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

The Mardi Gras Mystery by H. Bedford-Jones

 

The Mardi Gras Mystery by H. Bedford-Jones

The Mardi Gras Mystery 

 

by H. Bedford-Jones


Mardi Gras, Carnival, the season of parties and parades leading up to Lent. Not even the newly enacted Prohibition could dampen the spirits of the people of New Orleans. But one figure is on everyone’s mind, the Midnight Masquer, the mysterious bandit who appears at the stroke of midnight in the costume of an aviator to rob wealthy party goers of their jewels and money. Is he a criminal, or just a joker? The question is up in the air until, on the last night of carnival, things turn tragic and one of New Orleans leading citizens is murdered at the hand of the bandit. But was it the real Masquer or an imposter that pulled the fatal trigger? And, despite the fact that he was discovered moments later in an aviator’s suit, the son of the murdered man claims that he is innocent of the crime. Nothing is as it seems, as Henry Gramont’s Mardi Gras turns into a web of deceit, high stakes oil prospecting, and organized crime.

About the Author

Henry James O'Brien Bedford-Jones
Henry James O'Brien Bedford-Jones (April 29, 1887-May 6,1949) was a Canadian born author of stories and novels. After becoming an American citizen in 1908 he became a prolific writer for pulp magazines in a variety of genres including historical romances, westerns, science-fiction, and mysteries. Many of his works featured pirates. In all, he wrote over a hundred novels and earned the nickname "King of the Pulps."

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