Covering the main elements of fiction writing, Beginnings, Middles & Ends demonstrates effective solutions for potential problems, from how to hook the editor in the 1st few paragraphs to building drama and credibililty in prose.'
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Best Book on Nuts & Bolts of Writing I've Read:
This is, without a doubt, the best book on the nuts & bolts of writing fiction I've read (and I've read quite a few.) Ms. Kress lays out the kinds of techniques for organizing stories that I've been looking for everywhere. If I were going to teach a class on creative writing, this would be the text book!
Doesn't neglect the short story writer:
There are all kinds of writers and all kinds of writing, and it's impossible to cover them all. But Kress does a pretty good job of covering a lot of the territory. Of particular interest to me was that she spoke about writing short stories as well as writing novels, and (in the "endings" part) about the differences between traditional plotted short stories and contemporary literary short stories. The short story form is completely neglected in most of books on fiction writing, but not here. I... more info
good practical advice on fiction writing from a pro:
This is part of the Writer's Digest "Elements of Fiction" series (presumably the previous incarnation of their current "Write Great Fiction" series). This book is thus a kind of counterpart to James Scott Bell's Plot and Structure. Whereas Bell approaches the subject as a college tutor might, analyzing classic plot structures and using diagrams to illustrate the rhythm of a story, Kress's approach is more down-to-earth. It's also a shorter book. (I see the two approaches as complementary.) As the title... more info
Excellent:
I am an aspiring writer and have two novels under my belt. I am currently working on my third. I have many How-To books in my collection, some good and others lousy. I rank Nancy's book to be among the best of the best. She is helping me gain structure and power in my writing. Sorry there is not a 10 ranking... because that is what this book of hers deserves.
Privacy policy: we don't collect information
about visitors except for the standard technical server logs. We don't send unsolicited emails. We don't
sell the information that we don't collect about you to anyone. When you follow
links to other sites, their privacy policies apply. Thanks for visiting!
