The art of fiction;: A handbook and anthology

by Richard F. Dietrich, Roger H. Sundell

rare now

Genres: Writing, Short Stories

534 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1974

Reviews

[Betty · Rating 3 out of 5]

It has a variety of narratives from old published works- works that have inspired other writers and poets to do their art.
Also a good reminder for why I read fiction- character, plot twists and themes.

It’d make an inspiration read for young adults interested in writing short stories too.

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

This 1974 anthology of short fiction was used as a textbook for undergrad English classes at the time and somehow made its way into my wife's book collection. Most of the expected pleasure here is in rereading some of my favorite stories or encountering some great stories for the first time that I'd long meant to read. Unexpected pleasures were found in the introduction and author biographies, which read as self-parody from the tweed-elbowed, pipe-smoking, old white man set. They grudgingly acknowledge that women and black people are producing important work, though they think it's a new development, so they congratulate themselves for including a handful of stories from both demographics. The author bio of Amiri Baraka is full of "angry black man" condescension almost too ridiculous to be serious. They even try out some already outdated youth slang in the preface: "The first edition ... was written and edited in 1965-1966 (and published in 1967). There were virtually no instructor's manuals in those days, and there were no psychedelic textbooks or 'Now' readers." This part of the book has aged badly, but the vast majority of the authors and stories here haven't.

[Fredrick Danysh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dietrich discusses the various processes and components of writing fiction. He looks at the various genres and discusses what does and does not work.