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| Author: James N. Frey
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Category: Book
List Price: $19.95
Buy New: $13.57
You Save: $6.38 (32%)
Rating:  89 reviews
Sales Rank: 6490
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1st
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 192
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.8 x 0.8
ISBN: 0312010443
Dewey Decimal Number: 808.3
EAN: 9780312010447
Publication Date: December 15, 1987
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Customer Reviews:
 A good resource for beginners March 18, 2005
36 out of 38 found this review helpful
For would-be writers who don't have much experience or knowledge of what makes good narrative fiction, this book covers the basics very well -- the importance of well-drawn characters, conflict, consistent point of view, and a unified premise -- as well as some of the necessary work habits for a novelist.
What Frey doesn't give is much real craft advice: how to build character through dialogue and description, how to use language powerfully and originally, how to use metaphor and figurative language, how to show not tell, etc. Maybe this stuff is covered in the follow up book...?
The book was also very male-oriented; all of the hypothetical protagonists Frey uses to illustrate techniques are male, and all of the books he cites as examples of "Damn good novels" are by male authors. Not a serious flaw, but a little off-putting for a female writer.
This book definitely seems more geared toward people interested in mainstream and mystery fiction. For people who are interested in doing more literary writing -- along the lines of the damn good novels he cites as examples -- I'd recommend John Gardner's The Art of Fiction and On Becoming a Novelist instead.
 Hard as Stone Structure and Storytelling April 28, 1999
35 out of 38 found this review helpful
Mr. Frey does a great job of narrowing down the structure of a good novel to its essentials (i.e. Plot, Character, Theme). Every book I've ever read and remembered for more than ten minutes after I closed the cover had these elements in abundance. He offers good and hard to follow advice as to how to write a novel (You *have* to sit down and do the writing!). Excellent reading even if you have no intention of writing a damn good novel because it gives the guidelines for judging whether a novel is damn good or not.
pretty much like all of the others June 9, 2006
28 out of 31 found this review helpful
I own this book and the follow up as well. Each tells you pretty much the same things as any other book on writing i have ever read. Incase you don't want to buy the book but get the info then i'll pretty much list the contents of both books:
- write every day, try to get around two or so pages. Just keep writing and worry about the editing later.
- every scene must have conflict. Introduce it, act it out, and then resolve it.
- Every 'hero' must have an equal and opposite 'villain' opposing them.
- empathy for your characters, NOT sympathy.
- the list of things you have already heard goes on and on and on...
Now, don't think i'm condemning this book because i am not. If you are a beginner then you can benefit from this book. Just don't buy it, read it, and then go out and try to find another book that may have more info this did not. There are, however, TWO complaints that i do have with the book. The first is that the author seems to like to reference books that are 'prehistoric' to a younger audience. I'm 26 and the mentioned titles, although i am familiar with almost all of them, have always bored me and are well older than books i would have expected to be mentioned within. If you buy this book then get ready to read about references to 'A Christmas Carol' and 'Scrooge' more than a few times.
The second complaint is that while you are reading you almost get a feeling in your hear that the author is yelling the information at you. He seems as though there is an air that has him thinking he is the greatest writer of all time and that you had better follow his instructions - and ONLY his instructions- or you will fail as a writer. Tiresom indeed.
Like i said, if you are new to writing and have not read any, or atleast only a very few, books on writing then you will benefit. But if you are even slightly more experienced then save your money. You already know what the book will present to you.
And just as a side note there is a book i recommend to any writer. 'Self-Editing for Fiction Writers' is by far the best book on writing i have ever read. It is not only about editing but has so much more on creative writing, the mechanics of dialog and sooooo much more. Looking back, if i had to buy only one book on writing that would be it. And by the way, i have absolutly no affiliation with that book or anyone who was involved in writing or publishing it. I just really think that it is the most useful writing book i have ever read. I hope this all helps.
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Informative and Practical September 29, 2003
27 out of 29 found this review helpful
James N. Frey has provided the aspiring novelist with an invaluable guide for improving both content and style. Frey's rich experience in the field is inspirational. He writes with clarity and energy and each chapter is replete with positive advice. Frey leads the reader through the complete writing process, from an idea's inception to its ultimate flowering. Some examples worth citing are:Structure (Chapter 2); 'Try to avoid predictability. Start at the middle, then do the end and finish with the beginning.' Language (Chapter 3); 'Avoid cliches like the plague. They make all writing dull as dishwater. If you use mixed metaphors, you are skating on thin ice and could end up in hot water. An inclination towards hyperbole, or exaggeration, is a million times worse than any other problem. Don't confuse tenses because publishers will rejected manuscripts that have been containing obvious errors. Don't use a big word when a breviloquent one can be just as effective. And finally, never start a sentence with a conjunction and punctuate correctly?' Editing (Chapter 6); 'Revise your work at lest five (6) times before you sended it to a agent or an publisher.' If you follow the steps that Frey has so carefully detailed in this book, your unpublished days will be numbered. Around 15,000.
A Novice Must February 6, 2001
26 out of 28 found this review helpful
I have been trying to start a novel for almost eight years now. Until I got this book, I had no idea where to begin. Frey's novel is a god send to those of us who never took writing courses in college. The book takes you through the stages of writing a book from developing a premise to making a character believable to choosing the right point of view all the way to how to do your first rewrite. Of course, that's not all it offers. Frey gives you pointers on building characters, developing conflict, writing dialogue, and using conventions such as foreshadowing and flashbacks. The thing I loved most about this novel, though, was the simplicity with which it was constructed and written. Frey has a wonderful sense of humor and he also realizes that some of us did not major in English or Journalism. Another great tactic that Frey uses is citing popular literature to develop his point and give examples. This book makes it so easy to get started. I have never had motivation like this before!
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