Ron Carlson Writes a Story

This is a wonderful book about the process of writing a short story. Carlson demystifies the process and helps guide the beginning writer through completing a short story. Any one in the early part of their writing will learn a lot, and even those who are more experienced will gain from Carlson's wisdom. He's an excellent writer and teacher. I was fortunate enough to hear him lecture about the writing process before he created this book, and I use excerpts of it when I teach fiction writing. It's a great investment. If you haven't read his fiction, check out Ron Carlson, especially "The Ordinary Son" and "Big Foot Stole My Wife."

I read Carlson's Five Skies just a few weeks ago and loved it. When I saw that he had written a book on how to write I was happily surprised. Ron Carlson Writes a Story does not disappoint. It is the single best book on how a writer creates something out of nothing that I have ever come across.

This book is directed at aspiring fiction writers. Since I don't write fiction, maybe I should be reading one of Carlson's novels instead. But I press on anyway. I am compelled by the sample story that Ron delivers in crisp, salty little chunks, like so many goldfish crackers scattered on the path through the dark woods of procrastination. But I am also moved by Ron's writing lessons: tips and truisms, warnings and reminders, all of it frank and funny and right, because each one is tied to the wagging tale of the story he's telling. Ron's emphasis is on process, not craft, and hence on intuition and accident more than control. Writing is discovery; you need to listen to your characters, not tell them what to do. Writing dialogue, Ron tells us, is "like playing tennis against a real partner. It's not like playing tennis against a wall." Craft alone would be mastering the wall; but process means creating characters who feint, parry, and giggle uncontrollably, keeping the writer on her toes. A lot of the book isn't about fiction writing at all. It's about time management. In a sharp little chapter called "Coffee," Carlson writes, "No one among us suffers the radical appreciation for coffee that I do. It calls to me, but I have learned not to listen." Coffee takes you out of your seat; it breaks concentration; it persuades you that "you might be smarter in the next room." And every coffee machine has a vacuum cleaner as its neighbor. Or an email account. Or a Face Book page. This is a quick, fun, and enlightening read, a great book for anyone who likes to write, or to read about writing. I recommend it with a cup of Joe. [...]

Years ago, I used to stay in a B & B next to the British Museum where literary workers stayed and often left their bound galleys on the "exchange" bookcase in the sitting room. On one trip, I picked up a collection of stories by Ron Carlson. The story that stuck with me -- for years -- was a story about a guy losing a mattress from the top of his truck on an overpass, and watching it fly away. Now he has written a book called "Ron Carlson Writes a Story" -- and it's about THIS story! From the things that were going on in his life before, to the first sentence, to the luminous ending, I can go right through it with him. It's actually a thrill.

My experience in finding this book, is just like the other reviewer, I was buying some books, and I was recommended this title. With a name such as "Ron Carlson writes a story", I really had no idea what to expect. Who is Ron Carlson? I have never heard of this person in my life, is the idea of him being able to write a story worthy of a book, is it a man's triumph over the written word? No, it is a behind the scenes look at the making of a story. Fortunately, the price was just ten dollars, a very low amount for something that could be of use. I love short stories, and I love writing, my reason for buying this book, was the possible glimpse inside the mind of a writer. I am writing this review, because this is a great book, and the page here gives very little to go on. The author is a very gifted writer; his thoughts come through clearly, and cite countless ideas, and suggestions that will change the way you work. I knew buying this, that it was more of a "making of a story" book, not a "how to write" book, hopefully potential buyers note this as well. Ron goes sentence by sentence (or paragraph) and explains what he is thinking while he wrote it. He analyzes only the finished story, not the first draft, we don't get to see him struggle on what elements he decides to keep and why, just how the story came to be, and why he does the things he does. He also gives off ideas, how he approaches a tough spot, when the author gets stumped, what he likes to do, and gives off examples. I learned a lot from this book, it wasn't mind bending, it didn't change my world, but it did help, and it can help you too. The author writes with conviction, he prose leaps off the page, his characters are amazing, most every character he introduces in the story, I immediately wanted to know more about them. Ron writes very organically, his story is told with no outline, it just flows, and through reading this book, you can get an idea of how powerful that is, and how powerful that can be. He creates a world I want to visit, and creates characters I want to meet, and learn more about. If I have to give a downside to this book, it would be the lack of attention dedicated to story. Even the short story is not really a story; it's more of a vignette, a scene, a fond memory of things past. Be that as it may, I cannot fault this book on not addressing this topic; there are countless other books that focus on nothing but story. Though, it would have been nice. In the end, if you are only going to pick up one book on writing, this is not that book. But if you have a passion for writing, you can do no wrong in buying this book.