Monthly Archives: June 2023

“When I wrote my book ‘On Writing Well,’ I had a definite model in mind. . . it was Alec Wilder’s book about music.”

Posted on June 30, 2023 by Kate Stover

A veteran of WWII, William Zinsser was one of the first to give American writers advice that might be described as “touchy-feely.” In his classic On Writing Well, he says that he is most “interested in the intangibles that produce … Continue reading →

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“Many years before, Abacus had come to the conclusion that the greatest of heroic stories have the shape of a diamond on its side.”

Posted on June 22, 2023 by Kate Stover

We are 500 pages into the story when this observation about the ideal structure for stories appears: “Beginning at a fine point, the life of the hero expands outward through youth as he begins to establish his strengths and fallibilities, … Continue reading →

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“Twelve years after Robin’s death, no one knew any more about how he had ended up hanged from a tree in his own yard than they had on the day it happened.”

Posted on June 13, 2023 by Kate Stover

Even though I am not normally drawn to murder mysteries, I read this novel because Donna Tartt demonstrates how a writer can successfully break the rules. None of her characters are likeable; instead, they are suffering, or damaged, or limited, … Continue reading →

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