I'm an author of literary fiction and nonfiction on the creative writing process. My passion is to provide resources for writers who want to create stories as artful literature. A few years ago, I created a website that contains all my fiction and non-fiction, a newsletter, a workshop, and a blog. The website has received over five million visits. I've published six novels, thirty-seven short stories, thirty essays, twenty-six interviews, and literary quizzes. My fiction has received over 50 awards. I’ve been a first reader for Narrative Magazine and Zoetrope. I’ve written and presented an online video course, Creating Literary Story with Thinkific, and given readings and lectures in the US, South America, and Canada.
The fiction novel McDowell describes the accidental redemption of an intelligent, well-educated, selfish, nasty, unkind, world-famous surgeon who, after a personal tragedy, is convicted of 2nd-degree murder. He escapes prison and–as a fugitive fleeing authorities–he survives by befriending strangers on his journey throughout the United States: the homeless; a poverty-encrusted family in the woods of Montana; a street musician in New Orleans; a lonely hotel-keeper in California; a visual artist in Nevada; an itinerant preacher; and others; who, by their caring, show by examples of concern and protection to McDowell by lifestyles of loving, caring, kindness, and aiding others.
Published in 1813, this book demonstrates the basics of storytelling, techniques that have lasted for more than 200 years in the book’s various versions and recently in films. Important for the quality of the characterization and engaging the reader in a different, early nineteenth-century world. Be prepared to experience emotions and attachments Jane Austen was capable of creating with the written word.
Jane Austen's best-loved novel is an unforgettable story about the inaccuracy of first impressions, the power of reason, and above all the strange dynamics of human relationships and emotions.
Part of the Macmillan Collector's Library; a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. This edition is illustrated by Hugh Thomson and features an afterword by author and critic, Henry Hitchings.
A tour de force of wit and sparkling dialogue, Pride and…
Ken Kesey uses conflict and action to create a dramatically sequenced series of events about unique, interesting characters. Readers are often surprised at how much they really care about these nutty souls. This was Kesey’s only success and grew from a peculiar personal history. It is worthy of study for the value of an innovative, if not bizarre, storyline so well told that it has become an inseparable part of American culture.
Boisterous, ribald, and ultimately shattering, Ken Kesey's 1962 novel has left an indelible mark on the literature of our time. Now in a new deluxe edition with a foreword by Chuck Palahniuk and cover by Joe Sacco, here is the unforgettable story of a mental ward and its inhabitants, especially the tyrannical Big Nurse Ratched and Randle Patrick McMurphy, the brawling, fun-loving new inmate who resolves to oppose her. We see the struggle through the eyes of Chief Bromden, the seemingly mute half-Indian patient who witnesses and understands McMurphy's heroic attempt to do battle with the powers that keep them…
Emily Brontë’s only novel is a masterpiece, especially for the writer eager to learn the techniques of great fiction. The narration seamlessly involves the narrator and many of the characters. The timeline is complex with story-present only a small part of the total text; the major portion of the story is back story...always in action scenes and with carefully maintained chronology.
Heathcliff and Catherine are well-developed characters, and the influence of Ellen Dean as a narrator reflects effective use of intriguing narrator-reliability and irony. Overall, richly rewarding, well worth rereading, and always something to learn for improving personal writing of literary stories.
One of the great novels of the nineteenth century, Emily Bronte's haunting tale of passion and greed remains unsurpassed in its depiction of destructive love. Her tragically short life is brilliantly imagined in the major new movie, Emily, starring Emma Mackey in the title role.
Part of the Macmillan Collector's Library; a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket-sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. This edition of Wuthering Heights features an afterword by David Pinching.
One wild, snowy night on the Yorkshire moors, a gentleman asks…
Tolstoy’s novel is cherished by most writers. Strong character achievements in Anna, her husband Karenin, her lover Vronsky, and her brother Levin. Probably one of the best examples of a complex action plot driven by character traits. Important to read the copy by the translators, husband and wife, Pevear and Volokhonsky. Applauded for their development of translation skills, and demonstrated in this novel, in Russian and French. Tolstoy is a unique artist with a life of contradictions and inexplicable decisions. He had an influence on Chekhov and their relationship, and Tolstoy’s family life is revelatory and rewarding to explore.
In 1872 the mistress of a neighbouring landowner threw herself under a train at a station near Tolstoy's home. This gave Tolstoy the starting point he needed for composing what many believe to be the greatest novel ever written.
In writing Anna Karenina he moved away from the vast historical sweep of War and Peace to tell, with extraordinary understanding, the story of an aristocratic woman who brings ruin on herself. Anna's tragedy is interwoven with not only the courtship and marriage of Kitty and Levin but also the lives of many other characters. Rich in incident, powerful in characterization,…
William Kennedy won the Pulitzer Prize in 1984 for this novel. An interesting study in the use of internal reflection, as well as explored levels of consciousness and complex timeline. The protagonist is Francis Phelan, a former professional baseball player who left Albany in shame after dropping his infant son Gerald to his death. It is the third book in Kennedy's Albany Cycle. The film was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actor in a Leading Role (for Jack Nicholson) and Best Actress in a Leading Role (for Meryl Streep). The novel is rich with dramatic tension.
Winner of The Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction
In this Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, the third in Kennedy's Albany cycle, Francis Phelan, ex-ballplayer, part-time gravedigger, and full-time bum with the gift of gab, has hit bottom. Years earlier he'd left Albany after he dropped his infant son accidentally, and the boy died. Now, in 1938, Francis is back in town, roaming the old familiar streets with his hobo pal, Helen, trying to make peace with the ghosts of the past and present.
I’m an old guy. I say this with a bit of cheek and a certain amount of incongruity. All the books on my list are old. That’s one area of continuity. Another, and I’ll probably stop at two, is that they all deal with ordinary people caught in extraordinary circumstances—those curveballs of life we flail at with an unfamiliar bat; the getting stuck on the Interstate behind a semi and some geezer in a golf cap hogging the passing lane in a Buick Le Sabre. No one makes it through this life unscathed. How we cope does more to define us than a thousand smiles when things are rosy. Thus endeth the lesson.
Nine Stories Told Completely in Dialogue is a unique collection of narratives, each unfolding entirely through conversations between its characters. The book opens with "God on a Budget," a tale of a man's surreal nighttime visitation that offers a blend of the mundane and the mystical. In "Doctor in the House," readers are plunged into the emotionally charged moment when an oncologist delivers a life-altering diagnosis to a patient. The collection then shifts to "Prisoner 8086," a story about the unlikely friendship that blossoms between a prison volunteer and a habitual offender, exploring themes of redemption and human connection.
The heart of the book continues with "The Reunion," a touching narrative about high school sweethearts reuniting, stirring up poignant memories and unspoken feelings. "The Therapy Session" adds a lighter touch, presenting a serio-comic exchange between a therapist and a challenging patient. In "The Fishing Trip," a father imparts crucial life lessons to his daughter during an eventful outing, leading to unexpected consequences. "Mortality" offers a deeply personal moment as a mother shares a cherished, secret story from her past with her son.
The collection then takes a romantic turn in "The Singles Cruise," where two individuals find connection amidst shared stories on a cruise for singles. Finally, "Jesus and Buddha in the Garden of Eden" provides a satirical, thought-provoking encounter in the afterlife between two spiritual figures. The book concludes with "The Breakup," a nuanced portrayal of a young couple's separation, told from both perspectives, encapsulating the complexities of relationships and the human experience.
Nine Stories Told Completely in Dialogue is a unique collection of narratives, each unfolding entirely through conversations between its characters. The book opens with "God on a Budget," a tale of a man's surreal nighttime visitation that offers a blend of the mundane and the mystical. In "Doctor in the House," readers are plunged into the emotionally charged moment when an oncologist delivers a life-altering diagnosis to a patient. The collection then shifts to "Prisoner 8086," a story about the unlikely friendship that blossoms between a prison volunteer and a habitual offender, exploring themes of redemption and human connection.
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