(this is an abridged review. My full review (with anecdotes) is Janet Burroway’s “Writing Fiction”. Bottom line - this is a gem. Get it, read it, learn)
Janet Burroway's Writing Fiction has been on my bookshelf for (estimating) 20+ years. I picked up a used copy back when I made my first pass at fiction writing not realizing I'd plucked a diamond from a trash pile.
I'd added the book to my collection and hadn't touched it since I put it on my shelf. This is one of those "When the student is ready, the teacher will be there" things. I wouldn't have appreciated Writing Fiction 20+ years ago.
I will be doing second, third and probably through fifth readings (if I live long enough).
I read the 3rd edition, which many people consider it the best (I think there are nine editions at this point). It's an excellent read, lots of great information - I've dogeared 1/3 - 1/2 of the book - and I suggest it for anyone at any point in their writing career.
Evidently the newer editions are closer to textbooks than self-studies. I would prefer taking a class in order to engage with the instructor, ask questions, get clarifications, et cetera. Some sections (small, a few paragraphs to a page) required several readings before I understood what Burroway was suggesting/explaining/demonstrating. There's examples galore (a good thing) and I learn better by interaction over examples (I like to know yay/nay if I got something and if not, I didn't because...?), hence my wanting to use this book in a classrooom.
I don't suggest you get copies of Writing Fiction and pass them around your local writers' group for discussion. Someone has to be the convincingly authoritative voice when doing the exercises (there's lots of them) and a group of writers (at least in my experience) isn't going to do it. Everyone will have an opinion, opinions are nice, I'm more a black/white kind of guy.
(this is an abridged review. My full review (with anecdotes) is Janet Burroway’s “Writing Fiction”. Bottom line - this is a gem. Get it, read it, learn)
I guess this is my first experience with fiction written specifically for a genre as opposed to fiction that is written and is listed as a genre for marketing purposes. I'm sure I've read such material previously, this is the first time where the gen
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