There Are No Rules - New Titles From Writer's Digest

Our newest title in the Write Great Fiction series, Revision & Self-Editing by James Scott Bell (who also authored Plot & Structure), is now widely available, and reviews are starting to appear. Here's a snippet from C.J. Darlington's review at TitleTrakk.com:

Speaking of writing conferences, that’s what reading this book felt like—attending a break-out session presented by a skilled wordsmith who knows of what he speaks. Like a caring English Professor, Jim hovers over your shoulder pointing out the problems and dishing out the fixes. He pulls no punches, and you can tell he wants those who read this book to succeed. With lots of sweat, burning desire, and these techniques in your back pocket, you truly can.
When Plot & Structure released I said, “If you can only buy one writing book, buy this one.” Well, it’s time to make space on your shelves for one more. Revision & Self-Editing deserves it.

You can …

Read the full review here.
Read an excerpt, "Tips for Revising Your Manuscript."
Read a Q&A with author James Scott Bell.

Craft & Technique | New Titles From Writer's Digest

7/8/2008 3:42:07 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)

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Friday, June 27, 2008

New Release: Writing Life Stories, 2nd edition
Posted by Jane

Almost exactly 10 years ago, Story Press (a former imprint of F+W Publications) released a fabulous instruction book by Bill Roorbach, Writing Life Stories.

I'm thrilled to announce that we've just released a second edition of this valuable text, still under the Story Press imprint, in what we're calling the 10-year anniversary edition. In this new edition, Bill (with the help of Kristen Keckler) has taken care to fully update and revise the text. In his preface, he writes:

So much has changed in the ten years since the first edition of Writing Life Stories was published. For writers, perhaps the biggest development has been the wholesale advent of the Internet, with its constant evolution, its endless opportunities for interaction, for instant research, for locating and speaking directly to readers via e-mail, blogs, and Web sites. Everyone's typing now. …

Memoir as a popular genre has moved past most of its early controversies, and enjoys new standing in the world of letters and in the university. But there's also brand-new hullabaloo, such as the James Frey scandal … or the Deborah Rodriguez dustup … And is this the end of the world? Of course it's not. That roar you hear comes from the explosive power of narrative as applied to real life. What is the role of memoir and the essay in the quest for truth? Or even Truth? You'll answer these questions over and over, always in your own way, with every paragraph you write. …

Old friends of Writing Life Stories will find plenty here to re-charge their batteries, lots of new ideas and fresh instruction. First-time readers will join those returning to find new exercises in every chapter, clearer explanations of difficult issues like the use of metaphor, more up-to-date information on publishing, examples from newer writers, and more recent titles to complement the dozens of examples in the original edition, and a much more sophisticated look at the Internet.

Phillip Lopate and Lee Gutkind were kind enough to praise the first edition, and this second edition is even better. Be sure to check it out if you're actively writing or teaching creative nonfiction; we've posted an excerpt from Chapter 2 on our site, "Challenging the Limits of Memory."

Craft & Technique | Excerpts | New Titles From Writer's Digest

6/27/2008 1:39:39 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)

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Wednesday, June 25, 2008

New Release: Alone With All That Could Happen
Posted by Jane

This month, Writer's Digest Books is releasing one of the most sophisticated fiction writing guides—ever. The editor who discovered this book, Kelly Nickell, said she got goosebumps when reading the original proposal, such was her excitement that we might have the privilege of publishing this book.

While it's definitely not for everybody (and might not have a lot of practical application when it comes to strict genre writing), the people who typically poo-poo writing instruction books will absolutely love it (the problem is: will they condescend to buying it?!).

The book is Alone With All That Could Happen: Rethinking Conventional Wisdom About the Craft of Fiction Writing by David Jauss, a creative writing professor.

Here's a brief snippet from the Introduction:

Each time we sit down to write a work of fiction, we face a vast panorama of possibilities—and not just "all that could happen" but also all the narrative strategies and techniques we could possibly use to convey the people and events we imagine. The process of writing a work of fiction is ultimately the process of making choices among this panorama of techniques and strategies. But before we can make these choices, we need to know what the possibilities are, and in my opinion, too much of what's been written about the craft of fiction restricts the possibilities we can, and should, be exploring. In this book, I have tried to take a descriptive, rather than prescriptive, approach to the craft of fiction.

One note about this book's packaging that's not apparent when viewing it online: It's a hardcover book with a 3/4-length jacket. That means the jacket only extends to just below the title. Now, I have to tell you: The editor, designer, and I were convinced this cover treatment would work, and we fought the objections of sales, marketing, and production. We put ourselves on the line.

So, please, if anything, buy this book because I don't want to be told it didn't sell due to poor packaging! Let's prove that 3/4-length covers sell!

Craft & Technique | F+W Life | New Titles From Writer's Digest

6/25/2008 3:35:10 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)

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