Thomas Lewis

I consider this book, and Shawn Coyne and his merry band of editors, the most helpful source of instruction regarding how to write fiction, that there is. I was able to write OK, line-by-line, but what I did not understand well was structure and order, which turn out to be exceptionally important, and are what can turn even very good line-by-line writing from something that reads as mediocre into something that reads like a bat out of hell. In other words, while the words, diction, syntax, tone, poetic feel, grammar, punc, and all the basics are absolutely necessary, and even if you handle all of that perfectly, getting the order and the structure right, even if the words remain the same, elevates that same prose an order of magnitude, to a comparatively cosmic level. I was wandering in the wilderness, overwhelmed by not understanding this. Then, I read this book. It started me on a journey of discovery that changed my life, and allowed me to learn how to write, well beyond the line-by-line. This book has the potential to unlock all of that. Start here.