"The best book on writing that I have read . . . The tips,
shortcuts, and plentiful examples of good writing versus bad cannot
fail to every writer, no matter at what stage he finds
himself."--Barnaby Conrad, author of "Matador and Learning to Write
Fiction from the Masters"
"Stimulating . . . Offers a banquet of savvy advice. Unlike Anne
Lamott, et al., Stein aims not to help his readers wrestle with
writerly anguish; rather, he gets on the page, citing examples from
writers famous and fledgling, closely analyzing first sentences,
creation of character, plotting, and dialogue . . . Stein
concentrates more on fiction--point of view and the creation of
love scenes--but his advice on such issues as self-editing and
choosing a title applies also to nonfiction. A section on
nonfiction contains worthy remarks about adapting fictional
techniques (suspense, visual particularity, etc.)."--"Publishers
Weekly"
"This book can jump-start anyone''s creativity. Highly recommended
for all writing collections."--"Library Journal"
"My publisher Sol Stein was my producer, and editor Sol Stein was
my director. Stein saw what I didn''t think possible."--Elia Kazan
"[Stein] went over my manuscript with an ifallible eye for the soft
spots in my prose, giving me one of the best editorial readinds
I''ve ever had."--Lionel Trilling