Novel Ideas: Contemporary Authors Share the Creative Process

by Barbara Shoup, Margaret-Love Denman (Editor)

Novel Ideas provides a substantial introduction to the elements of fiction followed by in-depth interviews with successful novelists who speak with candor and insight into the complex process by which a novel is made. This edition includes new and updated interviews as well as writing exercises to enhance its use in the writing classroom.

Dorothy Allison recalls "deliciously self-indulgent" days of writing in her bathrobe, wrapped in misery and exultation; Peter Cameron explains how he made the move from short fiction to the novel with the aid of a music composer's notebook to track the movement of his characters. Writers as different as Ha Jin, Jill McCorkle, Richard Ford, and Michael Chabon describe their unique approaches to their work while consistently affirming the necessity of committing to the hard effort of it while also remaining open to surprise.

Aspiring novelists will find hands-on strategies for beginning, working through, and revising a novel; accomplished novelists will discover new ways to solve the problems they face in process; and serious readers of contemporary fiction will enjoy a glimpse into the way novels are made.

Includes interviews AllisonLarry BrownPeter CameronMichael ChabonMichael CunninghamRobb Forman DewRichard FordHa JinPatricia HenleyCharles JohnsonWally LambValerie MartinJill McCorkleSena Jeter NaslundLewis NordanSheri ReynoldsS. J. RozanJane SmileyLee SmithTheodore Weesner

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction

344 pages, Paperback

First published March 23, 2001

About the author

Barbara Shoup is the author of eight novels for adults and young adults, most recently An American Tune and Looking for Jack Kerouac, as well as a memoir, A Commotion in Your Heart: Notes about Writing and Life. She is the co-author of Novel Ideas: Contemporary Authors Share the Creative Process and Story Matters., as well as in The Writer and the New York Times travel section. Her young adult novels, Wish You Were Here and Stranded in Harmony were selected as American Library Association Best Books for Young Adults. The recipient of the PEN Phyllis Reynolds Naylor Fellowship and grants from the Indiana Arts Commission, she is the Writer-in-Residence at the Indiana Writers Center and a faculty member at Art Workshop International.

Reviews

[آرمین م.ز · Rating 2 out of 5]

در تاریخ ۱۲ مهر ۱۳۹۸ برای بار دوم کتاب را نیمه‌تمام رها کردم و امتیازم ۲ ستاره‌ است.
چندین سال پیش که کتاب را شروع کردم پس از صد صفحه دیگر ادامه ندادم.
امروز که تا حدی سواد داستان‌نویسیم اندکی از گذشته بیشتر است دوباره قصد به خواندش کردم و تا صفحه‌ی ۲۶۰ دوام اوردم و بعد کتاب را کنار گذاشتم.
کتاب تا زمانی‌که به گفتگو با نویسندگان برسد نکات جذابی ارائه می‌دهد اما پس از آن بیشتر یک پرسش و پاسخ در مورد آثار و زندگی شخصی نویسندگان مختلف است تا اندیشه‌های نو در رمان‌نویسی!!
البته نکات مهم و ایده‌های جالبی را می‌شود در این گفتگوها پیدا کرد اما خیلی کم.‌
اگر به زندگی شخصی نویسندگان و چگونگی بدست اوردن ایده‌های‌شان علاقه دارید کتاب را بخوانید اما اگر به دنبال یادگیری بیشتر هستید کتاب‌های خیلی بهتری برای خواندن وجود دارد.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite books on writing because it illustrates, through interviews with different authors, the following: everyone approaches writing differently; everyone has a different regiment of when, how and how often they write; and, as long as you love your craft and work hard, you will write good things.

Okay, it doesn't directly say the third thing. But, it's the feeling I got while reading this book.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most of the book (250 out of 300 pages) comprises a couple of dozen Q & A sessions with noted authors; the questions are well thought out, prompting equally useful replies for aspiring writers. Highly recommended.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Novel Ideas is meant to be a source of information, advice, and reassurance in your own efforts to [bring your novel to life].” For me, it has succeeded. It is composed largely of full interviews with twenty contemporary authors, which is tedious to consume all at once, but the opening chapters do a great job of distilling their wisdom. The authors also include a chapter on the elements of fiction: the most succinct and useful version of this information I have ever read. The interviews themselves were packed with useful insights, and - even more valuable - the clear message that every writer has found their own unique approach. There is no formula for writing a good novel, but at least one of these celebrated authors will probably have something to say that will help with your own process.

My favorite part, though, was from Shoup and Denman themselves: “[Y]ou have to grab your reader by the lapels and say, 'I must tell you this story, or I will die!'”

[Sherry · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an excellent read. If you are an avid reader and have always wondered about the writing process you can learn from the best. This book interviews 23 authors of our time about technique, inspiration and living the life of an author. It was great fun to read an inspirational to a would-be author.

[Skye · Rating 4 out of 5]

encouraging