a bad review only skimmed it and saw the bad examples. That's the only reason I can see that someone who is not already a successful author could give it a bad review.
If you are not already a successful author, I think you would find something useful to learn in this book.

10 people found this helpful

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FrequentAmazonShopper

For serious writers

March 25, 2019

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This is good, but a little hard to wade through so many examples. I got bogged down and began to skip parts that didn't seem to apply to my area of writing. Otherwise, one can learn a lot.

One person found this helpful

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Arizona Michael

A solid, Worthwhile Read

February 3, 2015

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I found this book to be a mix of everyday common sense “duh” information and well-thought out ideas that I readily put to use. It’s not going to go over anyone’s head, yet the author doesn’t talk down to the reader either. Solid information. Much new, much reaffirming. For me, it was worth the money.

7 people found this helpful

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Robert C.

Great Book With Good Insights

May 7, 2014

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I got this book because I was considering writing fiction books. I already write non-fiction and thought it would be interesting to add fiction to my book list. What I learned from this book is that writing fiction is much different from writing non-fiction. Plus it made me look at the fiction books that I read in a different light. Now I look much more deeply at how an author develops the story and characters. A very valuable lesson.

4 people found this helpful

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Ms. Libertas

This is a great book!

September 12, 2019

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I love this book! I already have one, but I needed another to have one for a loaner for other writers! You want tips on what's important in writing and grabbing interest? This book is for YOU.

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Kindle Customer

Lots of ah ha moments.

January 9, 2015

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I chose a five star rating because the book greatly exceeded my expectations.
So much so that I will shop for the rest of the series as soon as I'm done with this review.

I loves how the author doesn't speak down to the reader, uses examples from novels as well as movies, and demonstrates how he uses these tools in his own writing.

I highly recommended this book because it covers aspects of characterization that I hadn't read about or heard discussed in writing class.

One person found this helpful

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Characters & Viewpoint (Elements of Fiction Writing)