The Art of Fiction: Notes on Craft for Young Writers
“John Gardner was almost as famous as a teacher of creative writing as he was for his own works. In this practical, instructive handbook, based on the courses and seminars that he gave, he explains, simply and cogently, the principles and techniques of good writing. Gardner’s lessons, exemplified with detailed excerpts from classic works of literature, sweep across a complete range of topics—from the nature of aesthetics to the shape of a refined sentence. Written with passion, precision, and a deep respect for the art of writing, Gardner’s book serves by turns as a critic, mentor, and friend. Anyone who has ever thought of taking the step from reader to writer should begin here.”
This is an excellent book for anyone who deals with fiction in any storytelling medium. John Gardner breaks down the process of creating a fictional world into simple, understandable steps. There are zero gimmicks in this book. It is written clearly and concisely.
It is especially useful for writers and artists trying to make their own fictional works. Reading this book taught me more about writing and fiction than any university-level creative writing or literature course.
Sadly, with the author’s death, it has fallen into obscurity.
In order to share this wonderful resource with young writers everywhere, I started writing a summary of the most useful and salient ideas in the text in Q3 of 2019.
Here is my summary of the first three chapters, which I consider the most important.