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[Don't] Stop Me if You've Heard This Before: and Other Essays on Writing Fiction
In (Don’t) Stop Me If You’ve Heard This Before , Peter Turchi combines personal narrative and close reading of a wide range of stories and novels to reveal how writers create the fiction that matters to us. Building on his much-loved Maps of the The Writer as Cartographer , Turchi leads readers and writers to an understanding of how the intricate mechanics of storytelling—including shifts in characters’ authority, the subtle manipulation of images, careful attention to point of view, the strategic release of information, and even digressing from the (apparent) story—can create powerful effects.
Using examples from Dickens, Chekhov, and Salinger, and Twain to more contemporary writers including Toni Morrison, Alice Munro, E. L. Doctorow, Jenny Erpenbeck, Adam Johnson, Mohsin Hamid, Jai Chakrabarti, Yoko Ogawa, Richard Powers, Deborah Eisenberg, Olga Tokarczuk, Rachel Cusk, and Colson Whitehead, Turchi offers illuminating insights into the inner workings of fiction as well as practical advice for writers looking to explore their craft from a fresh angle beyond the fundamentals of character and setting, plot, and scene.
While these essays draw from decades of teaching undergraduate and graduate students, they also speak to writers working on their own. In “Out of the Workshop, into the Laboratory,” Turchi discusses how anyone can make the most of discussions of stories or novels in progress, and in “Reading Like a Writer” he provides guidelines for learning from writing you admire. Perhaps best of all, these essays by a writer the Houston Chronicle has called “one of the country’s foremost thinkers on the art of writing” are as entertaining as they are edifying, always reminding us of the power and pleasure of storytelling.
Using examples from Dickens, Chekhov, and Salinger, and Twain to more contemporary writers including Toni Morrison, Alice Munro, E. L. Doctorow, Jenny Erpenbeck, Adam Johnson, Mohsin Hamid, Jai Chakrabarti, Yoko Ogawa, Richard Powers, Deborah Eisenberg, Olga Tokarczuk, Rachel Cusk, and Colson Whitehead, Turchi offers illuminating insights into the inner workings of fiction as well as practical advice for writers looking to explore their craft from a fresh angle beyond the fundamentals of character and setting, plot, and scene.
While these essays draw from decades of teaching undergraduate and graduate students, they also speak to writers working on their own. In “Out of the Workshop, into the Laboratory,” Turchi discusses how anyone can make the most of discussions of stories or novels in progress, and in “Reading Like a Writer” he provides guidelines for learning from writing you admire. Perhaps best of all, these essays by a writer the Houston Chronicle has called “one of the country’s foremost thinkers on the art of writing” are as entertaining as they are edifying, always reminding us of the power and pleasure of storytelling.
- GenresWritingNonfictionCrafts
304 pages, Paperback
Published January 24, 2023
9 people are currently reading
133 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 19, 2023
This was actually really easy for me to read and helpful too! I'm really glad!
June 25, 2023
A bit dense but very interesting, I’ve never read a book that goes so deeply into the idea of narrative before
June 8, 2023
Originally published at myreadinglife.com.
Here is another book on writing from my list. It is somewhat unique in my experience. It doesn't talk generally about the normal aspects of writing, like theme, plot, and characters. It also doesn't discuss the mechanics of writing or publishing, no schedules or how to find an agent. Instead, it gets into the nitty gritty of how to apply specifics using the general tools of creative writing.
As an example, the first chapter gets into how to write more dynamic scenes. The author shows how this is done with examples from published fiction. Then he breaks down how it works. Similarly, in chapter two, he goes into the classic advice "show don't tell" and dismantles it a bit. Sometimes you have to tell. And he shows how to do this well, again, using published examples. What I appreciate most about this writing book is that it is a fantastic combination of writing advice and literary critique, showing how using these together can improve your writing.
The most direct advice and how to are in the appendices. These include direction on how to workshop, how to annotate and read like a writer, and a resource list of other books on writing. If you are serious about creative writing, this might be a really good place to start your self-education.
My rating: 4/5
Here is another book on writing from my list. It is somewhat unique in my experience. It doesn't talk generally about the normal aspects of writing, like theme, plot, and characters. It also doesn't discuss the mechanics of writing or publishing, no schedules or how to find an agent. Instead, it gets into the nitty gritty of how to apply specifics using the general tools of creative writing.
As an example, the first chapter gets into how to write more dynamic scenes. The author shows how this is done with examples from published fiction. Then he breaks down how it works. Similarly, in chapter two, he goes into the classic advice "show don't tell" and dismantles it a bit. Sometimes you have to tell. And he shows how to do this well, again, using published examples. What I appreciate most about this writing book is that it is a fantastic combination of writing advice and literary critique, showing how using these together can improve your writing.
The most direct advice and how to are in the appendices. These include direction on how to workshop, how to annotate and read like a writer, and a resource list of other books on writing. If you are serious about creative writing, this might be a really good place to start your self-education.
My rating: 4/5
January 19, 2024
Good craft book. Nothing felt revolutionary as I read it; everything that was said felt instinctual, something that a good reader or writer invariably knows through the raw exposure to lots of fictious work. However, just because you know it instinctually doesn't mean you KNOW it, or at least doesn't mean you can deploy a craft consideration effectively or with great care and purpose. That's where Turchi's book shines; it puts all the options in front of you, and gives examples of how those options are used in different works. This makes a writers options feel much more tangible, much easier to choose and deploy. Plus, the language is accessible, so it doesn't feel dense and "academic". A worthwhile read for anyone looking to learn writing strategies, get a refresher on craft choices, or for those looking to strengthen their reading skills to identify aspects of craft in story telling.
August 5, 2024
Don't Stop Me if You've Heard This Before: and Other Essays on Writing Fiction is filled with information that I haven’t come across in other books on writing. I found a chapter on motifs to be especially enjoyable and relatable, and two chapters on narrative distance in POV quite literally gave me some new perspectives. Most of the passages that Peter Turchi has selected from literature do a good job of illustrating the points he’s making.
August 13, 2023
I read a lot of books about writing. Many of them make me consider the theories and suggestions in my own writing. Some books feel like pure inspiration. This book is the latter. So much to think about as I craft and revise. I know I can do better, and now I feel as if I have an idea of how to make that happen.
September 3, 2023
Great craft insights here. I especially like the section on annotations. I plan to use the bibliography as a "to read" list, as their are so many I haven't read yet!
February 18, 2025
Strong thoughts on creative writing topics. Turchi adds many examples and the section on annotation is spot on.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews