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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Monday, April 11, 2022

Short Story Collection Vol. 002 by Various

 

Short Story Collection Vol. 002 by Various

Short Story Collection Vol. 002 by Various

 Librivox's Short Story Collection 002: a collection of 10 short fictional works in the public domain read by a variety of Librivox members.

CONTENTS

  1.  A  Baby  Tramp  by  Ambrose  Bierce  (1842-1914?),  read  by  Peter  Yearsley  -  00:13:14
  2. The  Black  Cat  by  Edgar  Allan  Poe  (1809-1849),  read  by  Don  Morgan  -  00:32:43 
  3. The  Cask  of  Amontillado  by  Edgar  Allan  Poe  (1809-1849),  read  by  Zach  Weissmueller &  Ryan  Heuser  -  00:15:45
  4. The  Diamond  Necklace  by  Guy  de  Maupassant  (1850-1893),  read  by  Alice  -  00:19:25 
  5. Esme  by  Saki  (1870-1916),  read  by  lanish  -  00:12:59 
  6. The  Last  Leaf  by  O.  Henry  (1862-1910),  read  by  Ted  McElroy  -  00:16:36 
  7. The  Little  Match  Girl  by  Hans  Christian  Andersen  (1805-1875),  read  by  Ted  Hanley  - 00:06:53 
  8. Marjorie  Daw  by  Thomas  Aldrich  (1836-1907),  read  by  William  Coon  -  00:45:49 
  9. The  Toys  of  Peace  by  Saki  (1870-1916),  read  by  Tae  Jensen  -  00:11:31 
  10. Young  Goodman  Brown  by  Nathaniel  Hawthorne  (1804-1864),  read  by  Brian  Roberg  - 00:39:44


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