A dramatic introduction to dramatic form...

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	• How to Write a Damn Good Novel: A Step-by-Step No Nonsense Guide to Dramatic Storytelling (How to Write a ... James N. Frey St. Martin's Press, 1987 - 192 pages average customer review:based on 88 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

A dramatic introduction to dramatic form...

Anyone who sets out to write scintillating narratives but consistently finds the results flat and uninspiring probably needs this book. Storytelling, dramatic storytelling in particular, contains a high craft element that needs to be learned and mastered. Most mortals can't just sit down with no background whatsoever in dramatic form and spew out spine-tingling prose. A gripping dramatic story goes way beyond a good idea in a brain. It needs evocative characters, rising tension, and a unifying theme, or what this book calls "Character, Conflict, and Premise." Without these a story will remain flat and lifeless. No one's pulse will rise after reading a story about two people who agree about everything and then go off to have tea. But lock a Republican, a Democrat, and a gun in a room, have them argue fervently over politics and life and make the tension gradually rise to breaking point. Kaboom! Drama.

"How to Write a Damn Good Novel" provides an incredible and accessible introduction to dramatic form. As the book's introduction says, "If you wish to write like James Joyce or Virginia Woolf and create experimental, symbolic, philosophical, or psychological novels that eschew the dramatic form, this book is not for you." That said, one must know what something is before eschewing it. If someone wishes to eschew dramatic form, they can learn all about it here first. Then they can confidently eschew to their heart's content. Not only that, dramatic form pervades culture, television, movies, theater, and even sensationalist journalism. Those wanting to simply learn about the mechanics, effects, and influence of this ubiquitous process can also benefit from this effortless read.

The foundations of dramatic storytelling receive more than adequate coverage: creating vivid characters; keeping characters in conflict or in "the crucible;" having a solid premise that helps determine what gold to keep and what dross to cut; how to "begin before the beginning," using a stepsheet to plot and determine a story's events; creating a satisfying climax; which viewpoint to choose; writing great indirect, sensual, and clever dialogue; the painful necessity of rewriting; how to use, or misuse, writer's groups; good habits. Integrating many of these elements, the book defines a story as "a narrative of consequential events involving worthy human characters who change as a result of those events." Throughout, passages and plot lines from classics such as "A Christmas Carol," "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," and "Madame Bovary" demonstrate the principles as they're introduced. This elevates the book above mere dry theory. Many times a story gets constructed from scratch as an example. The concepts get drilled in, not merely discussed.

A better introduction to this subject is difficult to imagine. This small book remains clear, concise, entertaining, and even moving throughout (there's even a little drama as the author rails against "the Imagists" and calls them "villains"). Thorough readers will gain a solid foundation on dramatic storytelling and may also forge the confidence to break out and write something, or rework something flat. Those hoary ideas that sat there numbly for months or years may start to jig. And even if a "damn good novel" doesn't result from scanning this inspiring text, the book contains enough useful material to make the price and time well worth the investment.

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Good companion

I bought this book while writing my first novel to get some of the 'tricks of the trade'. I dont know what I exactly expected it to be, but it is not 'tricks of the trade', as it were. It's more like a textbook. A very decent one even. It is obviously well written in a clear and concise language and supported by very good examples of the techniques and exercices suggested.

I have read other reviews stating that this book delivers advice on things so basic, that you didn't even thought of them. This, I believe, is rubbish. This book doesn't deliver anything that you probably in some way, shape or form did not already know if you are an aspiring writer. It does, however, organize all this information in a very good way, making it easy to check and re-check your work in progress. Sometimes you will know something, but being human, forget it, and then perhaps find it somewhere in the pages of this book. It serves as a great inspiration/organizer,and is a very good place to look when you get stuck.

Highly recommendable.

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GET THIS BOOK!

Can you write a proper English sentence? Can you think abstractly enough to invent interesting details, yet analytically enough to form and follow a plan? Would you like to know how to use those skills to write a damn good novel?

My first novel attempt resulted in 50,000 words of useless mush. I knew how many words I needed, had a general idea of who my characters were and what the story was. So I wrote and wrote and wrote until I had that many words and the story was done. It sucked like a black hole. I read it several times, then abandoned my writing ambitions and deleted the files.

Years later, I had a second idea for a novel. From my earlier failure, I knew I needed some guidance first. I checked out 20 library books (from 3 counties). This is the one that helped the most. For what I needed, it was more useful than all the others combined.

I am now in the middle of my second draft. I continue to re-read "How to Write a Damn Good Novel" about once a month. Now that I have a foundation, a comfort level, and some context, I get some benefit from other books. But this book is my bible.

Thank you, James, for putting all the important basics into a readable and practical form!

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Fresh Air

I've read a lot of books on writing, and I've found that many of them are basically identical. "How to Write A Damn Good Novel", however, is well-written and full of good advice. The writer has a great personality, and really knows how to instruct in a way that works. This book has practical and SPECIFIC information on how to write a Damn Good Novel.

It's like taking a writing course

I really want to write a novel, but of course I am not a writer at all. Therefore, I started searching for a book that could provide me with a little orientation on how to start writing a novel, and I decided to purchase this book. It was the BEST decision I could have made. I did not get just a little orientation. This book is like actually being enrolled into a creative writing course. It is very well written and very easy to understand. I actually feel like taking a writing class, and I am sure that my first book will not be as bad as I thought it would be now that I know the basic elements a good novel should have.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

Written in a clear, crisp, accessible style, this book is perfect for beginners as well as professional writers who need a crash course in the down-to-earth basics of storytelling. Talent and inspiration can't be taught, but Frey does provide scores of helpful suggestions and sensible rules and principles.

An international bestseller, How to Write a Damn Good Novel will enable all writers to face that intimidating first page, keep them on track when they falter, and help them recognize, analyze, and correct the problems in their own work.

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