The Art of Fiction: Notes on Craft for Young Writers

The best how-to-write book, bar none.

Want to be a writer? Want to know what works, and what doesn't? This is the book. But Gardner does much more than just the mechanics of writing. He talks about what goes on inside us as we write, why we write, and how that affects how we write. A slim volume, easy to read, and also easy to go back to. I pick it up all the time. Corrected many of my own basic errors as a writer, and also provided...more

Want to be a writer? Want to know what works, and what doesn't? This is the book. But Gardner does much more than just the mechanics of writing. He talks about what goes on inside us as we write, why we write, and how that affects how we write. A slim volume, easy to read, and also easy to go back to. I pick it up all the time. Corrected many of my own basic errors as a writer, and also provided inspiration and confidence. I would not have published without it.   hide

Great, but one thing makes me uneasy... See my rating of his other book :P

For the PMFA class. Heady, heavy stuff. Gardner (Grendel) does some serious delving into the question of what makes for good fiction. I feel ten times smarter just reading it. A whole whack of writing exercises in the last section are provided for you to put Gardner's theories into practice. Good times. Grab a pencil and some coffee, and get cracking.

Gardner's tone can be obnoxious. He continually references his own work, and he has very strong opinions about the purpose of literature, i.e. that a writer must believe in free will in order to be engaging, that shoddy work is an example of impurity in a writer's soul, that all good writing is subtly moral. Also, he rambles; the organization isn't very good. Some of his advice...more

Gardner's tone can be obnoxious. He continually references his own work, and he has very strong opinions about the purpose of literature, i.e. that a writer must believe in free will in order to be engaging, that shoddy work is an example of impurity in a writer's soul, that all good writing is subtly moral. Also, he rambles; the organization isn't very good. Some of his advice though, I think will be helpful: 1) Treat the "rules" only as tools to some purpose. 2) Use associations to create dynamic climaxes in longer forms, and the always popular 3) Write often and seriously.   hide

If you want to learn to write well, this is your book. Written by a man who was taken from us too soon. THE book to read if you want to learn to write correctly.

Great, easy, and at times inspirational read, in the beginning. I see what people were saying about a little bit of his cockiness showing through--towards the end (though he's nowhere near as cocky as, for example, Ayn Rand)--but I wouldn't trust anyone who wasn't cocky about their own ideals to tell me what and what is not good fiction. The exercises are also great so far.

I am not a published author, exactly, but I think every aspiring author should read this book. Gardner is as challenging as good art should be. This isn't a recipe book.

Wow! the most helpful book I've come across, with the lessons in this book behind me i have no doubt i'll get published!