Bringing the devil to his knees : the craft of fiction and the writing life

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Bringing the devil to his knees : the craft of fiction and the writing life

edited by Charles Baxter and Peter Turchi

University of Michigan Press, c2001

  • : hbk
  • : pbk

Available at  / 3 libraries

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Includes bibliographical references

Description and Table of Contents

Volume

: pbk ISBN 9780472067749

Description

In Bringing the Devil to His Knees: The Craft of Fiction and the Writing Life, seventeen award-winning writers--all expert teachers--share the secrets of creating compelling, imaginative stories and novels. A combination handbook, writer's companion, and collection of spirited personal essays, the book is filled with specific examples, hard-won wisdom, and compassionate guidance for the developing or experienced fiction writer. Each of the contributors is a current or former lecturer at the Warren Wilson College MFA Program for Writers, one of the most highly respected writing programs in the country. Included are essays by Charles Baxter, Robert Boswell, Karen Brennan, Judith Grossman, Ehud Havazelet, C. J. Hribal, Margot Livesey, Michael Martone, Kevin McIlvoy, Pablo Medina, Antonya Nelson, Susan Neville, Richard Russo, Steven Schwartz, Jim Shepard, Joan Silber, Debra Spark, Peter Turchi, and Chuck Wachtel. Rich with masterful examples and personal anecdotes, these imaginative essays provide hard-earned insight into a writer's work. The book will interest not only those seeking inspiration and guidance to become stronger writers, but also readers of contemporary literary fiction, who will find a number of surprising and original approaches to the writer's work by award-winning practitioners adept at teaching others what they know.

Table of Contents

Introduction Part One/Techniques, Devices, and Strategies Richard Russo In Defense of Omniscience Jim Shepard I Know Myself Real Well. That's the Problem Susan Neville Where's Iago? Steven Schwartz Finding a Voice in America Chuck Wachtel Behind the Mask: Narrative Voice in Fiction Joan Silber Weight in Fiction Ehud Havazelet Chekhov and Form Charles Baxter ""You're Really Something"": Inflection and the Breath of Life Debra Spark Getting In and Getting Out: First Words on First (and Last) Words Part Two/Maps and Legends Karen Brennan Dream, Memory, Story, and the Recovery of Narrative Robert Boswell Narrative Spandrels C. J. Hribal The Scene Beast Is Hungry Peter Turchi The Writer as Cartographer Antonya Nelson ""Mom's on the Roof"": The Usefulness of Jokes in Shaping Short Stories Part Three/Facing Up to the Reader Michael Martone Ruining a Story Kevin McIlvoy The Editor Comes Clean at Last (A Tale of One Rejection Letter and One Acceptance Letter to Stephen Crane) Pablo Medina Literature and Democracy Judith Grossman Thinking about a Reader Margot Livesey How to Tell a True Story
Volume

: hbk ISBN 9780472097746

Table of Contents

Introduction Part One/Techniques, Devices, and Strategies Richard Russo In Defense of Omniscience Jim Shepard I Know Myself Real Well. That's the Problem Susan Neville Where's Iago? Steven Schwartz Finding a Voice in America Chuck Wachtel Behind the Mask: Narrative Voice in Fiction Joan Silber Weight in Fiction Ehud Havazelet Chekhov and Form Charles Baxter ""You're Really Something"": Inflection and the Breath of Life Debra Spark Getting In and Getting Out: First Words on First (and Last) Words Part Two/Maps and Legends Karen Brennan Dream, Memory, Story, and the Recovery of Narrative Robert Boswell Narrative Spandrels C. J. Hribal The Scene Beast Is Hungry Peter Turchi The Writer as Cartographer Antonya Nelson ""Mom's on the Roof"": The Usefulness of Jokes in Shaping Short Stories Part Three/Facing Up to the Reader Michael Martone Ruining a Story Kevin McIlvoy The Editor Comes Clean at Last (A Tale of One Rejection Letter and One Acceptance Letter to Stephen Crane) Pablo Medina Literature and Democracy Judith Grossman Thinking about a Reader Margot Livesey How to Tell a True Story

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