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milktoast's review against another edition
4.0
I typically walk away from books about writing with a few new tips or tricks and maybe a new idea. This book is very different. As the title reflects, it explores fiction as both craft and art. At first I worried that Gardner was kind of pretentious--his style is certainly very academic. But he managed to fuse together solid writing advice with interesting theory in a way that challenged me to think about how I approach writing (without making me feel like I had to write like ~*the classics*~). He uses classic lit for his examples, and sometimes I was annoyed by his assumption that his reader would be familiar. I'm fairly well read in the classics, but I haven't read everything dude.
I've seen people say that this book is only for those who write literary fiction, but I disagree and I think Gardner would too. Regardless of your genre, if you are interested in advancing your writing as craft and art, this is a good read. I've been working on the exercises at the end of the book and some of them are hard!
I've seen people say that this book is only for those who write literary fiction, but I disagree and I think Gardner would too. Regardless of your genre, if you are interested in advancing your writing as craft and art, this is a good read. I've been working on the exercises at the end of the book and some of them are hard!
tonimp28's review against another edition
4.0
El libro está bien, un poco denso, eso sí.
Hay partes en las que está centrado en cosas propias del inglés y, aunque está bien traducido, no son aplicables al idioma español, por estilo, fonética, etc.
De todos modos es una lectura interesante tanto para escritores principiantes como para lectores, para sacarle más jugo a los libros.
Me quedan pendiente los ejercicios del final.
Hay partes en las que está centrado en cosas propias del inglés y, aunque está bien traducido, no son aplicables al idioma español, por estilo, fonética, etc.
De todos modos es una lectura interesante tanto para escritores principiantes como para lectores, para sacarle más jugo a los libros.
Me quedan pendiente los ejercicios del final.
scottclyerly's review against another edition
5.0
Probably the best book on writing I have ever read. I highlighted the bejesus out of this book.
eatingfiction's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
2.0
Nicely readable, with some good nuggets. But had a pretentious air to it that I couldn't stand.
imrogers's review against another edition
4.0
Yeah, it's pompous as hell -- but Gardner knows his shit, and knows it well. Few guides could even attempt to explore the theoretical underpinnings of fiction as well as this one -- the complex mechanics of how stories work, and how a writer's tone, plot, and stylistic choices play into them. While many of these discussions will no doubt be daunting for the "Young Writers" mentioned in the subtitle, those with a bit more experience under their belts will no doubt find this fascinating, if a bit overboard at times.
The most useful section for emerging writers is no doubt Chapter 5 - Common Errors, which goes through step-by-step what makes clunky sentences clunky and how writers can fix them, and serves as a more practical guide compared to the rest of the book. Fellow writers, don't be swayed by its age, pick this one up!
The most useful section for emerging writers is no doubt Chapter 5 - Common Errors, which goes through step-by-step what makes clunky sentences clunky and how writers can fix them, and serves as a more practical guide compared to the rest of the book. Fellow writers, don't be swayed by its age, pick this one up!