Technique in Fiction

by Robie MacAuley

This is an updated version of an old book.

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction, Reference

270 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1964

About the author

Robie Mayhew MacAuley

Reviews

[Susan Oleksiw · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is not only a standard work for those interested in writing fiction but also a classic in developing an understanding of fiction and how it works. The book is divided into three sections: Conception: The Origins of a Story; Background, Setting, Place, Milieu; and Organic Form and Final Meaning. There is a selected bibliography of other books on writing, and an index. Macauley and his co-author, George Lanning, are extremely well read and include ample examples of their points from a wide variety of writers. The works cited are also examined for how they work, where they fail, and how they fit into the scheme of the entire body of literature. This is a thoughtful book for writers (and readers) who have gone beyond the basic how-to do it craft books. I like to reread parts of the book occasionally, if only to remind me of how deeply fiction affects our thinking and view of the world, and of the responsibility of the writer to be true to the form and the craft.

[123theone · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book, Technique in Fiction, is a writing advice book filled with tips, suggestions, and many examples. The advice given in this book is excellent and very helpful, especially with examples to show how its done, however, the author, George Lanning, is very irritating. Lanning is definitely the literary type, and often bashes on genre fiction, saying things along the lines of "this type of shallow writing may be fine in genre fiction, but any real writer..." That example may be slightly exaggerated, but the point is that he points out bad things in writing, then states that only genre fiction writers can get away with it, as if genre fiction is less. The examples in this book, while helpful, also add to this irritation. The author seems like he's mostly picking out his own personal favorite books, not the best books for teaching writing. All in all, the book is helpful, but not fun to read. Not on the top of my list of writing books to suggest. It was OK.

[Kali VanBaale · Rating 4 out of 5]

The authors' study and commentary on existing novels and short stories was so interesting and helpful--there are multiple outstanding passages in this book. I thought they gave a nice mix of "academic" type commentary on classic works, as well as practical, nuts-and-bolts observations on craft. And they know their literature, whether or not you agree with their opinions. Definitely not one of those generic "how to write a best seller" type books that have become so popular these days, but an intellectual study of craft without being completely pretentious.

[Joseph Carrabis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nuance. Technique in Fiction is a must read because it teaches nuance.
It teaches much more. Just when I thought my brain had filled with as much technique and suggestion as possible, there'd be another bit that I had to write down and practice so I could remember it.
The basic takeaway is that authors should read this book after they've finished something big (novella, novel, novellete, noveletta, novina...okay, maybe not a novina) so they can figure out how to improve their writing during the rewrite/editing process. Story writers will also benefit provided they give themselves some down time between writing and editing so their minds can absorb what's in these pages.
Great stuff!
The rest of my review is at .

[Alicia Zuto · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book about five years ago before I was actively studying writing and I remember that it was very helpful, but I was curious of my point of view on it now that I have years of experience. I feel the same. It covers so much and the author is good at explaining things.

[Carol Chiovatto · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meio datado em algumas coisas. E a sobreposição de autor/ narrador onisciente me incomodou bastante.

[Zach · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dated, overly prescriptive, elitist, sexist, racist, etc…. I suggest Janet Burroway’s Writing Fiction as a creative writing text instead.

[Austin Neaves · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think of technique as "a preference in how to do something." And that's exactly what "Technique in Fiction" by Robie Macauley and George Lanning is all about: the different way authors have chosen to write fiction.

What made this book different from others books I've read about writing fiction is it doesn't tell you how to write fiction - it shows you how classical authors have done it.

And that is in many ways the strength and weakness of the book. Charles Dickens, Henry James, Leo Tolstoy, James Joyce, and many other classical authors have written masterpieces. There is a lot we can learn from them. And these classic authors often don't agree on key aspects of writing fiction. It's fascinating to see how (and why) they differed.

But many authors (including me) are not trying to write the next "Ulysses" or "Great Expectations." I'm more interested in writing a book that sells, gets read, and tells a great story. To be realistic, I don't have command of the English language enough to write the next great classic. For people like me, this book is less helpful.

This is one of those books I would love to read again (maybe in 10 years) when I'm wiser and older. I've read a lot of classics for my age and to be honest, I haven't read most of the books discussed in this book. So for now, I would rate this book 6 out of 10 (10 being great). But I can see where a better, more read author would get more out of this book than I did.

[Joyce McPherson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating advice sprinkled with lessons and examples from great writing.