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

Header

Liquid Story Binder XE by Black Obelisk Software

Disable Copy Paste

Amazon Quick Linker

Thursday, October 20, 2022

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

THE MURDER OF
ROGER ACKROYD

BY
AGATHA CHRISTIE
AUTHOR OF
THE SECRET OF CHIMNEYS,
THE MURDER ON THE LINKS, Etc.

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

GROSSET & DUNLAP
PUBLISHERS      NEW YORK
Copyright, 1926,
By DODD, MEAD AND COMPANY, Inc.
To Punkie,
who likes an orthodox detective
story, murder, inquest, and suspicion
falling on every one in turn!

CONTENTS

CHAPTER
         
I
    DR. SHEPPARD AT THE BREAKFAST TABLE   1
II
    WHO’S WHO IN KING’S ABBOT     7
III
    THE MAN WHO GREW VEGETABLE MARROWS     17
IV
    DINNER AT FERNLY     31
V
    MURDER     49
VI
    THE TUNISIAN DAGGER     65
VII
    I LEARN MY NEIGHBOR’S PROFESSION     75
VIII
    INSPECTOR RAGLAN IS CONFIDENT     92
IX
    THE GOLDFISH POND     106
X
    THE PARLORMAID     118
XI
    POIROT PAYS A CALL     136
XII
    ROUND THE TABLE     145
XIII
    THE GOOSE QUILL     156
XIV
    MRS. ACKROYD     165
XV
    GEOFFREY RAYMOND     178
XVI
    AN EVENING AT MAH JONG     190
XVII
    PARKER     202
XVIII
    CHARLES KENT     218
XIX
    FLORA ACKROYD     226
XX
    MISS RUSSELL     238
XXI
    THE PARAGRAPH IN THE PAPER     251
XXII
    URSULA’S STORY     260
XXIII
    POIROT’S LITTLE REUNION     269
XXIV
    RALPH PATON’S STORY     284
XXV
    THE WHOLE TRUTH     289
XXVI
    AND NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH     298
XXVII
    APOLOGIA     303


The PDF might take a minute to load. Or, click to download PDF.

If your Web browser is not configured to display PDF files. No worries, just click here to download the PDF file.


About the Author 

Agatha Christie
Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (née Miller; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. She also wrote the world's longest-running play, The Mousetrap, which has been performed in the West End since 1952, as well as six novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. In 1971, she was made a Dame (DBE) for her contributions to literature. Guinness World Records lists Christie as the best-selling fiction writer of all time, her novels having sold more than two billion copies. Wikipedia

Buy Agatha Christie Books at Amazon
Posted by at
Labels: ,

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)