The Art of Fiction: Notes on Craft for Young Writers

I bought this book about ten years ago; it was the text book in an undergrad Creative Writing class. It wasn't until last year that I really read it. I have just finished reading it again for the second time.I think that all of Gardner's advice for beginning writers is valid. I was shocked at the negative reviews that some other readers have posted. They find fault with Gardner because he makes reference to classic works of literature. First off, one does not have to have read EVERY book that Gardner makes reference to in order to understand his point. What shocks me is that people seem genuinely offended that Gardner thinks that aspiring writers should read! EVERY creative writing teacher expects his students to read as much good literature as possible. Why is this? Because IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO BE A GOOD WRITER UNLESS ONE IS WELL READ. You don't believe me - just ask Stephen King. If you are offended that Gardner expects you to be familiar with names like Hemmingway and Faulkner, you should be ashamed of yourself. The elitism argument isn't even supported by the text. Sure he talks about Homer and Shakespeare, but he also comments that great writing can also be found in Spider-Man comic books and other unlikely sources. (I am comforted because the negative reviews themselves are not very well-written.)These are dangerous times we live in. People no longer want to hear that they can't just pick up a pen and be the next Fitzgerald. And who's to say that Fitzgerald is any better than James Paterson, say? It's all relative, is it not? It is not.This is a book for the serious writer - for ANY writer who wishes to write better. In order to do that, one must do the work. If this book makes writing sound like a hard thing to do, that is because WRITING IS A HARD THING TO DO. If it is not, you are doing it wrong.Gardner covers all aspects of fiction techniques: plot, style, genres, voice - everything a beginning writer NEEDS TO AT LEAST CONSIDER. If you don't like this book, find another book on the art of fiction...but I fear you will have the same reaction. Any creative writing book worth its salt will offer the same advice.

I wish this book didn't specify young writers in its subtitle because that's likely to turn away older writers if they haven't heard about Gardner and his books. That would be quite a loss but for Gardner and the readers.As a published author of many book reviews as well as magazine articles and newspaper pieces, I was at a loss as to where to turn when I needed advice on writing fiction. My solution was to take a course and this book was the required reading. Otherwise I would have overlooked it since I would in no way classify myself as young.It's simply one of the best books available, especially for those who want to write literary fiction and who care about the quality of his/her writing. Character building, plotting, vocabulary, sentence structure, style and the idea of fiction as a dream are studied in depth here. It is a book to be studied and re-studied, read and re-read, for as the reader practices writing fiction and gains more experience, there's more to be found.At the back of the book there are exercises. These are best done in a group so that you can get the benefits of others' critiques. The concepts here are deep and often open to more than one interpretation -- those come out in a group setting.Read carefully. Be sure you understand the subtleties of what he's saying. If you give this one a shallow reading, you're likely to misinterpret. If you do, you'll loose a lot.I'd put this at the top of my favorites books in a list of books for writers along with Jack Bickham's, Dwight Swain's and Gary Provost's books on the craft.

This is no easy read (especially for a non-native speaker like me), but it's worth the troubles. As some other reviewer mentioned the language doesn't really flow, but this in part due to the deepness of thought contained in each paragraph. You can't just scan this book in some hours (like other books on creative writing I've skimmed through); only by reading carefully and slowly (as I was obliged to by my lack of English fluency...) you will enjoy Gardner's artistic sensitivity. All right, he is a literary snob as someone wrote - but there are too many others who make art look like something that can easily be described with some simple recipes. Gardner's true love for literature shows in every sentence and it's probably exactly his meaning of literary "truth" that makes him difficult to read sometimes. Other books I've read on the topic left me with a feeling of oversimplification, of missing the point by showing just the surface of the literary process. "The art of fiction" provides what its title promisses: an inspiring introduction to the ART of WRITING. And this means that this is neither another book on the theory of literature nor some Reader's-Digest-like "How to write a novel in ten steps" but a book on the THEORY of WRITING. I do not know of any other book that shows the literary process in such a sensitive way. If you're offended by the word theory, know that the exercices at the end of the book are extremely helpful and intelligent. They shed light on practical AND conceptual problems (and possibilities!) you maybe wouldn't have thought of without doing them. Great book.

This book explained to me why there are books I pick up and immediately put back down, why there are books I loose sleep just to read, and why there are books that I have to put down in order to think.It's also the first book on writing I've ever read that explains (so I can understand) about texture, layering, symbols, integrating all that, and how to rewrite smoothly, and how to give a story more depth. I feel like I can write now, without feeling so lost.

John Gardner has created an excellent resource for aspiring fiction writers who want to know how to write well. Gardner is direct in his tone, providing his readers with upfront and honest advice about what makes good fiction writing. Gardner describes fiction as a dream world into which the writer takes the reader. His ultimate advice is to always consider the flow of the dream, and to be wary of any pitfall that might awake the reader from the story. He discusses such issues as style, grammar, plotting, and how they are necessary and contribute to excellent fiction writing. The book closes with a series of exercises, a set for groups and a set for individuals, that provide an excellent jumping point for developing the superior writing skills that Gardner tries to teach. Gardner's ideas are important considerations for the beginning writer, and important refreshers for the established writer. If you want to learn how to write fiction, but only want to buy one book on how to write, this is the one.