The writing of fiction by Edith Wharton
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"The Writing of Fiction" by Edith Wharton is a guide on the craft of writing fiction, written in the early 20th century. This work explores the fundamentals of storytelling, including character development, narrative structure, and the evolution of the novel as an art form. Through her analysis of historical figures in literature, Wharton aims to illuminate the principles of effective fiction writing and the nuanced role of technique in achieving emotional depth
and realism. The opening of the text sets the stage for a discussion on the nature and evolution of fiction, illustrating how modern novels shifted from external action to exploring the inner lives of characters. Wharton emphasizes the transformative contributions of notable writers like Balzac and Stendhal, who moved away from conventional narrative forms to create complex, relatable characters influenced by their environments. She critiques both the superficial slice-of-life style and the unoriginality in contemporary writing, thereby advocating for a thoughtful, deeper approach to craft that engages both the writer's imagination and their moral reasoning. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
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About this eBook
| Author | Wharton, Edith, 1862-1937 |
|---|---|
| LoC No. | 25021277 |
| Title | The writing of fiction |
| Original Publication | New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1925. |
| Contents | In general -- Telling a short story -- Constructing a novel -- Character and situation in the novel -- Marcel Proust. |
| Credits | Tim Lindell, David E. Brown, Joyce Wilson, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) |
| Reading Level | Reading ease score: 45.4 (College-level). Difficult to read. |
| Language | English |
| LoC Class | PN: Language and Literatures: Literature: General, Criticism, Collections |
| Subject | Fiction -- Technique |
| Subject | Fiction -- Authorship |
| Subject | Creative writing |
| Category | Text |
| eBook-No. | 72446 |
| ISBN (HTML) | 979-8-238-72446-1 |
| Release Date | Dec 17, 2023 |
| Copyright | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 1212 downloads in the last 30 days. |
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