Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them

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Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them

by Francine Prose

3.68 · rating details · 2,580 ratings · 512 reviews

Long before there were creative-writing workshops and degrees, how did aspiring writers learn to write? By reading the work of their predecessors and contemporaries, says Francine Prose.

In "Reading Like a Writer," Prose invites you to sit by her side and take a guided tour of the tools and the tricks of the masters. She reads the work of the very best writers&

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Paperback, 273 pages

Published April 10th 2007 by Harper Perennial (first published August 22nd 2006)

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Community Reviews

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Sep 07, 2008

Laura rated it

Shelves: non-fiction

According to Francine Prose, creative writing cannot, in fact, be taught, but would-be writers can learn by studying the masters -- among others, Bruce Wagner, Jonathan Franzen, Alice Munro, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Scott Spencer. Prose is a proponent of New Criticism -- the philosophy that works can be understood only by reading of the work as an entity unto itself, and not by reference to external indicia, like the author's life or political beliefs. In keeping with that philosophy, Prose sel...moreAccording to Francine Prose, creative writing cannot, in fact, be taught, but would-be writers can learn by studying the masters -- among others, Bruce Wagner, Jonathan Franzen, Alice Munro, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Scott Spencer. Prose is a proponent of New Criticism -- the philosophy that works can be understood only by reading of the work as an entity unto itself, and not by reference to external indicia, like the author's life or political beliefs. In keeping with that philosophy, Prose selects passages that she considers to be prime examples of effective writing, encouraging readers to linger over the words and savor them, rather than speed reading, and to read closely, with careful attention to each word and phrase (a technique you might have encountered as "close reading").

Above all, Prose admires the well-wrought sentence, the result of a painstaking, thoughtful use of language, which in turn she likens to painting or composing music. To show readers how to appreciate the writer's craft, Prose highlights passages from various authors, examining closely how their language creates characterization, rhythm, or mood. Though you might be a bit dubious about this approach at the beginning of this book (didn't we learn how to do this close reading stuff a while ago, in school?), Prose manages to excite, not bore, with her explication of how to discern the many minute decisions that authors have to make with every word, and how those decisions shape a work and a reader's reaction to the plot and characters. By the end, I was eager to go and read many of the books on the list of reading she considers essential -- her "Books to Be Read Immediately."

Of course, as with all such lists, people will take issue with inclusion of certain books and exclusion of others. Some people (I'm talking to you, Bookslut) have criticized this book for its undue attention to "dead white men," presumably because Prose is overly taken with the likes of John Cheever, Charles Dickens, and Anton Chekhov. This criticism is, not to put too fine a point on it, really fucking stupid. I'm all for inclusion and diversity, but good writing is good writing. And yes, Prose focuses mainly on white men, but she also pays close and extended attention to Jane Austen, ZZ Packer, Louisa May Alcott, Mavis Galant, Tatyana Tolstaya, Diane Johnson, and James Baldwin.

On the whole, Prose provides an entertaining and wise take on why good writing can move a reader.(less)

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Sep 03, 2008

C.J. rated it

Shelves: books-on-writing, classics-literary

I really enjoyed this book and the author's focus on the finer points of writing. She references dozens of classic works and discusses word choice, sentences, paragraph structure, voice and many other fundamentals of writing fiction.

Her comments are geared to literary writers and often I felt insulted (as a lowly thriller writer). At one point she says, "Opening a mass-market thriller at random," and she quotes a horrible passage that I didn't recognize. She's telling us th...more

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Nov 01, 2008

Conrad rated it

Overall very good. I tend to skim books a lot when I get to parts that bore me, and then I end up falling into the habit and skimming all the time. Reading this restored the pleasure and argued well for the necessity of careful, time-consuming reading (I have no idea how Francine Prose has had time to read everything she's read.)

My favorite chapters by far were the ones on dialog and sentences. Writing dialog is really tricky, and she doles out a lot of good advice.

(Once...more

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Oct 04, 2009

Madeline rated it

Shelves: assigned-reading

First, let me get this out of the way: Francine Prose is the absolute best name for an author, ever. Some people get all the luck.

Okay, on to the actual book. Prose basically starts by saying, I'm a creative writing teacher and I kind of dislike creative writing workshops. She then spends each chapter going over a specific element of style used in novels - in case you were wondering, the chapter titles go like this: Close Reading, Words, Sentences, Paragraphs, Narration, Character, ...moreFirst, let me get this out of the way: Francine Prose is the absolute best name for an author, ever. Some people get all the luck.

Okay, on to the actual book. Prose basically starts by saying, I'm a creative writing teacher and I kind of dislike creative writing workshops. She then spends each chapter going over a specific element of style used in novels - in case you were wondering, the chapter titles go like this: Close Reading, Words, Sentences, Paragraphs, Narration, Character, Dialogue, Details, Gesture, Learning from Chekhov, and Reading for Courage. The book ends with her list of Books To Be Read Immediately, which I found very helpful.
The chapter on sentences was my favorite, just for the way Prose just plain geeks out on the subject of sentences:
"To talk to another writer about sentences feels like forging a connection based on the most intimate and arcane sort of shop-talk, much the way mathematicians might bond on the basis of a shared admiration for some obscure, elegant theorem. Every so often I'll hear writers say that there are other writers they would read if for no other reason than to marvel at the skill with which they can put together the sort of sentences that move us to read closely, to disassemble and reassemble them, much the way a mechanic might learn about an engine by taking it apart.
The well-made sentence transcends time and genre. A beautiful sentence is a beautiful sentence, regardless of when it was written, or whether it appears in a play or a magazine article. Which is just one of the many reasons why it's pleasurable to read outside of one's own genre. The writer of the lyrical fiction or of the quirkiest, most free-form stream-of-consciousness novel can learn by paying close attention to the sentences of the most logical author of the exactingly reasoned personal essay. Indeed, the brilliant sentences in Rebecca West's journalism and travel writing often outsparkle those with which she composed her novels. This may suggest the possibility that certain writers' sentences improve in proportion to the density and the gravity of the information they have to impart."

Wow.

Read for: Creative Writing workshop(less)

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Oct 27, 2008

Mandapants rated it

The trouble with Prose's book is that it's good. It's annoyingly like finding oil changing advice in the New York Times crossword or having your wine snob friend demonstrate the way to lay drywall with metaphors drawn from the bouquet of their favorite shiraz.

Still, Prose brings up several excellent points. Her section on gesture is particularly good; it's easily as illuminating and Stephen King's hatred of adverbs. But I think what I will take away most from this book is her advice fo...more

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Sep 15, 2007

Lunamania rated it

Shelves: all

The NY Times Book Review has a special slot on my Sunday schedule. In this a.d.d. world, it affirms that books, and more importantly, the time consuming process of mulling over words and putting together sentences that convey thoughts clearly--the act of writing, is still valued. Book Reviews in the Times generally go on for 3 pages before even mentioning the actual book and then it gets like 2 paragraphs--with a quick reference to a third book for comparison. I'm fine with that. They're always ...moreThe NY Times Book Review has a special slot on my Sunday schedule. In this a.d.d. world, it affirms that books, and more importantly, the time consuming process of mulling over words and putting together sentences that convey thoughts clearly--the act of writing, is still valued. Book Reviews in the Times generally go on for 3 pages before even mentioning the actual book and then it gets like 2 paragraphs--with a quick reference to a third book for comparison. I'm fine with that. They're always well written and this sort of reviewer is often not a book critic per se, but an "expert" in the subject matter. So historians compare the book with others exploring related disasters/discoveries; political consultants frame the ideas against the prevailing strategies of whatever domestic/foreign policy; and professors parse the un/successful efforts to riff on various writerly, pop culture, way back in the day, or other influence. It's a macro read of the big concepts in a book. I enjoy reading them in part because it's reassuring to know that books are still subjects of and a means to explore big and small ideas.

Those reviews make some parts of my brain feel bigger, but they have never made me feel close to the reviewer or author. I'm often left thinking, "That was a very smart intellectual exercise. So was it a good book? Was it well written? Did it have funnies? Do you even LIKE to read?" Reading with Francine Prose is like the opposite of this macro read. She's like my new best friend. She shares her exuberance for a well chosen quirky word and graceful sentences and reminds me of the pleasures of savoring each word. She loves to read. She writes well about her love of reading--not an easy meta task. This book reminded me of all the reasons why it's SO WRONG that 1 in 4 Americans did not read a book last year. Anyway, I've been carting this around and making mental appointments to read snippets of it at a time--kind of like a cozy coffee date with a new friend. Check it out. (less)

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Jul 09, 2007

shannon rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: bibliophiles

Shelves: loved

I've never read Francine Prose's fiction. But I wouldn't put it past her to be the most well read, articulate and accessible bibliophile currently operating. It seems she knows EVERYTHING, but she never makes me feel stupid or base in my reading choices. Instead, she is absolutely inspirational. It was all I could do not to put this book down at every page and run to the bookstore to scoop up and devour to classics that she brings to life through example, examination and pure joyful love of ...more

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Oct 21, 2008

Michael rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: nonfiction-reference, inspirational-hoohah, craft_and_criticism

[10/21/08: Realized I hadn't yet read the final two essays in this book, so polished 'em off. Still love this user-friendly close-reading instructional, despite its sometimes tendency to verge over into a starry-eyed gee-Mr.-Wizard tone that verges on condescension. Instructional and inspiring even if occasionally annoying.]

I've been parceling out the essays in this book, reading many books between each one, because the book is such a joy. Prose does more to explain how character, to...more

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Nov 11, 2008

Robert rated it

Recommends it for: anyone interested in literature, especially ficton.

Reading Like a Writer synthesizes Francine Prose's lifetime's experience in literature--as a reader, a writer, and a teacher. It's a splendid book because it is so learned, well-written, and insightful, presenting fiction (that's Prose's literary focus) in its component guises of words, sentences, paragraphs, narrative strategies, and telling details.

Francine Prose emphasizes close reading to best appreciate literary effects. She's not a member of a critical school; that never made...moreReading Like a Writer synthesizes Francine Prose's lifetime's experience in literature--as a reader, a writer, and a teacher. It's a splendid book because it is so learned, well-written, and insightful, presenting fiction (that's Prose's literary focus) in its component guises of words, sentences, paragraphs, narrative strategies, and telling details.

Francine Prose emphasizes close reading to best appreciate literary effects. She's not a member of a critical school; that never made sense to her. What made sense, from early on, was pondering James Joyce's diction, the rhythms of Tim O'Brien's incantatory sentences, the cunning of Isaac Babel's paragraphs, and the mastery of Chekhov's revealing details. In all cases, and many more (she cites Tolstoy, Cheever, Richard Yates, Henry Green, Kafka, Juan Rulfo, etc.) Prose illustrates her points with excerpts that go on as long as necessary. There are instances of such excerpts lasting a page or even two pages.

Yet this isn't a textbook; it's more a summary of discussions, observations, and debates that have gone on in writing workshops and literary seminars she's conducted at colleges and universities across the US for decades.

Prose excels in offering potential "rules" for writing vivid, compelling fiction, and then debunking those rules. Her penultimate chapter, focused on Chekhov, is a study in what might be called "the exceptionalism of genius."

I found Prose's defense of the sufficiency of fiction unto itself--not needing excessive theoretical interpretation--effortlessly compelling. Without belaboring the point, she frequently adverts to the ways in which fiction points in directions beyond reason and fact toward paradoxically convincing uncertainties. Fiction is best when it's definite and concrete, yet it is never a math problem with a rules-based answer to the calculations it provokes.

The final chapter focuses on how hard it has been for writers like Flaubert, Babel, and others to fulfill their sense of inspiration. Prose makes good use of their letters and diary entries to substantiate the utter uncertainty of a given story or novel, word by word, sentence by sentence.

This book will make better readers of writers, and better writers of fiction. It's written with humility and humor. A lot of fun.

As a bonus, there is a list at the very end of the book suggesting titles that must be read immediately...as if your life depended on it. This is a handy guide for revisiting Prose's observations in the context of complete works, most of them masterpieces, large and small.(less)

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Jul 29, 2008

Shannon rated it

Shelves: non-fiction, 2007, critical-theory

I was eagerly awaiting the paperback edition to read this, it sounded so interesting. And it was. Is. Grr. Don't worry, it's not about grammar or punctuation. This is about reading for enjoyment and also for inspiration, motivation, guidance, example....

Divided into chapters on words, sentences, paragraphs, narration, dialogue, gestures - you get the picture - Prose (isn't that the most perfect name?!) uses analysis, anecdotes and extensive quotes to bring books and short stories to...moreI was eagerly awaiting the paperback edition to read this, it sounded so interesting. And it was. Is. Grr. Don't worry, it's not about grammar or punctuation. This is about reading for enjoyment and also for inspiration, motivation, guidance, example....

Divided into chapters on words, sentences, paragraphs, narration, dialogue, gestures - you get the picture - Prose (isn't that the most perfect name?!) uses analysis, anecdotes and extensive quotes to bring books and short stories to life.

The first chapter, on Close Reading, was very reassuring and gave me cause to be quite pleased with myself too. (Writers are perhaps the most needy of people, constantly needing reassurance and a bolstering of the ego.) She offers advice to new writers on reading books like 'professional' writers do:

I read closely, word by word, sentence by sentence, pondering each deceptively minor decision the writer had made. And though it's impossible to recall every source of inspiration and instruction, I can remember the novels and stories that seemed to me revelations: wells of beauty and pleasure that were also textbooks, private lessons in the art of fiction. ... What writers know is that, ultimately, we learn to write by practice, hard work, by repeated trial and error, success and failure, and from the books we admire.

This is so true. From the time I could read - also the time I could write - I was fascinated by how stories were created, formed, structured, plotted. I was the only kid in my class, if not my entire primary school, who wrote what the teachers called "sagas" (a new word for me): very involved stories, complete with dialogue, plot, beginning, middle, ending, and illustrations. Even my punctuation - learnt from reading - was spot-on. I'm sure they weren't particularly original, but they satisfied a great, urgent need in me, and still do. I also learnt - and continue to learn - vocabulary: I can still remember discovering the word "melancholy" from a book I was reading in grade 5, and it was fun to work out the meanings of new words from the context in which they were used. Sadly, this means I often struggle to give a dictionary-definition of a word; I'm more likely to put it in a sentence and expect people to get it like I do. Better get better at that if I want to be a teacher!

Different books got me started on experimenting with different styles. After reading the Silver Brumby books, for instance, I practiced writing description, creating pieces that weren't even complete short stories, often discarded, like sketches. After reading Georgette Heyer's Regency romances (don't knock 'em till you've read 'em!), I practiced dialogue - she has a great knack for it. And so on.

The works that Francine Prose quotes from are a little more sophisticated than the ones I used growing up, but the principle is the same. Her chapters on gestures and details is a great reference for me - they're often overlooked aspects in my writing, that still needs a lot of work. I fear cliches, which are almost unavoidable. She leans towards Chekov, Flannery O'Connor, Joyce, Flaubert, Kleist, Alice Munro, Melville, Austen, Paula Fox and Henry Green, for example - only a few of the books she mentions or uses in analysis have I read. A particularly fun chapter, Character, starts with an anecdote of the time when, slightly out of mischief, she assigned a story by Heinrich von Kleist called The Marquise of O- to a group of students in Utah: all mormons, which was about a lady who was raped by the chivalrous knight while unconscious after he'd saved her from a fire (during a battle), and so on, only to discover that the students came alive in their discussions and talked about the characters like they knew them personally.

The problem with this book is it gets you so impatient not only to start reading these works of literature, but also to go back over your own writing and see what traps, if any, you've fallen into, or how you can lift up a passage of dialogue or even reveal your characters in a different way. It's definitely one of the better writing guides I've come across - and the only one I've ever bothered to read, since it's an informal guide at best, not at all condescending, and lacks a superiority complex. Prose loves to read as much as she loves to write, and teaches as well, and has a real talent for opening up an otherwise dry passage to the treasures going on in the inner workings.

What Prose also mentions is that there are no rules, that every time she tried to give advice to her students such as Don't write from the point of view (first person) of someone who dies in the story, she finds a story - often by Chekov - that contradicts that rule, and works. In this sense, writing is a very distinct artform: you learn how to do it "properly", just as you learn how to draw a face with perfect proportions, before you go all Picasso on it and have the eyes sticking out the side and the nose upside-down. Perhaps an absolute genius would skip that learning stage, but if we do it's like - what's the expression? Learning to run before you can walk? It takes time, and patience, and hard work, and perseverance, but if you have the passion it's not painful in the slightest. And if you lose momentum, or get writer's block, Prose has some great advice: to have a shelf put aside for especially inspiring novels, to pick up one author who excels at, say, dialogue, and read a passage at random for inspiration. She even has a list of "Books to be read immediately" at the end of the book. For myself, I can say that this works, though I usually read the entire book to get into the flow of a style. Even when working on my fantasy story, though, I often prefer to read literature. I find it helps to stop me from slipping into cliche-mode.

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Jun 07, 2008

Jeanne rated it

· review of another edition

Given my recent resolution to pay more attention while reading (see my Lovely Bones review), I thought this would be a good place to start. Unfortunately I didn't get very far. Francine Prose examines very good literature (Hemingway, Joyce, etc.), and how to read it closely to glean everything the author intended to convey.

What I came to realize very quickly is that I don't read very good literature, and in fact I don't enjoy it. My tastes are shallow. (And this is probably why I dev...more

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Mar 01, 2008

Douglas rated it

Recommends it for: anyone who wants to write a great book

Recommended to Douglas by: Debra Hamel

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jan 21, 2008

John rated it

Recommends it for: Anyone who loves books

Shelves: literary-criticism

As a late bloomer, many high school topics, including reading and writing were wasted on me. In returning more recently to reading, and to a lesser extent writing, I have started to gain an appreciation of these arts, and in turn to mourn the loss of this early education. Perhaps these are the reasons that I cite in trying to explain why I enjoyed this book as much as I did. And as a hidden gem, what could be more appropriate than reading a book about writing crafted by an author whose na...more

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Sep 24, 2007

Lord Beardsley rated it

Recommends it for: writers working outside academia

Shelves: read2007

This book is highly influential and inspirational. It really gives me hope as a writer and I think I'll be referring back to it as often as I do Ann Lammott's 'Bird by Bird'. It is a wonderful gift when an author/instructor willingly gives out all their knowledge about their craft so freely and so engagingly. She has very accurate and accerbicly questioning views on how academia can hinder the creative process and how the best learning of the craft of writing comes from reading closely and liste...more

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Sep 05, 2007

Jason rated it

Shelves: finished2007

I actually took a graduate class with Ms. Prose, and many of the points she makes in the book were made in the class. I was in one of those sessions she mentions in the book, where the majority of an hour and half is spent on the first couple pages of a story. It was a bit overwhelming, and I think her method works better in book form.

I don't think this is a book that will make you a better writer, but it is inspiring and enjoyable. In fact, the book could potentially hinder a young ...more

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Jul 01, 2007

Jennifer rated it

· review of another edition

This book has a difficult task to accomplish: discussing the craft of writing without being trite while still being helpful. Prose's method is to let great writing speak for itself, selecting careful examples to illustrate her point. This method works rather well when she discusses words, sentences, and paragraphs. I enjoyed having to notice the craft at that level of detail, which is so easy to overlook when you're engrossed in a novel. Her method worked less well when discussing narration or c...more

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Jan 21, 2008

Demetria rated it

Recommends it for: writers

I'm usually not too keen on books that are allegedly for writers, but this one is really good. Francine Prose (gotta love the name) does an excellent job of utilizing literary works and her own experiences to illustrate points without being too textbooky. There are chapters on things like word choice, sentence structure and dialogue, but I swear it's interesting! There's also a pretty handy list at the end, of books that illustrate some of the points Prose makes. This book has actually made me b...more

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May 03, 2008

Karen rated it

I appreciated that Francine Prose let great writing speak for itself. Probably more than half this book consists of examples, and I agree with Prose that the best way to teach readers how to recognize a great sentence or paragraph is to just keep showing us what they look like. However, as a writer, I feel I am constantly bombarded with other, more successful writers telling me "This is what a writer is, this is how a writer should think" or "If you didn't read such and such book ...more

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Dec 21, 2011

Shara (Calico Reaction) rated it

· review of another edition

Recommending this book is a tricky thing: yes, I would recommend it based on the attention given to gestures and the first couple chapters where she does offer points on how to read critically and how to enjoy what you're reading. But for writers looking for in-depth discussion of POV, character, and detail, I'd recommend finding a book devoted to such discussions.[return][return]To those who do love literature, have at it. And to those who simply enjoy reading but have no desire to write storie...more

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Feb 24, 2009

W.H. Manville rated it

Ms. Prose (how apt the name) begins to answer the question many of my students ask.
CAN ‘CREATIVE WRITING’ BE TAUGHT?

To begin with, I don’t like the term myself. The very word –creative -- strikes me as boastful and smarmy, like the ludicrous things people put on vanity license plates. Do I really care if someone uses his Buick to tell me he was BRN 2 RUN? But lawyers and engineers call what they do writing too, so I suppose the differentiating adjective i...moreMs. Prose (how apt the name) begins to answer the question many of my students ask.
CAN ‘CREATIVE WRITING’ BE TAUGHT?

To begin with, I don’t like the term myself. The very word –creative -- strikes me as boastful and smarmy, like the ludicrous things people put on vanity license plates. Do I really care if someone uses his Buick to tell me he was BRN 2 RUN? But lawyers and engineers call what they do writing too, so I suppose the differentiating adjective is useful.
To answer more directly, here’s a terrific NY Times book review by Emily Barton in which she says everything I would like to say about the teaching of writing, only better.
I’ve edited out the bits that don’t immediately concern us.)

Reading like a Writer
By Francine Prose

A Guide for People who Love Books
and For Those Who Want to Write Them

At the start of her new book on writing, Francine Prose dispatches with The Question – the five words that inevitably confront writers who teach…“Can creative writing be taught?”
Prose’s succinct answer is, “no,” but she elaborates on it with characteristic humor, asking us to imagine “Kafka enduring the seminar in which his classmates inform him frankly they just don’t believe the part about the guy waking to find he’s turned into a giant bug.” Repelled by that sort of poisonous atmosphere, I used to inveigh against writing workshops—right up until the day I started teaching one…
Another difficulty faced by writing teachers is, paradoxically, the lack of interest many students show in reading. And those who do often lack the training to observe writerly clues. There’s a real need then for “Reading Like a Writer” – a primer for both aspiring writers and for readers who’d like to increase their sensitivity to the writer’s craft.
Francine Prose notes that…writers (themselves) have always turned to their predecessors for inspiration: “They studied meter with Ovid, plot construction with Homer, comedy with Aristophanes.” In other words, it helps to read the masters: “You can assume that if a writer’s work has survived for centuries, there are reasons why this is so, explanations that have nothing to do with a conspiracy of academics plotting to resuscitate a zombie army of dead white males.”
Prose also recommends savoring books rather than racing through them, a strategy that “may require some rewiring, unhooking the connection that makes you think you have to have an opinion about the book and reconnecting that wire to whatever terminal lets you see reading as something that might move or delight you.”
Delight? As a student, I rarely heard the word mentioned, although like Prose, I became a writer because books gave me such joy. Her insistence on that pleasure informs her method: reading carefully to see what an author does on the page between the lines. This casts learning in a positive light, unlike the typical workshop’s E.R. approach of trying to diagnose and cure the ailments of a story….
Prose’s chapters focus on potentially challenging topics: dialog, narration, even where to take paragraph breaks. (I wish she’d included one on getting characters in and out of rooms.) In each chapter she quotes from authors who approach the subject in interesting ways. Writing about sentences, for example, she cites Rebecca West, Samuel Johnson, Philip Roth and Virginia Woolf, and then patiently explains why….
Despite her book’s didactic purpose, Prose distrusts hard-and-fast rules. When she recalls advising students to stick to one point of view, or to avoid assigning two characters similar names, she remembers finding counter-examples in Chekhov…”The advantage of reading widely,” she notes, “as opposed to trying to formulate a series of general rules, is that we learn there are no general rules, only individual examples to help point you in direction you might want to go…
I don’t know if any book about writing can tell us where novels come from – or how they take shape in a writer’s mind. Nevertheless, “Reading like a Writer” should be greatly appreciated... Like the great works of fiction, it’s a wise and voluble companion.
# end #
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Feb 05, 2009

Bookmarks Magazine added it · review of another edition

National Book Award finalist Francine Prose (for Blue Angel) is an evangelist for the practice of improving one's writing by reading the great writers. After reading her extremely thorough and humorous analysis of works that demonstrate the highest craft of wordsmithery, it's hard not to convert to her way of thinking, though not everyone will adore her occasionally dictatorial tone or agree with her choices of who is (and isn't) "great." At the same time, she is remarkably fair-minded

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Dec 22, 2008

Cecily marked it as to-read · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Readers, Aspiring Writers

Recommended to Cecily by: NPR

Shelves: nonfiction

This is an AMAZING book. This book has been far more useful than every moment I spent in the MISERABLE creative writing class at the local community college (the psychotic professor condemned us all to reading only living authors, and to reading WAY too many short-stories by ONLY living writers). Time is a great winnowing process -- over time, bad books fall out of circulation and print. There were hundreds of HORRENDOUS books written in the 19th c., but what survives are the best. Just beca...more

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Jan 30, 2012

Lorraine rated it

I chose this book because its title reads "for people who love books." The rest of the title that says who want to write them is really more of what the book is about. The author considers throughout the book whether creative writing can be taught. I wasn't really looking to find the answer to that question. However, I was in awe at the way in which she wrote the book, the examples she gives from many books and how well she presented it. If she were my teacher I would really gain a who...more

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Nov 30, 2011

Emma Thompson rated it

Let me tell you a story. A few years ago I found myself with a small gathering of my friends and somehow the conversation came around to "The Vagina monologues". Bear with me here, it's relevant. None of them had read them or seen them before, but I love them. I spent a good hour and a half that evening talking about them. I performed some, from memory and from the book. I talked through them, explained them, talked about what I found in different ones. I offered to change the topic re...more

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Oct 09, 2011

Taka rated it

Shelves: iu-fall-2011, writing_reference

Better the second time around--

Reading Francine Prose’s Reading Like a Writer the second time was a very different experience from reading it four years ago when I didn’t know much about the craft of writing. When I read it the first time, I didn’t find the book to be of any practical value. As a beginning writer, her assertions like “there are no general rules, only individual examples to help point you in a direction in which you might want to go,” only confused me and I didn’t know ...moreBetter the second time around--

Reading Francine Prose’s Reading Like a Writer the second time was a very different experience from reading it four years ago when I didn’t know much about the craft of writing. When I read it the first time, I didn’t find the book to be of any practical value. As a beginning writer, her assertions like “there are no general rules, only individual examples to help point you in a direction in which you might want to go,” only confused me and I didn’t know what to take away from the examples she gave. If there were no rules, I thought, what was she trying to say with those examples? When she says, “if a gesture is not illuminating, simply leave it out…” (229), isn’t that a rule?

It didn’t really help that I had no good grasp of “rules” of fiction. I was working on my first novel on my own and had no idea what “craft” there was other than obscure vocabulary and niceties of arcane grammar. So I put down the book thinking I gained no useful insight from reading it, as my one-sentence review from that time reads: “Doesn’t say much…”

Now that I’m wiser, though, I can see what Prose is saying. I do see the benefit of reading works of the masters closely and learning from them. I do believe that the “rules” can be broken and reading widely shows us colorful ways to do that. And I actually understand and am impressed by the examples Prose cites.

But I object to Prose’s insistence that “literature not only breaks the rules, but makes us realize that there are none” (250). Because contrary to her repeated claims, there are rules in fiction for engaging the reader more effectively. There are rules simply because certain things work better to immerse us in the world of stories. Whether it’s due to our physiology—our brains are wired to prefer concrete images over abstract ones and pay attention to conflict—or social—as in life we like quirky or strong-willed characters in fiction over weak, passive characters—isn’t important. What is important is that there are rules—or principles—for engaging the reader better.

I do, however, believe that blindingly sticking to the rules can be detrimental to the writer’s growth. When the writer knows why certain rules are taught and is conscious of the reasons behind them, the writer is in a much better position, because he or she can break them at will to produce certain effects. And that is why, ideally, these rules should be taught as conditionals (“if…then…” statements) and not as imperatives. So instead of “give a motive to the main character,” it should be “if you want to make the story engaging, give a motive to the main character.” If you are not interested in writing an engaging story, you’re of course free to break it. Or if you’re interested in making a point about something by not give a motive, then by all means break it with the knowledge that it’d probably make for a little bit less engaging read. The point is these conditional rules are by nature for a specific purpose, and if they don’t serve the needs of the writer, they should be ignored.
Prose mainly cites Chekhov’s stories to conclude that there are no rules in literature, but all Chekhov proves, contra Prose, is that he had different goals in mind when it came to his stories: “Artistic literature is called so because it depicts life as it really is. Its aim is truth—unconditional and honest.” And this is only one view of literature. Other writers may have different philosophies and write differently than Chekhov. One could easily imagine a writer who does not break the rules of fiction while making a unique point in his or her stories. In other words, Chekhov broke rules for a reason, and that does not prove there are no rules.

In her uncritical adoration of Chekhov, Prose seems to fall victim to precisely the kind of blindness she urges us to fend against: she assumes everyone should subscribe to Chekhov’s philosophy of literature. For example, she offers one of Chekhov’s stories to make the following claim about motivation: “ the bottom line of the fiction workshop is motivation… all this is based on the comforting supposition that things, in fiction as in life, are done for a reason.” Or about change: “The point is that lives go on without change, so why should fiction insist that major reverses should always, conveniently, occur?” In these instances, she is presupposing Chekhov’s philosophy of literature—that it should depict life as it really is—and doesn’t realize that fiction “insists” on certain things like motivation and change because it doesn’t want to depict life as it is, because not everyone subscribes to Chekhov’s view of literature. We focus on motivation and change in the workshop because stories with those elements tend to be more engaging to read, and they are important to bring up so the student writers can learn them and make their stories as engaging as possible if that’s what they want. But Chekhov wasn’t interested in simply telling an engaging story; he wanted to depict life as it really is, and for that purpose, he chose to ignore the rules of good storytelling.

So whenever Prose makes an assertion about there being no rules, I take her to mean that there are no hard-and-fast rules, that a good writer should be cognizant of the reasons behind those rules. Otherwise, telling a beginning writer that there are no rules is misleading and ultimately confusing (as it did for me). Just as a practitioner of martial arts masters the art by learning the rules first, so do writers. The conditional rules of good storytelling and good writing must be learned first before one can break them effectively. The danger here lies in learning them blindly without keeping in mind that they are conditional rules, and not categorical imperatives.

All in all, while I agree wholeheartedly with Prose’s insistence to read like a writer, her conclusions about literature and rules of fiction are skewed by her uncritical espousal of Chekhov and potentially misleading. If anything, literature tells us not that rules don’t exist, but that these rules are malleable and can be broken effectively in a variety of fascinating ways.(less)

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Aug 13, 2011

Dale rated it

Wish I had read this book thirty years ago (well, OK, it wasn't even written then) because it would have made me a better reader and--perhaps by extension--a better writer. Some other reviewers have commented on her advocating New Criticism or her philosophy on how writing should be taught. This was a far more personal book for me, an instruction manual of sorts. At times it baldly admonished "Pay attention!" But if offers much more, most notably examples pulled from literature (much o...moreWish I had read this book thirty years ago (well, OK, it wasn't even written then) because it would have made me a better reader and--perhaps by extension--a better writer. Some other reviewers have commented on her advocating New Criticism or her philosophy on how writing should be taught. This was a far more personal book for me, an instruction manual of sorts. At times it baldly admonished "Pay attention!" But if offers much more, most notably examples pulled from literature (much of it unread by me) that clearly and cleverly illustrate her explanation of what makes for telling sentences, narration, dialogue, etc. Here is someone who not only advocates for the close read, but shows how it can be done. It helped me understand the question I've often asked at the end of a book: Why do others see so much more in this book than I? At least I now have a partial answer. The chapter on dialogue provides a couple of my favorite examples in the book. She quotes a passage from David Gates's story "The Wonders of the Invisible World" in which the twin airs of impending doom and consequence almost choke the reader off as the couple talks at the bar (pp. 168-170). Similarly, a few pages later she quotes dialogue from Scott Spencer's A Ship Made of Paper in which the tension uncomfortably ratchets up notch by notch as the two couples, fueled by pre-dinner drinks, begin to expose just the unspoken weaknesses in their relationships that they likely know exist, but have not yet confronted.

I had to smile at parts of her description her own development as a reader. On page 8 she states, "Only once did my passion for reading steer me in the wrong direction, and that was when I let it persuade me to go to graduate school. And then later, "I left graduate school and became a writer."

I recommend this for any reading enthusiast who wants to get more out of his or her reads. Since reading this early in the summer I've endeavored to apply her strategies to my current reads. Although I'm uncertain of the overall efficacy, I am enjoying the journey. I also am going to construct a reading list of some of the sources from which she draws her examples. She has piqued my interests.(less)

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Aug 09, 2011

Jennifer (JC-S) rated it

Shelves: librarybooks

‘Literature is an endless source of courage and confirmation.’

I was drawn to this book by some enthusiastic reviews by fellow readers. I was curious to find out what Ms Prose has to say on whether creative writing can be taught, keen to find out which writers she admires, which books she recommends, and why.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book: I particularly liked Ms Prose’s suggestion that although writing workshops can be helpful, the best way to learn how to write is to rea...more‘Literature is an endless source of courage and confirmation.’

I was drawn to this book by some enthusiastic reviews by fellow readers. I was curious to find out what Ms Prose has to say on whether creative writing can be taught, keen to find out which writers she admires, which books she recommends, and why.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book: I particularly liked Ms Prose’s suggestion that although writing workshops can be helpful, the best way to learn how to write is to read widely. Ms Prose encourages readers to read closely, to read every word and pay attention to the words used. Reading like a writer requires, perhaps, a different blend of the reading skills used in some other occupations. Words, for writers, are the ‘raw material out of which literature is crafted’. Words, for readers, constitute a finished work. Ms Prose suggests that the reader consider each word used and ask: ‘.. what sort of information is each word – each word choice – trying to convey?’ For some of us, that conscious slowing down of reading won’t always be easy.

‘Details are what persuade us that someone is telling the truth – a fact that every liar knows instinctively and too well.’

There’s advice about words, sentences, and paragraphs, about narration and character, about dialogue, details and gestures. What makes this advice come alive is the examples Ms Prose gives, and the writers whose work she draws on to demonstrate the points she makes. This leads to a list of book recommendations which inevitably, in my case, adds books to my personal ‘must read’ list. But I’m drawn most immediately to want to read more work by Anton Chekhov. I like the way in which Ms Prose drew on her own reading of Chekhov’s short stories, found examples of how he had successfully broken the ‘rules’ of fiction writing which contradicted advice she had given her students. It isn’t the contradiction I find interesting, it’s the focus on how Chekhov wrote, on being receptive to the needs of any particular story.

‘The advantage of reading widely, as opposed to trying to formulate a series of general rules, is that we learn there are no general rules, only individual examples to help point you in a direction in which you might want to go.’

Jennifer Cameron-Smith
(less)

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Apr 09, 2011

Jesse rated it

Shelves: literature

This is an amazing book. The author starts by talking about the tiny details like words and sentences and then moves onto the larger parts of writing like paragraphs, narration, and dialogue. She covers all the important things like: making your characters interesting, talking like real people, including details that matter, giving characters gestures that are important, etc. She also includes several great first paragraphs.

The best part of the book is that it is both talking about ...more

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Feb 14, 2011

Zach rated it

From the very beginning this book irritated me. I found myself stopping at intervals to try and figure out why that was. Unfortunately, I couldn't come up with a definitive answer. I think, simply, that I don't like Prose's personality. That sounds harsher than I mean it. Put a (slightly) nicer way, she's not the kind of person I would ever want to talk about books with. There is a degree of condescention and snobbery in her tone. She is a literary elitist, and I'm opposed to that.

...moreFrom the very beginning this book irritated me. I found myself stopping at intervals to try and figure out why that was. Unfortunately, I couldn't come up with a definitive answer. I think, simply, that I don't like Prose's personality. That sounds harsher than I mean it. Put a (slightly) nicer way, she's not the kind of person I would ever want to talk about books with. There is a degree of condescention and snobbery in her tone. She is a literary elitist, and I'm opposed to that.

I also felt deceived by the word "guide" in the subtitle. It seems to suggest the book will contain practical advice, but the book is anything but practical. Prose moves in the direction of Narratology, but she stops well short, and the reader is left with wishy-washy, half-realized theories. It is more a collection of feelings than a statement of anything definitive.

The book follows a systematic format almost without fail. Prose quotes a section of a work of fiction, then spends the next several paragraphs (usually three or four times the amount of text in the quote) describing what happened in the excerpt. She rarely pays attention to the supposed theme of each chapter (the theme being the element of writing she is telling the reader how to read like a writer). Maybe I'm a better reader than I realize, but almost never were any of her observations enlightening. Rarely did I feel she pointed out anything vital, something I hadn't gotten just from reading the original fiction.

The only section of the book I enjoyed was the next to last chapter, "Learning from Chekhov." It reminds me of my undergraduate days in music theory, when Bach was always used as the example of how to break a rule in four-part composition. Sadly, the wonderful lessons she claims to have learned from reading Chekhov were not applied to most of the book. I can't imagine this text being used for a writing workshop. It seems unhelpful at best and crippling at worst.

I don't care how many books she's published or whatever other successes she claims, the section at the end, "Books to be Read Immediately," is a pretentious load of crap. I agree that some of the books listed are great. But don't impose a reading list on me, and don't hold the whole world to your standard of reading enjoyment.

That's what it is. A book full of presumption. But it's popular and well-received. I won't say not to read it, lest I presume the universiality of my own opinion.(less)

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Dec 23, 2010

Kathy rated it

Excellent. My friend/surrogate Mom/mentor, Jan, bought me this book - had it shipped to my house by Amazon when I told her I'd hit a wall in the revision of my manuscript. This book has changed my life! It is the single best book I've read about writing and reading ... instructive both to the creative writer/novelist/storyteller as well as helpful for the teacher. True, it's didactic and because of the many examples, I had to read it in "spurts" over a month and a half, rather than in ...more

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About Francine Prose

Francine Prose (born in 1947 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American novelist. She graduated from Radcliffe College in 1968, and received a Guggenheim fellowship in 1991. She has sat on the board of judges for the PEN/Newman's Own Award, and her novel Blue Angel, a satire about sexual harassment on college campuses, was a finalist for the National Book Award. She is now teaching at Bard College.
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“To be truthful, some writers stop you dead in your tracks by making you see your own work in the most unflattering light. Each of us will meet a different harbinger of personal failure, some innocent genius chosen by us for reasons having to do with what we see as our own inadequacies.
The only remedy to this I have found is to read a writer whose work is entirely different from another, though not necessarily more like your own—a difference that will remind you of how many rooms there are in the house of art.” — 4 people liked it

“Too often students are being taught to read as if literature were some kind of ethics class or civics class—or worse, some kind of self-help manual. In fact, the important thing is the way the writer uses the language.” — 3 people liked it

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