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138th out of 319 books
—
505 voters
The Fire in Fiction: Passion, Purpose and Techniques to Make Your Novel Great
by
Donald Maass
Discover the Difference Between a So-So Manuscript and a Novel Readers Can't ForgetWe've all read them: novels by our favorite authors that disappoint. Uninspired and lifeless, we wonder what happened. Was the author in a hurry? Did she have a bad year? Has he lost interest altogether?
Something similar is true of a great many unpublished manuscripts. They are okay stories...more
Something similar is true of a great many unpublished manuscripts. They are okay stories...more
Paperback, 265 pages
Published
May 6th 2009
by Writers Digest Books
(first published January 1st 2009)
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The Fire in Fiction
By Donald Maass
This is not the type of book I normally post a review about on my Blog, but it is such a fabulous tool for writers, I just can’t pass up the opportunity. THE FIRE IN FICTION is a powerful guide to writing fiction. The author’s insight into the many styles and skill levels is simply uncanny.
The format serves as a fantastic cover-to-cover read as well as a dynamic reference. Mr. Maass gives reason and definition to admirable style. In a short amount of text, he di...more
By Donald Maass
This is not the type of book I normally post a review about on my Blog, but it is such a fabulous tool for writers, I just can’t pass up the opportunity. THE FIRE IN FICTION is a powerful guide to writing fiction. The author’s insight into the many styles and skill levels is simply uncanny.
The format serves as a fantastic cover-to-cover read as well as a dynamic reference. Mr. Maass gives reason and definition to admirable style. In a short amount of text, he di...more
I found The Fire in Fiction to be helpful only in delineating things I've previously discovered and wished I'd known earlier. Perhaps it even has helped me hone in on the target in some areas I tend to slack off in and I would have loved to have read this five years ago before I did all the research that helped me see the targets the first time.
What it is most insightful of is that it encompasses the mind of a literary agent and what this one likes and expects from his authors. And perhaps some...more
What it is most insightful of is that it encompasses the mind of a literary agent and what this one likes and expects from his authors. And perhaps some...more
More good advice from Don Maass on improving your novel. I've enjoyed his other books as well, particularly since they are full of concrete techniques to improve your fiction.
In this one he makes an interesting distinction when asking the reader why you want to write that novel: do you want to get published? Or do you want to write a great book? THe two are not mutually exclusive, of course, but he argues that if you're dead set on publishing, you'll be more likely to aim for a novel that's "goo...more
In this one he makes an interesting distinction when asking the reader why you want to write that novel: do you want to get published? Or do you want to write a great book? THe two are not mutually exclusive, of course, but he argues that if you're dead set on publishing, you'll be more likely to aim for a novel that's "goo...more
I'm about halfway through the first draft of my novel, spinning my wheels in that notorious middle-plot wasteland where not enough is happening. I can see where the story needs to go (I do know the ending!), but I've lost my momentum. One of my characters is pointless, I'm overrun with backstory, and there are way too many scenes without tension.
I realize it's a first draft and some crappiness is permitted at this point, but in trying to get myself out of the rut, I thought I'd finally give thi...more
I realize it's a first draft and some crappiness is permitted at this point, but in trying to get myself out of the rut, I thought I'd finally give thi...more
Most of the information here is the standard stuff you would find in any good how-to book on writing. But there are also some innovative techniques that make a lot of sense and give a deeper understanding of how to make fiction work. The description of techniques is good, how other authors employ them is clearly chown, but how to use them in your own writing gets a bit woolly.
This isn't surprising since he can't know the specifics of your story, but at times it felt too generic in its approach,...more
This isn't surprising since he can't know the specifics of your story, but at times it felt too generic in its approach,...more
1 like · like · see review
Bravo--
Because Donald Maass's earlier book, Writing the Breakout Novel was so good, I was afraid of being let down by his newest and didn't even touch it for a while when it arrived in mail.
What is he going to say that could be better? Is this going to be just a rehash of the old material in his earlier book?
Doubts swirled, but I finally convinced myself to read it.
What a ride.
He goes well above and beyond my highest expectations. Compared to his earlier book, the book is more tightly organized...more
Because Donald Maass's earlier book, Writing the Breakout Novel was so good, I was afraid of being let down by his newest and didn't even touch it for a while when it arrived in mail.
What is he going to say that could be better? Is this going to be just a rehash of the old material in his earlier book?
Doubts swirled, but I finally convinced myself to read it.
What a ride.
He goes well above and beyond my highest expectations. Compared to his earlier book, the book is more tightly organized...more
Nov 01, 2012
Anonymous-9 Anonymous-9
added it
I love Donald Maass' take on writing and what makes a good book. (I also own WRITING THE BREAKOUT NOVEL.) Maass discourages churning out pages which may result in a book, yes, but what's the quality? Like only the best editors, Maass pushes writers to push past "good" and strive for excellent. The introductory chapter with a section on "Status Seekers and Storytellers" holds up a mirror--reading it was a reality check. Maass cuts through the bulls*%!, which he describes as writers declaring, "Th...more
2 likes · like · see review
Donald Maass has a lot of insight into what makes books work, he reads a lot of them - published and unpublished - and he's really good at organizing those insights in a helpful way.
When it comes right down to it, you just have to write well. If you try to keep *everything* in mind while writing, you'll go crazy. But, I find it really helpful to take one concept at a time, and think about it while I'm editing.
My favorite from this book is microtension - creating tension in one sentence, and reli...more
When it comes right down to it, you just have to write well. If you try to keep *everything* in mind while writing, you'll go crazy. But, I find it really helpful to take one concept at a time, and think about it while I'm editing.
My favorite from this book is microtension - creating tension in one sentence, and reli...more
I’ll admit that I caved into buying this one because it was one of those books I suspected I should read and never really got around to picking up, but now Borders is going out of business and I figured well, what better time than now? So I bought it. And I read the first chapter. And I had a serious facepalm Why-did-I-wait-so-absurdly-long-to-read-this-book?-moment.
I mean it when I say my only regret was not reading The Fire in Fiction sooner. The advice is fantastic and the exercises at the e...more
I mean it when I say my only regret was not reading The Fire in Fiction sooner. The advice is fantastic and the exercises at the e...more
I stubbornly read this all the way through, like a novel, which may or may not be the best way to approach it. I was working on revising my own novel and I felt like immersing myself in chapter after chapter of revision advice was something I needed to do. Each chapter presents an area of storytelling that Maass has identified as being frequently problematic for novelists, and the problems and possible solutions are elucidated by examples from published novels and exercises for revision.
Some of...more
Some of...more
As a hopeful writer, I've been looking a long time for "just the right inspiration" to get me moving, and I suspect I am not alone. I'm sure that what I'm really looking for is something to make me quit playing the procrastination game. While Donald Maass' "The Fire in Fiction" contains advice that is similar to other writing-instruction manuals, it did have something that linked to a standard recommendation from similar books: If you want to know how to write well, read great examples. From thi...more
I think the thing I most appreciate about this book is that in the process of explaining how to improve one's writing, it also enhances one's ability to be a truly appreciatice reader. Maass takes his audience through examples of fine writing, adeptly pointing out what makes the techniques work so well and how they could fall short if not artfully applied.
This book is going in an easily accessible spot on my writer's reference shelf. I have a feeling that it's one I'll be consulting often.
Whethe...more
This book is going in an easily accessible spot on my writer's reference shelf. I have a feeling that it's one I'll be consulting often.
Whethe...more
Here is a sharp point that will stick you in the temple, capture you in a head-lock and coerce you to reassess your imaginative writing skills! If you think you can write, have chapped fingertips from chasing the keyboard and haven't been published yet...if you've had friends, relatives, neighbors, co-workers, mates or spouses or children read your stories or manuscript without telling you it stinks, needs a nuclear work-over, has incomplete sentences, little originality, lacks curiosity and ima...more
My favorite writing book is Bird by Bird, by Anne Lamott, but now Birdy will have to share the #1 spot. Bird by Bird and the Fire in Fiction are both about writing but cover completely different things. Bird is about the writing life, getting your first draft down, how to keep your butt in the chair, why you should aways keep paper and pen in your back pocket.
Fire is about specifics. You've got your first draft done. Even your second or third draft. But it's still not getting interest. The Fire...more
Fire is about specifics. You've got your first draft done. Even your second or third draft. But it's still not getting interest. The Fire...more
I find this book by Donald Maass an amazing text. I thrive on instructional material that explains what the teacher is driving at then offers examples of their point. Maass does an artful job of this with example after example of sections of text from renowned authors. Each example demonstrates what Maass is driving at. This is definitely my kind of learning – tell me, then show me. Thank you, Donald Maass, you are teaching me a lot. A definite recommendation to anyone aspiring to write fiction.
WOW! This was an amazing book. Not only did I learn A LOT about writing, but I learned about some great books. I marked a ton of pages with post-it notes just so I can add the books to my "must read" list. The author used examples from great books to illustrate his points on improving your writing.
My favorite thing about this book is the fact that he has checklists at the end of each chapter for you to put the new knowledge immediately to work in your own writing.
My favorite thing about this book is the fact that he has checklists at the end of each chapter for you to put the new knowledge immediately to work in your own writing.
Wow. I've read a lot of books on writing. On building characters, on story structure, and on writing craft in general. The Fire in Fiction: Passion, Purpose and Techniques to Make Your Novel Great falls into the category of general craft, as it touches on many aspects of writing. It is one of the -- if not the -- best books on craft I have read. Maass's insight hits home every time, explanations are clear, examples further make his points, and by far the best, the exercises after each section ar...more
This is the first Donald Maass book I have read and as soon as I finished it, I went ahead and bought Writing the Breakout Novel. What I really love about this book is that Maass goes a step beyond conventional wisdom. For instance, he'd say: "Weather opening" is bad. And then he'd go on to say how you can make it work. The book has a ton of good tips and Maass gave them in a very personal way with satire and humor, as though he was sitting across the coffee table from me talking. Come to think...more
3.5♥s Some of the chapters sparked a fire of ideas for me. Others fizzled. The chapters I recommend are:
Protagonists vs. Heroes--Empowering your protagonist, humanizing your hero
Characters Who Matter--Rounding out your secondary characters, including your villains and antagonists
Making the Impossible Real--Horror, SciFi, Paranormal, etc.
Tension All The Time--Micro-tension, which comes from conflicting emotions
Happy writing!
Protagonists vs. Heroes--Empowering your protagonist, humanizing your hero
Characters Who Matter--Rounding out your secondary characters, including your villains and antagonists
Making the Impossible Real--Horror, SciFi, Paranormal, etc.
Tension All The Time--Micro-tension, which comes from conflicting emotions
Happy writing!
The opening pages really incite you to get started improving your writing. I've encountered most of the improvements since I started writing before, but the examples from popular writers are very helpful. What I like best is the exercises throughout where you can check your work and also think about where you are in a given work.
"The Fire in Fiction: Passion, Purpose and Techniques to Make Your Novel Great" by Donald Maass, is written from a publisher's point-of-view on what makes good fiction great. Suggestions include creating characters, dialogue, tension, setting and other techniques to create a good story that keeps a reader, reading. There are exercises at the end of each chapter to try with your own fiction. The ideas are practical and well-presented and worth considering in any writing you might be doing. A lot...more
A friend of mine recommended this book to me and I found it really helpful. The questions at the end of each section made me think about my current WIP and I made some changes based on them. In all I feel my WIP is a much better story because I read this book.
The qualities of exciting plot prose that makes readers want to keep turning pages are not nebulous and mysterious, but definable and doable! Maass's book gives a bunch of great advice that'll be most useful to someone who's already got a manuscript underway.
I bought this book while in the throes of National Novel Writing Month and really enjoyed learning about characters, scenes, voice, etc. -- everything I need to know to turn my NaNo into an actual novel, rather than something that's just "novelish."
Maass has fantastic ideas about how to take your story and ramp up everything: increase the tension, raise the stakes, make the reader care more about your characters. I've used so many of his techniques to make my manuscripts work better.
I picked up a few good tips in this, but I didn't get much from it; I think I've been exposed to most of the info in this book elsewhere, and it didn't really hang together well enough to give me new insights into things I'd already heard.
Seriously, one of the best books on writing I've ever read. Great examples as well as fun and easy exercises to do at the end of each chapter. Very, very useful and definitely a book I will refer to over and over again.
The practical tools are helpful, although I should probably stop reading books about writing novels and actually finish a novel. After the first ten or so, books about writing books seem to have a sameness about them.
A must have for the writer's bookshelf.
However, I attended his workshop just after reading the book and THEN really understood what he was talking about. The two together is what made this is helpful for me.
However, I attended his workshop just after reading the book and THEN really understood what he was talking about. The two together is what made this is helpful for me.
I didn't finish this, but only because I'm going to come back to it. It looks like it has plenty of good, practical tips. But I need to focus on reading and writing stories and not reading about writing stories.
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Mar 02, 2013 05:10pm