Review by Ana Victoria2002 -- Creating Literary Stories:...
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Laura Britos
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Review by Ana Victoria2002 -- Creating Literary Stories:...
[Following is a volunteer review of "Creating Literary Stories: A Fiction Writer's Guide" by William H. Coles.]
Perhaps reading a writing guide is an unconventional way of strengthening one’s literary skills. But inspiration comes from all sources. And sometimes, we need a dumb down explanation in order to grasp everything with more precision. I would have for sure used this book when writing my short story assignments in literature class during high school. Creating Literary Stories: A Fiction Writer’s Guide by William H. Coles is a God send book that contains two smaller pieces: Literary Stories In Fiction and Creating A Literary Fictional Story. These pieces will enhance our writing skills without sacrificing any of our neurons with complicated jargon or pompous explanation. The author centers on key advice and explains character development, transitions, points of view, narration, dialogue, emotion complexity, voice, time and presentism in a way that will manage to answer all the doubts a rookie may have, and even remind professional writers about the bedrock of literary fiction.
A more theoretical approach to writing has never been my first choice. However, this book surpassed my expectations. It is never pointless, goes straight to the point and exemplifies its definitions. I do especially agree with the necessity of the author being part of the story. The story is the embodiment of the author, the space in which people allow a part of themselves to live life furiously and fervently. We are what we think and sometimes what we think is written. The rest of the advice and explanation, especially when referring to character development and three-dimensional characters, would not even exist without the writer being part of the story, the piece would be flat, void of raw imperfection and sensitivity. If we were to write just for the sake of talking about something we would write instruction manuals or academic papers. When we target a book we are becoming a part of something bigger than ourselves, we are meeting also its creator: the author.
I believe that great characters, those who make us forget that what we are reading is only real inside our minds, are portraying some aspects of the author. Because it is easier to show than to speak, sometimes writers find solace in creating this complex characters, and we interact with them at the same time we get to know them. If a writer were to create a character that they could detach themselves from and not feel connected to, the book would be meaningless and dull. Writing is a way of manifesting who we are and perhaps our deepest secrets. There is a part of us in the stories we create.
I liked how he uses Little Red Riding Hood, as an example of how characters sometimes carry the entire story in their shoulders, and that if we were only to narrate them and not give them life, the story would achieve nothing. This book has a more analytical approach to what makes a fiction story stand out, and how to correctly craft it to write the most delicate piece. In addition, the author places great emphasis on the fact that narration is key to create a story that develops at a nice pace and attracts readers. However, narration is one of the most complex parts of planning and developing a story. It is something that takes time to fully master and it is not that simple to portray our thoughts into paragraphs. For some, storytelling comes natural. But other people, and I include myself in this category, struggle to convey what we think in a non-factual manner. Creating Literary Stories: A Fiction Writer’s Guide does really give excellent advice on how to polish our storytelling skills and give our written pieces a path to follow, to know what we are doing and where we want to take our story. Nonetheless. it describes what efficient storytelling is created. It is up to the writer to adjust to this.
My most favorite chapter of the first part of the book was the one on why literary stories fail. It does never criticize any aspiring authors but rather gives a cautionary tale on how to prevent our stories from flunking and not reaching our full potential as narrators. I found this part in particular to be really motivating for rookies or people who just want to have a deeper understanding on what makes a story popular and how to engage readers. The book explains that although some aspects can be planned out, writing is not something that has to be controlled all the time. It is an art that flows freely. The advice and instructions that we can find in this piece are more of how to approach our draft after it has been done, in order to see if we are on the right track. However, for the second part of the book, I thoroughly enjoyed chapter number four, which explains how a story comes to life. Conflict is what makes a story successful and gives it a purpose.
Overall, this book gives immense advice for aspiring writers and people who simple want to have a more theoretic approach to literature and how to craft the perfect piece. I found no mistakes which clearly shows that this piece was made with care and also corrected by an editor. And although at some points it felt a tiny bit repetitive, my reading was never interrupted or slowed down. My enjoyment of the book was untouched. From now onwards I feel more prepared to review and even critique books since I have all this knowledge as my backup. I give this book four stars out of four stars.
******
Creating Literary Stories: A Fiction Writer's Guide
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes | on Smashwords
Perhaps reading a writing guide is an unconventional way of strengthening one’s literary skills. But inspiration comes from all sources. And sometimes, we need a dumb down explanation in order to grasp everything with more precision. I would have for sure used this book when writing my short story assignments in literature class during high school. Creating Literary Stories: A Fiction Writer’s Guide by William H. Coles is a God send book that contains two smaller pieces: Literary Stories In Fiction and Creating A Literary Fictional Story. These pieces will enhance our writing skills without sacrificing any of our neurons with complicated jargon or pompous explanation. The author centers on key advice and explains character development, transitions, points of view, narration, dialogue, emotion complexity, voice, time and presentism in a way that will manage to answer all the doubts a rookie may have, and even remind professional writers about the bedrock of literary fiction.
A more theoretical approach to writing has never been my first choice. However, this book surpassed my expectations. It is never pointless, goes straight to the point and exemplifies its definitions. I do especially agree with the necessity of the author being part of the story. The story is the embodiment of the author, the space in which people allow a part of themselves to live life furiously and fervently. We are what we think and sometimes what we think is written. The rest of the advice and explanation, especially when referring to character development and three-dimensional characters, would not even exist without the writer being part of the story, the piece would be flat, void of raw imperfection and sensitivity. If we were to write just for the sake of talking about something we would write instruction manuals or academic papers. When we target a book we are becoming a part of something bigger than ourselves, we are meeting also its creator: the author.
I believe that great characters, those who make us forget that what we are reading is only real inside our minds, are portraying some aspects of the author. Because it is easier to show than to speak, sometimes writers find solace in creating this complex characters, and we interact with them at the same time we get to know them. If a writer were to create a character that they could detach themselves from and not feel connected to, the book would be meaningless and dull. Writing is a way of manifesting who we are and perhaps our deepest secrets. There is a part of us in the stories we create.
I liked how he uses Little Red Riding Hood, as an example of how characters sometimes carry the entire story in their shoulders, and that if we were only to narrate them and not give them life, the story would achieve nothing. This book has a more analytical approach to what makes a fiction story stand out, and how to correctly craft it to write the most delicate piece. In addition, the author places great emphasis on the fact that narration is key to create a story that develops at a nice pace and attracts readers. However, narration is one of the most complex parts of planning and developing a story. It is something that takes time to fully master and it is not that simple to portray our thoughts into paragraphs. For some, storytelling comes natural. But other people, and I include myself in this category, struggle to convey what we think in a non-factual manner. Creating Literary Stories: A Fiction Writer’s Guide does really give excellent advice on how to polish our storytelling skills and give our written pieces a path to follow, to know what we are doing and where we want to take our story. Nonetheless. it describes what efficient storytelling is created. It is up to the writer to adjust to this.
My most favorite chapter of the first part of the book was the one on why literary stories fail. It does never criticize any aspiring authors but rather gives a cautionary tale on how to prevent our stories from flunking and not reaching our full potential as narrators. I found this part in particular to be really motivating for rookies or people who just want to have a deeper understanding on what makes a story popular and how to engage readers. The book explains that although some aspects can be planned out, writing is not something that has to be controlled all the time. It is an art that flows freely. The advice and instructions that we can find in this piece are more of how to approach our draft after it has been done, in order to see if we are on the right track. However, for the second part of the book, I thoroughly enjoyed chapter number four, which explains how a story comes to life. Conflict is what makes a story successful and gives it a purpose.
Overall, this book gives immense advice for aspiring writers and people who simple want to have a more theoretic approach to literature and how to craft the perfect piece. I found no mistakes which clearly shows that this piece was made with care and also corrected by an editor. And although at some points it felt a tiny bit repetitive, my reading was never interrupted or slowed down. My enjoyment of the book was untouched. From now onwards I feel more prepared to review and even critique books since I have all this knowledge as my backup. I give this book four stars out of four stars.
******
Creating Literary Stories: A Fiction Writer's Guide
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes | on Smashwords
Latest Review: The Last Time I Saw Alice by Richard Kirschenbaum
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bookreviewmi1111
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- Latest Review: Creating Literary Stories: A Fiction Writer's Guide by William H. Coles
I rated it 4/4 too because I like the author's writing style. This book will be so helpful if someone is a new writer. Thanks for your honest review!
