Basic Skills, Genre, and Fiction as Dream
Brief Summary
Gardner sets fiction apart from any other type of writing, he claims it shouldn’t be “mixed with freshman composition.” His thoughts are quite harsh when it comes to learning the basics. His main points are types of fiction writers, realistic and fabulist writers. How writers are influenced and how they produce their work, genre-crossing or elevation of popular culture.
Must master
- grammer
- syntax
- punctuation
- diction
- sentence variety
- paragraph structure
- etc.
An American Rhetoric book by W.W. Watt for composition.
…needs help frequently, it’s a fairly clear sign that he’ll never be a writer.
Gardener does bring up some good ideas that make you think:
“How should he begin fiction?”
“What should he write about, and how can he know when he’s done it well?”
New Genres
- Genre-crossing
- Elevation of popular culture
In any culture certain subjects become classical, repeated by artists after artists. -Gardner
Realistic Writer vs. Fabulist Writer
Realistic Writer
- “write about what you know.”
- includes dialogue
- has setting, events, and characters that could exist outside the book
- argues into acceptance
Fabulist Writer
- events, characters, and settings that are made up
- creates a world
- writes under influence
- persuades to suspend your disbelief
They aren’t that different, both writers have to convince the reader that the story is happening and will move forward, They must first engage the reader, then convince them that this did or could happen.
…the willing suspension of disbelief for the moment, which constitutes poetic faith. – Coleridge
The story becomes a dream for the reader. A key mistake is letting the dream be pulled away by a distraction. The writer must keep the readers attention continuously with vivid details. At times you can break from the dream and insert another thought into the readers head.
Writing Fiction
- you will obsess over your writing, that is okay.
- “student writers never be prevented from working as seriously as he knows how to.”
- start small
- don’t think of it as exercise but something that that could be a work of art
- make essential techniques second nature
- needs some emotion
Personal Connection
I agreed with Gardner especially after he broke down the details in pieces of writing. Fiction is my favorite genre and Gardner is right, if written correctly the story does come to life. There is a certain degree of emotion in the stories we read, and books become objects that flourish that emotion in ourselves. I have an attachment to all my books, because to me each book is a world brought to life by the author.
Questions
- What is your preferred fiction writing, realistic or fabulist? Why? What are the cons and pros?
- Do your favorite books strike emotion in you? Do you think the author felt the same emotion while writing it?
