Making Shapely Fiction

"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. "Tension," Stern says, "is the mother of fiction. When tension and immediacy combine, the story begins." Dialogue and action, beginnings and endings, the true meaning of "write what you know," and a memorable listing of don'ts for fiction writers are all covered. A special section features an Alphabet for Writers: entries range from Accuracy to Zigzag, with enlightening comments about such matters as Cliffhangers, Point of View, Irony, and Transitions."

-W.W. Norton

Jerome Stern notes some writing pitfalls, such as having too many characters or characters with phonetically similar names.

This is a book that has made it on the required reading lists of many creative writing programs. It's not so much a manual on what to write, but it explains the fundamentals of writing terms and conventions in a way that will introduce new writers to essential concepts and remind seasoned writers of accidentally-forgone basics. The clever Alphabet for Writers section, written in a somewhat irreverent tone, makes for an entertaining read with memorable examples.  Though Making Shapely Fiction does not cover how to sell your story, what kind of process to use, or how to get a representative, it will teach you to write well enough in order to solve these problems independently.