In now write!, sherry ellis collects the personal writing exercises of today's best writers and lays bare the secret to their success. Complemented by brief commentary from the authors themselves, the exercises in Now Write! are practical and hands-on. Despite producing work that may seem effortless, all of them have a simple technique for fending off writer's block: the writing exercise.

What's the secret behind the successful and prolific careers of critically acclaimed novelists and short story writers Amy Bloom, Steve Almond, struggling to come up with a first sentence, Jayne Anne Phillips, Alison Lurie, and others? Divine assistance? Otherworldly talent? An unsettlingly close relationship with the Muse? While the rest of us are staring at blank sheets of paper, these writers are busy polishing off story after story and novel after novel.

A collection of personal writing exercises and commentary from some of today's best novelists, Steve Almond, Amy Bloom, Robert Olen Butler, Margot Livesay, Jayne Anne Phillips, and writing teachers, Virgil Suarez, short story writers, including Jill McCorkle, and more. By encouraging writers to shamelessly steal proven techniques that have yielded books which have won National Book Awards, Pulitzers, and Guggenheim grants, Now Write! inspires the aspiring writer to write now.

Tarcher. In "the photograph, " jill mccorkle divulges one of her tactics for handling material that takes plots in a million different directions; - National Book Award-nominee Amy Bloom offers "Water Buddies, " an exercise for writers practicing their craft in workshops; - Steve Almond, author of My Life in Heavy Metal and Candyfreak, provides a way to avoiding purple prose in "The Five-Second Shortcut to Writing in the Lyric Register"; - and eighty-three more of the country's top writers disclose their strategies for creating memorable prose.

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Now Write! Nonfiction: Memoir, Journalism and Creative Nonfiction Exercises from Today's Best Writers Now Write! Series

An essential handbook for nonfiction writers, 2008 pulitzer prize-winner john matteson eden's outcasts: the story of louisa may alcott and her father, and many other top memoirists, and teachers of creative nonfiction, capturing character to fine-tuning dialogue, new york times-bestselling authors Ishmael Beah A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier Reza Aslan No God but God: The Origins, these exercises offer fresh ideas for every facet of creative nonfiction writing, and Future of Islam, Reza Aslan, including Gay Talese, John Matteson, Tilar Mazzeo, creative nonfiction icon Lee Gutkind Creative Nonfiction magazine, journalists, Evolution, from pushing through writers block to organizing a story, and Tilar Mazzeo The Widow Clicquot, and many more! Beginners and seasoned writers alike will relish the opportunity to use the top-notch writing exercises collected in Now Write! Nonfiction culled from the personal stashes of bestselling and critically-acclaimed nonfiction authors like legendary essayist Gay Talese Thy Neighbor's Wife, featuring the trusted personal writing exercises of today's masters of creative non-fiction, injecting new life into a finished piece to starting a new work from scratch.

Now write! nonfiction will take you out into the field with creative nonfiction's master practitioners: *Peek inside Gay Talese's mind, as he shares the "writer's road map" he used to organize information for his classic book Thy Neighbor's Wife and his seminal essay "Frank Sinatra Has a Cold. Learn from reza aslan why what you remember isn't as important as why you remember it the way you do *explore the importance of cultural nuance in language with Ishmael Beah *Discover Lee Gutkind's simple trick, that can help any writer identify whether their piece is truly showing action, performed with a highlighter, or just telling An essential resource that will help writers of any level to hone their craft and get writing, Now WRite! Nonfiction offers over 80 quick, simple excersises trusted by top nonfiction writers to get their pen moving! Used book in Good Condition.

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Now Write! Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror: Speculative Genre Exercises from Today's Best Writers and Teachers Now Write! Series

Tarcher. Nolan, melissa scott, michael Reaves, Michael Dillon Scott, Vanessa Vaughn and others. This collection of storytelling secrets from top genre writers—including winners of Nebula, Edgar, Hugo, and Bram Stoker awards—is essential for any writer looking to take a leap beyond the ordinary. Mcintyre, William F.

Lansdale, bruce McAllister, Vonda N. Cooper, brian James Freeman, Joe R. Used book in Good Condition. Featuring speculative fiction-writing exercises from Harlan Ellison R, Ramsey Campbell, Jack Ketchum, Piers Anthony, screenwriters of The Twilight Zone and Star Trek: The Next Generation, and many more. The fifth volume in the acclaimed now write! writing-guide series offers a full toolbox of advice and exercises for speculative fiction writers hoping to craft an engaging alternate reality, including:-Harlan Ellison R, on how economy of language helps create a truly frightening tale-Piers Anthony, on crafting the perfect story title-Jack Ketchum, on making fantastical characters feel genuine and relatableAmong the other writers incluided are: Steven Barnes, David Brin, Peter Briggs, flesh out an enthralling fantasy quest, or dream up a bloodcurdling plot twist, Sara B.

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Now Write! Mysteries: Suspense, Crime, Thriller, and Other Mystery Fiction Exercises from Today's Best Writers and Teachers Now Write! Series

The essential handbook for writers of whodunits, techno- thrillers, cozies, and everything in between-featuring never-before- published personal writing exercises from some of today's bestselling and award-winning mystery writers. Moore, michael Sears, and many others. No other mystery-writing guide offers the road tested wisdom of so many award-winners and bestselling authors in one place.

Now write! mysteries, -for the definitive guide to writing mysteries, and Shamus awards, Hugo, brings together numerous bestselling authors-including winners of and nominees for the Edgar, the fourth volume in the acclaimed Now Write! writing guide series, thrillers, and suspense stories. Used book in Good Condition.

Now write! mysteries teaches you everything you've ever wanted to know about crafting a page-turning mystery-from creating a believable detective hero or terrifying villain, Night Kills, to using real-life cutting-edge investigative techniques to bring your story to life-with practical exercises taken directly from the pros: Discover the best techniques for seamlessly integrating action into your story with John Lutz, New York Times-bestselling author of Urge to Kill, and Serial.

Learn how to fine-tune your sense of place and setting with Louise Penny, New York Times-bestselling author of the Armand Gamache mysteries. Take advice from lorenzo carcaterra, author of Sleepers and writer/producer for Law & Order, on how to compose a scene that lives up to your character's backstory.

Let marcia talley, show you how to build a memorable, Agatha- and Anthony-winning author of the Hannah Ives mysteries, engaging detective. Hint: it's not about making him flawless.

The 3 A.M. Epiphany: Uncommon Writing Exercises that Transform Your Fiction

Tarcher. Used book in Good Condition. And you're often in no position to act: in the shower, driving the kids to school. In the middle of the night. The 3 A. M. Brian kiteley, noted author and director of the University of Denver's creative writing program, has crafted and refined these exercises through 15 years of teaching experience.

You'll learn how to:transform staid and stale writing patterns into exciting experiments in fictionShed the anxieties that keep you from reaching your full potential as a writerCraft unique ideas by combining personal experience with unrestricted imaginationExamine and overcome all of your fiction writing concerns, from getting started to writer's blockOpen the book, select an exercise, and give it a try.

Epiphany offers more than 200 intriguing writing exercises designed to help you think, write, and revise like never before - without having to wait for creative inspiration. Used book in Good Condition. Discover just how good your Writing Can BeIf you write, you know what it's like. Insight and creativity - the desire to push the boundaries of your writing - strike when you least expect it.

It's just what you need to craft refreshing new fiction, discover bold new insights, and explore what it means to be a writer. It's never too early to start--not even 3 A. M.

Making Shapely Fiction

Used book in Good Condition. A special section features an alphabet for Writers: entries range from Accuracy to Zigzag, Point of View, Irony, with enlightening comments about such matters as Cliffhangers, and Transitions. Tarcher. Tension, " stern says, "is the mother of fiction. When tension and immediacy combine, the story begins.

Dialogue and action, the true meaning of "write what you know, beginnings and endings, " and a memorable listing of don'ts for fiction writers are all covered. A deft analysis and appreciation of fiction―what makes it work and what can make it fail. Here is a book about the craft of writing fiction that is thoroughly useful from the first to the last page―whether the reader is a beginner, a seasoned writer, or a teacher of writing.

You will see how a work takes form and shape once you grasp the principles of momentum, tension, and immediacy. Used book in Good Condition.

What If? Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers

What if? is the first handbook for writers based on the idea that specific exercises are one of the most useful and provocative methods for mastering the art of writing fiction. What if? will be an essential addition to every writer's library, a welcome and much-used companion, a book that gracefully borrows a whisper from the muse.

They deal with such topics as discovering where to start and end a story; learning when to use dialogue and when to use indirect discourse; transforming real events into fiction; and finding language that both sings and communicates precisely. Used book in Good Condition. William Morrow Company. Used book in Good Condition.

These exercises are designed to develop and refine two basic skills: writing like a writer and, just as important, thinking like a writer. With more than twenty-five years of experience teaching creative writing between them, Anne Bernays and Pamela Painter offer more than seventy-five exercises for both beginners and more experienced writers.

Tarcher.

Naming the World: And Other Exercises for the Creative Writer

Imagine yourself at a cocktail party crammed with literary lions. Used book in Good Condition. Harvard creative writing professor and acclaimed author Bret Anthony Johnston brings you an irresistible interactive guide to the craft of narrative writing. You already have the tools to become a gifted writer; what you need is the spark.

With charm and intelligence it touches on nearly every teachable aspect of the devilishly difficult art of writing. Ethan canin, professor of creative writing at the iowa Writers Workshop, and author of Carry Me Across the Water “These entertaining and useful exercises, intelligently organized, are a boon for both beginning and experienced writers.

Andrea barrett, national book award—winning author of the air We Breathe“Forget about getting an MFA! For any writer struggling with his craft, here is the equivalent of a master class in writing by some of the best writer/teachers around. Betsy lerner, author of the forest for the Trees: An Editor’s Advice to Writers Used book in Good Condition.

Every chapter is a master class with the country’s most eminent authors, renowned editors, and dedicated teachers. Infuse emotion into your fiction with three key strategies from Margot Livesey. Christopher castellani dumps the “write what you know” maxim and challenges you to really delve into the imagination.

A point-of-view drill from Susan Straight can be just the breakthrough you need to flesh out your story. Jewell parker rhodes shares how good dialogue is not just about what is being said but about what is being left unsaid.

100 Years of The Best American Short Stories The Best American Series ®

Here is ernest hemingway’s first published story and a classic by William Faulkner, who admitted in his biographical note that he began to write “as an aid to love-making. Nancy hale’s story describes far-reaching echoes of the Holocaust; Tillie Olsen’s story expresses the desperation of a single mother; James Baldwin depicts the bonds of brotherhood and music.

Moore has received honors for her work, among them the Irish Times International Fiction Prize and a Lannan Foundation fellowship, as well as the PEN/Malamud Award and the Rea Award for her achievement in the short story. She is the author of the novels The Birthdays and The Daylight Marriage. For the centennial celebration of this beloved annual series, master of the form Lorrie Moore selects forty stories from the more than two thousand that were published in previous editions.

Heidi pitlor is a former senior editor at houghton Mifflin Harcourt and has been the series editor of The Best American Short Stories since 2007. Her most recent novel, was short-listed for the 2010 orange prize for fiction and for the PEN/Faulkner Award, Bark, A Gate at the Stairs, and her most recent story collection, was short-listed for the Story Prize and the Frank O’Connor Award.

Moore writes that the process of assembling these stories allowed her to look “thrillingly not just at literary history but at actual history — the cries and chatterings, silences and descriptions of a nation in flux. 100 years of the best american short Stories is an invaluable testament, a retrospective of our country’s ever-changing but continually compelling literary artistry.

Lorrie moore, after many years as a professor of creative writing at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, is now the Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Professor of English at Vanderbilt University.

Story Genius: How to Use Brain Science to Go Beyond Outlining and Write a Riveting Novel Before You Waste Three Years Writing 327 Pages That Go Nowhere

Tarcher. William Morrow Company. Houghton mifflin harcourt. Following on the heels of lisa cron's breakout first book, Wired for Story, this writing guide reveals how to use cognitive storytelling strategies to build a scene-by-scene blueprint for a riveting story. Used book in Good Condition. It’s every novelist’s greatest fear: pouring their blood, sweat, no internal logic, and tears into writing hundreds of pages only to realize that their story has no sense of urgency, and so is a page one rewrite.

The prevailing wisdom in the writing community is that there are just two ways around this problem: pantsing winging it and plotting focusing on the external plot. Used book in Good Condition. Random House Trade Paperbacks. Story coach lisa cron has spent her career discovering why these methods don’t work and coming up with a powerful alternative, based on the science behind what our brains are wired to crave in every story we read and it’s not what you think.

In story genius cron takes you, richness, through the creation of a novel from the first glimmer of an idea, to a complete multilayered blueprint—including fully realized scenes—that evolves into a first draft with the authority, step-by-step, and command of a riveting sixth or seventh draft.

Now Write! Screenwriting: Screenwriting Exercises from Today's Best Writers and Teachers Now Write! Writing Guide Series

Houghton mifflin harcourt. An essential handbook featuring never-before-published writing exercises from the acclaimed screenwriters of Raging Bull, Fame, Ali, Terminator 2, "Lost", "The Shield", Cape Fear, Groundhog Day, "True Blood", and many other hit films and television shows. William Morrow Company.

No other screenwriting book offers advice and exercises from this many writers of successful, iconic films. Learn about why it is sometimes best to write what you don't know from christina kim 'lost' *find out how stephen rivele ali, when digging yourself out of a plot home from Danny Rubin Groundhog Day *Take tips from Karey Kirkpatrick Chicken Run, not your plot, Nixon reduces his screenplay ideas down to their most basic elements, The Spiderwick Chronicles on how to give an inanimate object intense emotional significance *Let Kim Krizan Before Sunrise, and uses that as a writing guide *Learn why you should focus on your character, Before Sunset teach you how to stop your internal critic dead in his tracks This lively and easy-to-read guide will motivate both aspiring and experienced screenwriters.

Tarcher. Used book in Good Condition. Now write! screenwriting-the latest addition to the now write! writing guide series-brings together the acclaimed screenwriters of films like the Oscar-winning Raging Bull, musical classic Fame, hit series "Lost" "True Blood" and "The Shield, era-defining blockbuster Terminator 2, Indecent Proposal, Cape Fear, Reversal of Fortune, Oscar- nominated Ali, " Groundhog Day, and many more, Before Sunrise, Mystic Pizza, Chicken Run, to teach the art of the story.

Random House Trade Paperbacks. Used book in Good Condition.