Sep 21 2008
How Fiction Works
How Fiction Works is written by James Wood.
It is a small book that so far I am finding absolutely fascinating. I ordered it from Amazon.ca as a result of reading a very brief portion of it for one of my classes… suppose I could have just found it in the library, but it was one of those books that I knew I wanted to own, not just read once.
The book deals with the many elements of fiction - narration, for example, is broken into sections related to style - even though Wood notes that there really are two options, he manages more than 20 sections relating to it. While much of what I read leads me to think well duh, I knew that … he puts what we as writers and readers know into concrete terms that I likely would not have thought of.
Tis an enjoyable read - and a resource that I have little doubt will help as I move on with my studies. I am very glad to have found a work of literary critique that focusses more on the literature and less on baffling the reader. So many adopt officious tones …so many words that say so little. How Fiction Works is not one of them.
Coolness.
I rarely read books on the ins and outs of writing, but I’m glad there are good books out there.
Oooh oooh, I think I just may have to buy this book. I took two literary criticism courses as part of my degree requirements in college and let me tell you, I have blocked that trauma from my memory. =) Literary criticism can be so staunch and inaccessible. I love that someone has broken down the elements of fiction into something less…well, less traumatizing!