Never has contemporary fiction been more widely discussed and passionately analysed; recent years have seen a huge growth in the number of reading groups and in the interest of a non-academic readership in the discussion of how novels work. Drawing on his weekly Guardian column, 'Elements of Fiction', John Mullan examines novels mostly of the last ten years, many of which have become firm favourites with reading groups. He reveals the rich resources of novelistic technique, setting recent fiction alongside classics of the past. Nick Hornby's adoption of a female narrator is compared to Daniel Defoe's; Ian McEwan's use of weather is set against Austen's and Hardy's; Carole Shield's chapter divisions are likened to Fanny Burney's. Each section shows how some basic element of fiction is used. Some topics (like plot, dialogue, or location) will appear familiar to most novel readers; others (metanarrative, prolepsis, amplification) will open readers' eyes to new ways of understanding and appreciating the writer's craft. How Novels Work explains how the pleasures of novel reading often come from the formal ingenuity of the novelist. It is an entertaining and stimulating exploration of that ingenuity. Addressed to anyone who is interested in the close reading of fiction, it makes visible techniques and effects we are often only half-aware of as we read. It shows that literary criticism is something that all fiction enthusiasts can do. Contemporary novels discussed include: Monica Ali's Brick Lane; Martin Amis's Money; Margaret Atwood's The Blind Assassin; A.S. Byatt's Possession; Jonathan Coe's The Rotters' Club; J.M. Coetzee's Disgrace; Michael Cunningham's The Hours; Don DeLillo's Underworld; Michel Faber's The Crimson Petal and the White; Ian Fleming's From Russia with Love; Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections; Mark Haddon's The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time; Patricia Highsmith's Ripley under Ground; Alan Hollinghurst's The Spell; Nick Hornby's How to Be Good; Ian McEwan's Atonement; John le Carré's The Constant Gardener; Andrea Levy's Small Island; David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas; Andrew O'Hagan's Personality; Orhan Pamuk's My Name Is Red; Ann Patchett's Bel Canto; Ruth Rendell's Adam and Eve and Pinch Me; Philip Roth's The Human Stain; Jonathan Safran Foer's Everything Is Illuminated; Carol Shields's Unless; Zadie Smith's White Teeth; Muriel Spark's Aiding and Abetting; Graham Swift's Last Orders; Donna Tartt's The Secret History; William Trevor's The Hill Bachelors; and Richard Yates's Revolutionary Road .

Why you need a writing revolution in your classroom and how to lead it The Writing Revolution (TWR) provides a clear method of instruction that you can use no matter what subject or grade level you teach. The model, also known as The Hochman Method, has demonstrated, over and over, that it can turn weak writers into strong communicators by focusing on specific techniques that match their needs and by providing them with targeted feedback. Insurmountable as the challenges faced by many students may seem, The Writing Revolution can make a dramatic difference. And the method does more than improve writing skills. It also helps: Boost reading comprehension Improve organizational and study skills Enhance speaking abilities Develop analytical capabilities The Writing Revolution is as much a method of teaching content as it is a method of teaching writing. There's no separate writing block and no separate writing curriculum. Instead, teachers of all subjects adapt the TWR strategies and activities to their current curriculum and weave them into their content instruction. But perhaps what's most revolutionary about the TWR method is that it takes the mystery out of learning to write well. It breaks the writing process down into manageable chunks and then has students practice the chunks they need, repeatedly, while also learning content.

A therapist explains true kindness as opposed to mere niceness and explores its power and benefits, describing ways to integrate kindness as the response of choice. Included are techniques for developing the ability to empathize with others and strategies for being kind to oneself.

Everything You need to Write and Sell Your Work This is the ultimate crash course in writing and publishing! Inside you'll find comprehensive instruction, up-to-date market listings, a CD featuring recorded live webinars with industry professionals, an all-access pass to WritersMarket.com, and more. Writer's Digest University is the perfect resource for you, no matter your experience level. This one-stop resource contains: • Quick and comprehensive answers to common questions including: "How do I write a successful novel?" and "How do I know if self-publishing is right for me?" • Instruction and examples for formatting and submitting fiction, nonfiction, articles, children's writing, scripts, and verse. • Advanced instruction on business-related issues like marketing and publicity, using social media, freelancing for corporations, keeping finances in order, and setting the right price for your work. • A detailed look at what agents want and how to get one that best fits your needs. • Market listings for publishers and agents open to unsolicited work and new writers, contests and awards, and conferences and workshops. • A CD with recordings of 4 popular WD webinars: How Do I Get My Book Published?, How to Land a Literary Agent, How Writers Can Succeed in the Future of Digital Publishing, and Freelance Basics.* • A scratch-off code that gives you a one-year subscription to WritersMarket.com and a 20% discount on the WritersDigestUniversity.com course of your choice.* Get started now with everything you need to build a thriving writing career. Whether you're starting from scratch or have a bit of experience, you'll find the tools you need for success. *PLEASE NOTE: CDs and one-year subscription are NOT included with the ebook version of this title.

If your success at work or in school depends on your ability to communicate persuasively in writing, you'll want to get Good with Words. Based on a course that law students at the University of Michigan and the University of Chicago have called "outstanding," "A-M-A-Z-I-N-G," and "the best course I have ever taken," the book brings together a collection of concepts, exercises, and examples that have also helped improve the advocacy skills of people pursuing careers in many other fields--from marketing, to management, to medicine. "There is nobody better than Patrick Barry when it comes to breaking down how to write and edit. His techniques don't just make you sound better. They make you think better. I'm jealous of the people who get to take his classes." --Professor Lisa Bernstein, University of Chicago Law School and Oxford University Center for Corporate Regulation "Whenever I use Patrick Barry's materials in my class, the student reaction is the same: 'We want more of them.'" --Professor Dave Babbe, UCLA School of Law "Working one-on-one with Patrick Barry should be mandatory for all lawyers, regardless of seniority. This book is the next best thing." --Purvi Patel, Partner at Morrison Foerster LLP "I am proud to say that, when it comes to writing, I speak Patrick Barry. What I mean is that I use, pretty much every day, the writing vocabulary and techniques he offers in this great book. So read it. Share it. And then, if you can, teach it. There are a lot of good causes in the world that could use a new generation of great advocates." --Professor Bridgette Carr, Assistant Dean of Strategic Initiatives and Director of the Human Trafficking Clinic at the University of Michigan Law School "Patrick Barry is my secret weapon. I use his techniques every time I write, and I also teach them to all my students." --Professor Shai Dothan, Copenhagen Faculty of Law "I know the materials in this book were originally created for lawyers and law students. But I actually find them really helpful for doctors as well, given that a lot of what I do every day depends on effective communication. There is a tremendous upside to becoming 'Good with Words." --Dr. Ramzi Abboud, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

This aims-based rhetoric and reader teaches students analytical reading, academic writing, and inquiry as the keys to success in college. The anthology, which organizes its selections by rhetorical aims or purposes, offers readings for rhetorical analysis so that students can apply rhetorical processes in their own writing. Two important features distinguish this book from others: (1) emphasis on reading as an interactive process of composing meaning, and (2) emphasis on academic writing as a process in which writers engage with other texts. Reading Rhetorically teaches students how to see texts positioned in a conversation with other texts, how to recognize their bias or perspective, and how to analyze texts for both content and method.

Covering the entire process from story building to manuscript preparation and marketing, Jerry Cleaver shows the novice and experienced writer how to start writing and how to get immediate results. Readers will find everything they need to know about managing time, finding an idea, getting the first word down on the page, staying unblocked, shaping ideas into compelling stories, and submitting their work to agents and publishers. Immediate Fiction goes beyond the old "Write what you know" to "Write what you can imagine." Filled with insightful tips on how to manage doubts, fears, blocks, and panic, Immediate Fiction will help writers develop their skills in as little minutes a day, if necessary. Believing that all writing is rewriting, Cleaver says, "You can't control what you put on the page. You can only control what you leave on the page." With this book Cleaver shows how to get that control and produce results.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1873.

"What do you think of my fiction book writing?" the aspiring novelist extorted. "Darn," the editor hectored, in turn. "I can not publish your novel! It is full of what we in the business call 'really awful writing.'" "But how shall I absolve this dilemma? I have already read every tome available on how to write well and get published!" The writer tossed his head about, wildly. "It might help," opined the blonde editor, helpfully, "to ponder how NOT to write a novel, so you might avoid the very thing!" Many writing books offer sound advice on how to write well. This is not one of those books. On the contrary, this is a collection of terrible, awkward, and laughably unreadable excerpts that will teach you what to avoid—at all costs—if you ever want your novel published. In How Not to Write a Novel, authors Howard Mittelmark and Sandra Newman distill their 30 years combined experience in teaching, editing, writing, and reviewing fiction to bring you real advice from the other side of the query letter. Rather than telling you how or what to write, they identify the 200 most common mistakes unconsciously made by writers and teach you to recognize, avoid, and amend them. With hilarious "mis-examples" to demonstrate each manuscript-mangling error, they'll help you troubleshoot your beginnings and endings, bad guys, love interests, style, jokes, perspective, voice, and more. As funny as it is useful, this essential how-NOT-to guide will help you get your manuscript out of the slush pile and into the bookstore.