Read Like A Writer

There are two ways to learn how to write fiction: by reading it and by writing it. Yes, you can learn lots about writing stories in workshops, in writing classes and writing groups, at writers' conferences. You can learn technique and process by reading the dozens of books like this one on fiction writing and by reading articles in writers' magazines. But the best teachers of fiction are the great works of fiction themselves. You can learn more about the structure of a short story by reading Anton Chekhov's 'Heartache' than you can in a semester of Creative Writing 101. If you read like a writer, that is, which means you have to read everything twice, at least. When you read a story or novel the first time, just let it happen. Enjoy the journey. When you've finished, you know where the story took you, and now you can go back and reread, and this time notice how the writer reached that destination. Notice the choices he made at each chapter, each sentence, each word. (Every word is a choice.) You see now how the transitions work, how a character gets across a room. All this time you're learning. You loved the central character in the story, and now you can see how the writer presented the character and rendered her worthy of your love and attention. The first reading is creative—you collaborate with the writer in making the story. The second reading is critical.


John Dufresne, from his book, The Lie That Tells A Truth: A Guide to Writing Fiction

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Tuesday, April 12, 2022

LibriVox’s Short Story Collection Vol. 012 (Audio Book)

 

LibriVox’s Short Story Collection Vol. 012 (Audio Book)

LibriVox’s Short Story Collection Vol. 012 (Audio Book)

 

LibriVox’s Short Story Collection 012: a collection of 11 short works of fiction in the public domain read by a variety of LibriVox members.

Genre(s): Short Stories

Language: English

Group: Short Story Collection

 

CONTENTS

  1. Evolution by John Galsworthy, read by Adrian Praetzellis - 00:09:22 
  2. The Gifts of Asti by Andre Norton, read by Mark Nelson - 00:41:06 
  3. The Inconsiderate Waiter by James Matthew Barrie, read by Debra Lynn - 00:42:12 
  4. Morella by Edgar Allan Poe, read by Lady Maria - 00:17:35 
  5. The Oval Portrait by Edgar Allan Poe, read by Lady Maria - 00:11:13 
  6. Rollo Learning to Play by Robert J. Burdette, read by Debra Lynn - 00:17:16 
  7. Rollo Learning to Read by Robert J. Burdette, read by Debra Lynn - 00:10:39 
  8. A Sea of Troubles by P. G. Wodehouse, read by Mark Nelson - 00:33:04 
  9. Settling on the Land by Henry Lawson, read by Lucy Burgoye - 00:16:43 
  10. The Sorrows of a Summer Guest by Stephen Leacock, read by Debra Lynn - 00:22:55 
  11. Wanted—A Cook by Alan Dale, read by Debra Lynn - 00:42:01

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