Index• A •abused child, 59accent, 80–81accuracy, 275acronym, 236act, in play, 127, 129action

character creation, 62screenplays, 213thrillers, 177

active tense, 235actor, 198, 199, 202adaptation, 210–211adjective

defined, 22descriptions, 99, 102, 107editing process, 146–147news writing, 236strong verbs, 22

Adler, Alfred (psychiatrist), 60adult education course, 314–315advance copy, 301advance information sheet, 301advance, on royalties, 295adventure story

children’s books, 191narrative non-fiction, 269plot types, 110plotting methods, 123thrillers, 178travel writing, 279

adverbdefined, 22dialogue, 75editing process, 146–147strong verbs, 22

advertising, 216, 297Affinity (Waters), 81Aga saga, 174agent

publishing process, 294, 302–306tips for getting noticed, 320, 334, 335

Alain-Fournier (Le Grand Meaulnes), 110alien encounter novel, 180

allegory, 225alliteration, 25, 186, 226alternative history novel, 180Amis, Martin (Time’s Arrow), 138anapest, 222And When Did You Last See Your Father?

(Morrison), 265Anderson, Sherwood (Winesburg, Ohio), 139anecdote, 155Angela’s Ashes (McCourt), 265, 269Angelou, Maya (I Know Why the Caged Bird

Sings), 345anima, 68Animal Farm (Orwell), 167animated writing, 187animus, 68Anna Karenina (Tolstoy), 100, 124, 210antagonist, 57, 64, 114anthology, 159, 164, 322anthropomorphic character, 189anti-hero, 58, 64apostrophe, 145archetype, 67–69archive collection, 258, 259archived blog, 283argument, 78Arnold, Matthew (‘Dover Beach’), 100art department, 296–297art exhibition, 36Arthurian legend, 192artist, 16, 24Asham Award, 162assonance, 225Atwood, Margaret (The Blind Assassin), 140audience

beginning writers, 13, 19–20blogs, 288children’s books, 184–192defined, 9narrative non-fiction, 264performance poetry, 228

Austen, JaneEmma, 107, 134, 340point of view, 90Pride and Prejudice, 110, 123

bindex.indd 347 23/12/13 9:22 AM

COPYRIG

HTED M

ATERIAL

348 Creative Writing For Dummies

Auster, Paul (Hand to Mouth), 252autobiographical novel, 251, 253autobiography

basis for characters, 58versus biography, 254–255defined, 246described, 245to fiction, 53forms of, 247–253history of, 247legal issues, 251narrative non-fiction, 269point of view, 83recommended reading, 345structure, 261writing ideas, 246

• B •backing up work, 39backlist title, 11backstory, 149–150backwards writing, 137–138Bad Faith: A Story of Family and Fatherland

(Callil), 255–256Baker, Nicholson (Vox), 182ballad, 226BBC

Archive, 217National Short Story Award, 162Radio 4, 166, 203

Beckett, Samuelaccomplishments, 196Molloy, Malone Dies, 172The Unnamable, 172

beginning, story, 129–134, 163beginning writer

audience, 13, 19–20common pitfalls, 15–18criticism from others, 19first draft, 142form of writing, 12–13inner critic, 16–17length of writing, 13motivation to write, 19–20plays, 204–205plotting method, 114tips for success, 19–21, 327–331writing exercises/classes, 23–24

Behn, Aphra (dramatist), 200

The Bell Jar (Plath), 265Beloved (Morrison), 140Berendt, John (Midnight in the Garden of Good

and Evil), 265Betrayal (Pinter), 138Bible story, 24, 25Billy Budd (Melville), 167binder, 38biography

versus autobiography, 254–255basis for characters, 58choice of subject, 255–256described, 245, 253history of, 254narrative non-fiction, 269research, 256–260structure, 261time frame, 137types of, 260writing tips, 253

Birley, Shane (Blogging For Dummies), 286birth order, 60Bitter Lemons of Cyprus (Durrell), 278black box theatre, 202blank page syndrome, 33–35blank verse, 227The Blind Assassin (Atwood), 140blog, 274, 281–288Blogging For Dummies (Gardner and Birley),

286Blonde (Oates), 269The Bluest Eye (Morrison), 110blurb, 301Boccaccio, Giovanni (The Decameron), 158body, of character, 61, 75–76The Bonfire of the Vanities (Wolfe), 118Bonjour Tristesse (Sagan), 167book fair, 318book jacket, 301Booker, Christopher (Seven Basic Plots:

Why We Tell Stories), 109The Bookseller (magazine), 321bookshop

discounts, 299independent, 300readings and launches, 320–321, 336self-publishing process, 309

Borges, LuisDeath and the Compass, 102‘The Secret Miracle,’ 159

bindex.indd 348 23/12/13 9:22 AM

349349 Index

Bradbury, Malcolm (The History Man), 93Bradley, Marion Zimmer (Mists of Avalon),

192Brecht, Bertolt (playwright), 196The Bridge of San Luis Rey (Wilder), 139Bridget Jones’s Diary (Fielding), 110Bridport Prize, 162Brighton Rock (Greene), 105, 131‘Brokeback Mountain’ (Proulx), 159Brontë, Charlotte (Jane Eyre), 110, 137Brontë, Emily (Wuthering Heights), 140Brookner, Anita (Hotel du Lac), 167Bruntwood Playwriting Competition, 204Bryson, Bill (Notes from a Small Island), 279Buddhist mindfulness, 328Bulgakov, Mikhail (The White Guard), 102Burroughs, William S. (Naked Lunch), 172business card, 337Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

(Goldman), 342

• C •caesura, 223café, 30Call It Sleep (Roth), 36Callil, Carmen (Bad Faith: A Story of Family

and Fatherland), 255–256Calvino, Italo (If on a winter’s night a

traveller), 139The Canterbury Tales (Chaucer), 158Capote, Truman (In Cold Blood),

264, 265, 272, 344Carver, Raymond (‘Little Things’), 159Catcher in the Rye (Salinger), 110, 131celebrity biography, 260certificate course, 315–317Chang, Jung (Wild Swans), 269chaos, 39–41chap-book, 229chapter, book, 127, 128, 305character. See also specific types

archetypes, 68–69bad endings, 136basis of, 58big theme stories, 118children’s books, 187, 189, 190creation, 59–63defined, 57description of objects, 98

dialogue writing, 73–74editing process, 147first draft, 143friends of, 64indirect reveal, 63–67motivation to write, 11name of, 65–66novellas, 167, 168opening line, 131personality, 60–67, 68–69plot elements, 114, 115–117plot types, 110–111plotting method, 112romantic fiction, 173screenplays, 210–211, 213short story structure, 159, 161stereotypes, 67–68three-act structure, 129, 130, 132–133types of, 57–58

Chatwin, Bruce (In Patagonia), 279, 344Chaucer, Geoffrey (The Canterbury Tales), 158Checkhov, Anton (‘Ward No. Six’), 159chick lit, 174A Child Called It (Pelzer), 248childhood

character details, 59memoirs, 248memories, 44–46, 246motivation sources, 117

Childhood, Boyhood, Youth (Gorky), 252children’s book

age groups, 184–192comic books, 192–193ease of writing, 183–184non-fiction, 193originality, 183retellings, 192

Christie, Agatha (The Mousetrap), 200Cinderella story, 110circle, writing, 311–312circular narrative, 140The Citadel (Cronin), 111Clarke, Arthur C.

prophetic works, 179‘The Star,’ 159

class, writing, 23, 242, 229, 312–317cliché, 23, 97, 224cliffhanger, 128climax, 115, 119–121, 134, 136close up, 214

bindex.indd 349 23/12/13 9:22 AM

350 Creative Writing For Dummies

close writing, 90clothing, 31, 277clue, 98coincidence, 118–119, 147–148Cold Mountain (Frazier), 102collection, short-story, 159, 168collective unconscious, 68colon, 82column, 239–240comedy, 110, 209comic book, 192–193commercial fiction, 172–182commissioned writer, 238commissioning editor, 294, 296, 335common name, 65community research, 258–259competition, writing

described, 323novels, 170plays, 204poetry, 229short stories, 162–164

computerediting process, 143, 148organisation tips, 38–39poetry writing, 220screenplay format, 212spell checker, 145typing versus longhand, 142writing equipment, 32

A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers (Guo), 86

conclusion, 12, 130–136, 173, 189A Confederacy of Dunces (Toole), 324confidentiality, 312conflict

descriptions, 107good dialogue, 72, 77, 79plays, 197plot elements, 114, 120romantic fiction, 174three-act structure, 129, 132–133types of, 120

Connolly, Cyril (writer), 19Conrad, Joseph

Heart of Darkness, 140, 167Under Western Eyes, 138

conscious plotter, 112–114consultancy, editing, 307continuity error, 143

contract, with publisher, 300conversation. See dialoguecoping skills, 187copy-editor, 296, 301copyright page, 293core stock, 297corner, writing, 29Cortázar, Julio (Hopscotch), 139cosmic conflict, 120Cosy mystery, 175Counter-Clock World (Dick), 138couplet, 223cover, of book, 301covering letter, 305–306creativity, 10–12, 16–17, 29Crime and Punishment (Dostoevsky), 111crime writing, 174–176, 177, 272critique, writing

beginning writers, 19editorial consultancy, 307inner critic, 16–17, 141trusted readers, 150–151writing circles, 312writing classes, 313–314

Cronin, A. J. (The Citadel), 111crossover fiction, 191culture, 66, 69The Curious Incident of the Dog in the

Night-time (Haddon), 86cutting/pasting function, 148, 149cyberpunk, 180

• D •dactyl, 222Dahl, Roald (‘Lamb to the Slaughter’), 159Dalrymple, William (From the Holy Mountain),

278–279A Dance to the Music of Time (Powell), 92dash, 82David Copperfield (Dickens), 137De Beauvoir, Simone (Memoirs of a Dutiful

Daughter), 252De Maupassant, Guy (‘The Necklace’), 159‘The Dead’ (Joyce), 159dead metaphor, 103, 224Death and the Compass (Borges), 102Death in Venice (Mann), 167The Decameron (Boccaccio), 158deduction, 63

bindex.indd 350 23/12/13 9:22 AM

351351 Index

defamiliarisation, 102defaming others, 46–47Defonseca, Misha (Surviving with Wolves), 270Demidenko, Helen (The Hand That Signed the

Paper), 270description. See also detail

authenticity, 100–101common pitfalls, 97conflict, 107critical reading, 15editing process, 149function of, 98, 100importance of, 97mood and suspense, 107narrative non-fiction, 267overuse of, 99, 102sensory, 101–103short stories, 157tools of, 103–105travel writing, 275, 277writing ideas, 12

desk editor, 296desk, writing, 28–30, 32desktop blogging application, 286detached observer, 92–93detail. See also description

character creation, 59–60editing process, 147personal experiences, 51–52setting descriptions, 105–106top writing tips, 328–329

detective story, 159, 160, 174–176dialect, 80–81dialogue

accents and dialects, 80–81character creation, 62–63coincidences, 119common pitfalls, 77conflict, 120defined, 71distinct voices, 73–74essential elements, 72, 77importance of, 71length, 77–78narrative non-fiction, 267–268plays, 197–198, 200punctuation, 81–82real-life conversations, 71–72, 73screenplays, 210, 213setting, 78

subtext of conversation, 78–79varied situations, 74–77viewpoint effects, 86

diaryautobiographical forms, 248–250blogs, 282character’s emotions, 62history of autobiographies, 247recommended reading, 343story within a story, 139–140writing ideas, 45

The Diary of Anaïs Nin (Nin), 343Dick, Philip K. (Counter-Clock World), 138Dickens, Charles

character names, 66David Copperfield, 137Great Expectations, 110, 125

dictionary, 22, 31, 34, 258Didion, Joan (Salvador), 265dimeter, 223Dinesen, Isak (Out of Africa), 279Dirty Weekend (Zahavi), 182disaster thriller, 177discounted book, 299Dispatches (Herr), 265dissonance, 226distributor, 298doctor, script, 209docudrama, 264documentary drama, 264Dorling Kindersley (DK) (publisher), 193Dostoevsky, Fyodor

Crime and Punishment, 111The Idiot, 41–42

double inverted comma, 81–82‘Dover Beach’ (Arnold), 100Doyle, Roddy (Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha), 82Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan (writer), 75, 158drafting, 20, 36–37, 141–143drama. See also play

comedies, 110defined, 195script formatting, 200–201stereotypes, 68structure, 127, 129–136uniqueness of, 195women writers, 200writer’s resources, 204–205

dramatised documentary, 264dramaturge, 199

bindex.indd 351 23/12/13 9:22 AM

352 Creative Writing For Dummies

dream, 105, 124, 135, 246Dreams From My Father (Obama), 252, 269Dubliners (Joyce), 136, 339–340Dulce et Decorum Est (Owen), 41Dunmore, Helen (Your Blue-Eyed Boy), 138Durrell, Lawrence (Bitter Lemons of Cyprus),

278

• E •East of Eden (Steinbeck), 25Eats, Shoots and Leaves (Truss), 31eco thriller, 177editing

blogs, 283defined, 36versus drafting, 36–37narrative non-fiction, 267poetry, 220process, 143–150publishing stages, 300–301, 306–307reference books, 31tips for getting noticed, 334–335

editorial staff, 296ego, 21, 69electronic print-on-demand service, 310email, 32, 304embargoed information, 237Emma (Austen), 107, 134, 340emotion

blank page syndrome, 34character creation, 62, 64descriptive writing, 102importance of, 48overuse in writing, 48point of view, 84–87, 90–91, 94social conditioning, 67writing ideas, 46, 48–50, 161

The End of the Affair (Greene), 130end rhyme, 221ending, of story, 12, 130–136, 173, 189Enduring Love (McEwan), 148The English Patient (Ondaatje), 101enjambment, 223envoi, 227epic theatre, 196epiphany, 156episodic writing, 139Ericsson, Anders (researcher), 14erotic story, 160, 181–182escapism, 191

essay, 270Etsujin (poet), 226An Evil Cradling (Keenan), 252evil, triumph over, 110The Executioner’s Song (Mailer), 272experience, writing from, 43–47, 49–53experimental novel, 139, 172eye rhyme, 221

• F •fable, 155faction. See narrative non-fictionfailure, fear of, 34, 331–332fairy story, 50–51, 155, 162The Fall of Saigon (Fenton), 271false memory, 46fame, 10–11family

biographies, 255, 257character details, 59character’s name, 66social conditioning, 67tips for getting noticed, 334writing ideas, 45, 246

fantasy, 53, 105–106, 179–181‘Far North’ (Maitland), 159fatal flaw, 111Father and Son (Gosse), 252fear, 34, 331–332feature writing, 238feed, 287Feifer, George (The Girl from Petrovka), 120Fenton, James (The Fall of Saigon), 271festival, literary, 319–320, 336fiction, 50–53, 83. See also specific elements

and types of fictionFielding, Helen (Bridget Jones’s Diary), 110film

famous names, 65foreshadowing, 124inciting incident, 132parallels with literature, 25plot types, 110point of view, 96reviews, 239screenplays, 207–215stereotypes, 68structure, 129

Fingersmith (Waters), 81Finnegans Wake (Joyce), 172

bindex.indd 352 23/12/13 9:22 AM

353353 Index

first child, 60first draft, 141–143, 220first-person voice, 84–90, 95first-third voice, 90Fish Publishing, 163, 166Fitzgerald, F. Scott (The Great Gatsby), 92flash fiction, 155flashback, 98, 137foot, poetic, 223forced writing, 35foreign name, 66foreign rights, 298forensics, 176foreshadowing, 123–124form, of writing, 12–13formal speech, 74Fowler’s Modern English Usage (reference

book), 31Fowles, John (The French Lieutenant’s

Woman), 135Fragments: Memories of a Wartime Childhood

(Wilkomirski), 270frame narrator, 140frame story, 158Fraser, Antonia (writer), 259Frazier, Charles (Cold Mountain), 102free indirect style, 90free verse, 223, 228freewriting, 34The French Lieutenant’s Woman (Fowles), 135Frey, James (A Million Little Pieces), 270friend, character’s, 64, 257friend, writer’s

blog publicity, 287–288tips for getting noticed, 334writing buddy, 36writing distractions, 32writing ideas, 44–47

From Bauhaus to Our House (Wolfe), 270From the Holy Mountain (Dalrymple), 278–279front list, 293Full Tilt: Ireland to India with a Bicycle

(Murphy), 280full-length play, 200

• G •Galileo’s Daughter (Sobel), 271‘The Garden Party’ (Mansfield), 159garden shed, 28–29

Gardner, John (October Light), 140Gardner, Susannah (Blogging For Dummies),

286genre novel, 109ghazal, 226ghost story, 160ghostwriter, 247The Girl from Petrovka (Feifer), 120The Go-Between (Hartley), 131, 259The God of Small Things (Roy), 138going into character, 90Goldman, William (Butch Cassidy and the

Sundance Kid), 342Gone with the Wind (Mitchell), 136Gorky, Maxim (Childhood, Boyhood, Youth),

252Gosse, Edmund (Father and Son), 252Graham, Martha (dancer), 12grammar, 31, 145–146, 235–236Grant, Linda (Remind Me Who I Am, Again),

265graphics, 284Great Expectations (Dickens), 110, 125The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald), 92The Great Railway Bazaar (Theroux), 279Greek drama, 68, 196Greene, Graham

Brighton Rock, 105, 131The End of the Affair, 130The Quiet American, 35Stamboul Train, 66

Guo, Xiaolu (A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers), 86

Guy Domville (James), 195

• H •Haddon, Mark (The Curious Incident of the

Dog in the Night-time), 86haiku, 226Hamlet (Shakespeare), 25, 117, 132, 341The Hand That Signed the Paper (Demidenko),

270Hand to Mouth (Auster), 252Happenstance (Shields), 128happy ending, 134–135, 189hard science fiction, 179Harlequin (publisher), 173Harrer, Heinrich (Seven Years in Tibet), 279Harry Potter series (Rowling), 25, 30

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354 Creative Writing For Dummies

Hartley, L. P. (The Go-Between), 131, 259hatred, 64Heart of Darkness (Conrad), 140, 167heater, 31Hemingway, Ernest (The Old Man and the

Sea), 167hero/heroine. See protagonistHerr, Michael (Dispatches), 265Hersey, John (Hiroshima), 265hexameter, 223Hey Yeah Right Get a Life (Simpson), 161high-tech thriller, 116Hiroshima (Hersey), 265His Dark Materials trilogy (Pullman), 41historical biography, 256, 260, 261historical crime novel, 175historical romance, 174history

autobiographies, 247biographies, 254character details, 59character’s motivation, 117dialogue, 81literary novels, 170narrative non-fiction, 264, 270–271plays, 196point of view, 93–94science fiction categories, 180short stories, 158teenage life, 191

The History Man (Bradbury), 93Hitchcock, Alfred (film director), 51The Hobbit (Tolkien), 10Hoffman, Eva (Lost in Translation), 252Holes (Sachar), 137holiday, writing, 317–318Holidays in Hell (O’Rourke), 279Holmesian deduction, 63Holocaust memoir, 270homophone, 145hooking readers, 121–125, 130Hopkins, Anthony (actor), 120Hopkins, Gerard Manley (poet), 59Hopscotch (Cortázar), 139Horrible series (Scholastic), 193horror fiction, 181hosted website, 285Hotel du Lac (Brookner), 167house style, 301Howard, Elizabeth Jane (The Long View), 138

Howarth, Stuart (Please, Daddy, No), 248Howitt, Peter (Sliding Doors), 135humorous story, 160Husain, Ed (The Islamist), 265

• I •I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (Angelou),

345iamb, 222, 223, 227idea, writing

autobiographies, 246biographies, 255emotions, 46, 48–50everyday situations, 12imagination, 9, 10, 18length of project, 40mistakes, 18notebooks, 31, 38personal experiences, 43–47, 49–50plays, 197relaxation, 18short stories, 161–162

The Idiot (Dostoevsky), 41–42If on a winter’s night a traveller (Calvino), 139If This is a Man (Levi), 252illustration, 186, 188, 296–297imagery, 224–225imagination, 9, 10, 18, 190imitating other writers, 24–26immigration information, 259imprint, 292–293In Cold Blood (Capote), 264, 265, 272, 344In Patagonia (Chatwin), 279, 344inciting incident, 132income, writer’s, 10–, 229, 238, 295independent bookshop, 300independent film, 210inner conflict, 120, 197inner critic, 16–17, 141inspiration to write, 10–12, 35, 38inspirational memoir, 248An Instance of the Fingerpost (Pears), 128interior consciousness, 92internal rhyme, 221intertextuality, 25interview, 240–241, 257in-the-round theatre, 202Into Thin Air (Krakauer), 265inverted comma, 81–82

bindex.indd 354 23/12/13 9:22 AM

355355 Index

Ionesco, Eugène (playwright), 196Ishiguro, Kazuo (The Remains of the Day),

340–341The Islamist (Husain), 265

• J •James, Henry

Guy Domville, 195point of view, 92The Turn of the Screw, 167The Wings of the Dove, 136

Jane Eyre (Brontë), 110, 137jargon, 235Jesus of Montreal (film), 25job, 27, 284, 288Jones, Margaret B. (Love and Consequences),

270journal, 248–250, 343journalism. See also newspaper

article writing, 234–237blogs, 282, 283described, 233feature writing, 238first published piece, 321–322literary, 271news and features, 234–237radio and television, 242–244travel writing, 271, 273–280

journey tale, 110Joyce, James

‘The Dead,’ 159Dubliners, 136, 339–340Finnegans Wake, 172short stories, 156stream of consciousness, 92Ulysses, 25, 137

Jung, CarlMan and His Symbols, 104, 105psychoanalysis, 68–69

• K •Kafka, Franz (The Metamorphosis), 167Kane, Sarah (playwright), 200Kapuscinski, Ryszard (The Soccer War), 271Keenan, Brian (An Evil Cradling), 252keyword, 282King Lear (Shakespeare), 25, 135

knowledge, lack of, 39–40Kosinski, Jerzy (The Painted Bird), 270Krakauer, John (Into Thin Air), 265Kurosawa, Akira (film-maker), 96

• L •Lady Chatterley’s Lover (Lawrence), 181–182‘Lamb to the Slaughter’ (Dahl), 159language

children’s books, 184–187editing process, 144–149plays, 197–198poetry, 223–226word play, 21–26

launch party, 301–302, 320Lawrence, D. H. (Lady Chatterley’s Lover),

181–182lawsuit, 46–47, 66Le Carré, John

The Russia House, 81thriller genre, 178

Le Grand Meaulnes (Alain-Fournier), 110legal issues

agents, 303autobiographies, 251biographies, 257contracts with publishers, 300film options, 211interviews, 240, 257libel, 44–47, 66, 251

legal thriller, 177Lem, Stanislaw (Solaris), 106length, of writing

beginning writers, 13competition rules, 323dialogue, 77–78editing process, 149news feature, 238novellas, 168novels, 169short stories, 155structure, 137

Lenkiewicz, Rebecca (playwright), 200letter

acceptance of manuscript, 300autobiographies, 248–249published, 321–322submission to agent, 305–306

Levi, Primo (If This is a Man), 252

bindex.indd 355 23/12/13 9:22 AM

356 Creative Writing For Dummies

Levy, Andrea (Small Island), 80libel, 46–47, 66, 251library

biographical research, 253, 258, 259self-publishing process, 309writing room, 30

life article, 322limerick, 226limited point of view, 83–85, 87linear narrative, 137listening, 25–26, 72, 203, 240lit lite, 172literary and arts biography, 260literary festival, 319–320, 336literary journalism, 271literary magazine, 164, 321, 322literary novel, 169–171literary story, 160‘Little Things’ (Carver), 159logical thinking, 17logline, 207Lolita (Nabokov), 25, 26London Book Fair, 318The Long View (Howard), 138longhand, 142, 220Longitude (Sobel), 270–271The Lord of the Rings (Tolkien),

10, 106, 134, 136Lost in Translation (Hoffman), 252The Lost World of the Kalahari (Van der Post),

278Love and Consequences (Jones), 270

• M •MA writing course, 315–317MacLean, Rory (Stalin’s Nose), 279magazine

literary, 164, 321, 322poetry, 229short stories, 158, 164, 165travel writing, 274

Mailer, Norman (The Executioner’s Song), 272main character. See charactermainstream publishing, 292–293, 294–295Maitland, Sara (‘Far North’), 159Man and His Symbols (Jung), 104, 105manga-style book, 193Mann, Thomas (Death in Venice), 167mannerism, 73, 77

Mansfield, Katherine (‘The Garden Party’), 159

map, 105margin, 200, 212, 216market research, 184, 216, 241marketing staff, 294, 297Markson, David (This Is Not a Novel), 172The Matrix (film), 25Matthiessen, Peter (The Snow Leopard), 278Maugham, Somerset (The Razor’s Edge), 92Mayle, Peter (A Year in Provence), 279, 280McCarthy, Mary (Memories of a Catholic

Girlhood), 252McCourt, Frank (Angela’s Ashes), 265, 269McEwan, Ian

Enduring Love, 148Saturday, 101

medical narrative non-fiction, 271medical thriller, 178medical treatment, 100–101meditation, 17, 36Melville, Herman (Billy Budd), 167memoir, 137, 247–248, 250, 252Memoirs of a Dutiful Daughter (De Beauvoir),

252Memories of a Catholic Girlhood (McCarthy),

252memory, personal, 44–50, 246men, 68Merton, Thomas (The Seven Storey

Mountain), 252The Metamorphosis (Kafka), 167metaphor

described, 103–104literary novels, 171overuse, 104poetry, 224–225short stories, 157

metonymy, 225metre, 185, 222–223middle child, 60middle, of story, 130, 132–133Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

(Berendt), 265military science fiction, 180A Million Little Pieces (Frey), 270Mills and Boon (publisher), 175minor character, 58misery memoir, 248

bindex.indd 356 23/12/13 9:22 AM

357357 Index

Mistry, Rohinton (Tales From Firozsha Baag), 139

Mists of Avalon (Bradley), 192Mitchell, Margaret (Gone with the Wind), 136mixed feet, 223mobile phone, 72, 76modesty, 336Molloy, Malone Dies (Beckett), 172monologue, 198montage, 214mood, 107morality tale, 53Morrison, Blake (And When Did You Last See

Your Father?), 265Morrison, Toni

Beloved, 140The Bluest Eye, 110

motivationof characters, 114, 116–118, 173to write, 10–12, 19–20

The Mousetrap (Christie), 200Mrs Dalloway (Woolf), 89, 137Mslexia (magazine), 163multiple endings, 135Murphy, Dervla (Full Tilt: Ireland to India with

a Bicycle), 280museum, 259music, 36, 204musician, 14Myerson, Julie (writer), 251mystery, 98, 159, 175myth, 50–51, 110, 155, 162

• N •Nabokov, Vladimir (Lolita), 25, 26Naked Lunch (Burroughs), 172name, character’s, 65–66, 77, 82narrative non-fiction, 263–272, 344narrator. See also point of view

multiple perspectives, 95–96style selection, 88–95types of viewpoints, 83–88

‘The Necklace’ (De Maupassant), 159negative thinking, 17networking, 337new wave fiction, 180Newby, Eric (A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush),

278

newspaper. See also journalismbiography resources, 258blank page exercise, 35classic plots, 111columns, 239–240interviews, 240–241pitch, 241–242press release, 237–238reviews, 239source of writing ideas, 12, 161study of, 15

Nicholls, Charles (The Reckoning), 271Niffenegger, Audrey (The Time Traveler’s

Wife), 110Nin, Anaïs (The Diary of Anaïs Nin), 3431984 (Orwell), 136non-fiction, 111, 131, 193. See also specific

typesnotebook, 31, 32, 37–38, 277Notes from a Small Island (Bryson), 279novel

autobiographical, 251, 253commercial fiction, 172–182defined, 169editing process, 143experimental fiction, 172importance of, 169literary fiction, 169–171recommended reading, 340–341versus short story, 156source of, 53structure, 127, 129–139

novella, 156, 167–168nursery rhyme, 186

• O •Oates, Joyce Carol

Blonde, 269Rape: A Love Story, 167

Obama, Barack (Dreams From My Father), 252, 269

observing, 60, 330octave, 223octet, 223October Light (Gardner), 140ode, 226offending others, 46off-screen action, 214The Old Man and the Sea (Hemingway), 167

bindex.indd 357 23/12/13 9:22 AM

358 Creative Writing For Dummies

omniscient point of viewbenefits and drawbacks of, 87defined, 83example of, 84–85foreshadowing, 123style techniques, 92–94

on spec, writing, 209, 238Ondaatje, Michael (The English Patient), 101one-act play, 199only children, 60onomatopoeia, 186open ending, 135opening line, 131–132, 163organised routine, 37–39O’Rourke, P. J. (Holidays in Hell), 279Orwell, George

1984, 136Animal Farm, 167

Out of Africa (Dinesen), 279outdoor writing, 32, 36outline, 112–113, 193Owen, Wilfred (Dulce et Decorum Est), 41Oxford Book of English Verse (anthology), 342Oxford Book of Twentieth Century English

Verse (anthology), 343oxymoron, 225

• P •package, radio, 243Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha (Doyle), 82page numbering, 212The Painted Bird (Kosinski), 270Palliser, Charles (The Quincunx), 128parable, 155, 160parenthetical, 213Parker, Dorothy (‘A Telephone Call’), 159partial rhyme, 221past tense, 23pasting text, 148, 149pathetic fallacy, 107Pears, Iain (An Instance of the Fingerpost), 128Pelzer, Dave (A Child Called It), 248pentameter, 223, 227perfect character, 61perfect rhyme, 221perfectionism, 33, 334–335performance poetry, 228Persona archetype, 69personal conflict, 120

personal detail, 59, 63–64personality, of character, 60–69personification, 225philosophical statement, 131The Philosophy of Composition (Poe), 156phone, 32, 72, 76photograph

character’s physical features, 61motivation to write, 12writing ideas, 45, 161, 246

picture book, 186pinging, 287Pinter, Harold

Betrayal, 138dialogue, 79

‘The Pit and the Pendulum’ (Poe), 159pitch, 207, 241–242, 333plagiarism, 24–25platform, blogging, 285Plath, Sylvia (The Bell Jar), 265play. See also drama

competitions, 204inciting incident, 132plotting method, 113publishing process, 199punctuation, 82radio, 202–204recommended reading, 341reviews, 239theatre venue, 202types of, 199–200writing ideas, 18writing process, 198–199

Playwrights’ Studio (writer’s resource), 205Please, Daddy, No (Howarth), 248plot

commercial novels, 172common pitfalls, 112–113described, 109editing process, 147essential elements, 114–121first draft, 142foreshadowing, 123–124hooks for readers, 121–125object descriptions, 98sudden surprises, 124–125suspense, 120, 122–123techniques, 112–114types of, 109–112wheel, 133

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359359 Index

podcast, 243Poe, Edgar Allan

The Philosophy of Composition, 156‘The Pit and the Pendulum,’ 159

poetryaloud, reading, 25children’s book, 185competitions, 229described, 219editing process, 144, 220forms of, 226–228importance of, 221language, 100, 223–226main elements, 220–224performance, 228versus prose, 12–13publishing options, 229recommended reading, 342–343structure, 127, 129symbols, 104word choice, 220writer’s resources, 229writing ideas, 219–220

point of view. See also narratorchange of, 85, 90–92closeness with character, 94–95distance from personal experience, 49, 50importance of, 83romantic fiction, 173screenplays, 214selection, 88–91, 92–95short story structure, 159

Polgar, Alfred (writer), 30police procedural novel, 176pornography, 182, 248positive thinking, 17, 338post, blog, 282–284post-apocalyptic fiction, 179Powell, Anthony (A Dance to the Music

of Time), 92practice, writing, 9, 14present tense, 23press guide, 309press release, 237–238Pride and Prejudice (Austen), 110, 123primary source, 258print run, 294–295, 299printing on demand, 310private eye novel, 175private writing course, 317

procrastination, 33production staff, 297professional organisation, 259pronoun, 83, 84, 87–88pronunciation, 80, 221proscenium theatre, 202prose, 12–13prose poem, 157, 227protagonist

character creation, 64children’s books, 190defined, 57fatal flaw, 111plot, 110, 114romantic fiction, 173

Proulx, Annie (‘Brokeback Mountain’), 159psychological crime novel, 176psychological thriller, 178publicity, 287–288, 296, 309publishing

acceptance process, 299–302agents, 294, 302–306blogs to books, 288bookshop events, 320–321chance of getting published, 291children’s non-fiction, 193costs, 298–299, 310crime/detective stories, 175departments, 296–298divisions of, 292–293effect on creativity, 10experimental fiction, 172first published piece, 321–322manuscript preparation, 306–307manuscript selection, 294–296new writers, 19novellas, 168plays, 199poetry, 229as rationale for writing, 10–11rejection, 331–332romantic fiction, 173self-publishing, 229, 307–310short stories, 158, 164–166tips for getting noticed, 333–338

Pudd’nhead Wilson (Twain), 80Pullman, Philip (His Dark Materials

trilogy), 41pulp fiction, 178pun, 225

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360 Creative Writing For Dummies

punctuation, 81–82, 145, 283Pushkin’s Button (Vitale), 271‘The Pylons’ (Spender), 100pyrrhic foot, 222

• Q •quatrain, 223quest story, 110question, narrative, 114, 129, 268The Quiet American (Greene), 35The Quincunx (Palliser), 128quintrain, 223quotation, 31, 235quote mark, 81–82

• R •radio, 166, 202–204, 242–243rags to riches story, 110, 111random word exercise, 34Rape: A Love Story (Oates), 167Rashomon (film), 96The Razor’s Edge (Maugham), 92reaction shot, 213readability, 147reader, 150–151, 295reading

bookshop events, 320–321children’s reading habits, 192dialogue writing, 73to improve writing, 2, 15, 25–26school books, 187top writing tips, 329–330

Real Simple Syndication (RSS) feed, 287rebirth, story of, 110–111The Reckoning (Nicholls), 271redemption story, 110reference book, 31rejection, 331–332, 337religious story, 24, 25, 110relocation book, 280remaindering, 300The Remains of the Day (Ishiguro), 340–341Remind Me Who I Am, Again (Grant), 265repetition, 186, 222, 226reportage, 271, 280research

biography, 253, 256–260children’s books, 184, 193

crime novels, 176fantasy novels, 181interviews, 240narrative non-fiction, 265–266thrillers, 177top writing tips, 331travel writing, 276writing ideas, 47

residential course, 317–318resolution, 130, 134, 197retreat, writer’s, 318–319review, 239, 309revising, 39, 209reward, for writing, 33rhyme, 185, 221rhythm, 185, 222–223, 228The Right Stuff (Wolfe), 265rights team, 298romantic fiction, 110, 111, 123, 172–174rondeau, 226Roth, Henry (Call It Sleep), 36rough, 296–297routine, writing, 21, 27–28, 37–39Rowling, J.K. (Harry Potter series), 25, 30Roy, Arundhati (The God of Small Things), 138royalty income, 295RSS (Real Simple Syndication) feed, 287The Russia House (Le Carré), 81

• S •Sachar, Louis (Holes), 137saga, 174Sagan, Françoise (Bonjour Tristesse), 167sales staff, 294, 297, 300Salinger, J. D. (Catcher in the Rye), 110, 131Salvador (Didion), 265Saturday (McEwan), 101saving work, 38–39, 148scene, 128–129, 212schedule

blog, 283publishing, 295–296

Scholastic (publisher), 193school report, 246school-age child, 188–190science fiction

described, 179–180description of setting, 106short stories, 160, 165

bindex.indd 360 23/12/13 9:22 AM

361361 Index

scientific work, 260, 271screenplay

adaptation, 210–211components, 207–209defined, 207format, 211–215options, 211plotting method, 113recommended reading, 342spec, writing on, 209structure, 129

scriptformat, 200–201rewriting, 209submission to publisher, 199writer’s resources, 204, 205

secondary source, 258second-person voice, 87–88‘The Secret Miracle’ (Borges), 159Self archetype, 69self-consciousness, 33self-publishing, 229, 307–310Selznick, David O. (film producer), 109semi-autobiographical novel, 251sensory description, 101–103, 267, 275sentence structure, 81, 143, 146, 189A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy

(Sterne), 278septet, 223sequence, 203serialised novel, 124–125, 139, 216sestet, 223sestina, 227setting

character creation, 64descriptive details, 105–106dialogue, 78first draft, 143radio play, 202romantic fiction, 173short story structure, 159three-act structure, 129, 130time period, 137

Seven Basic Plots: Why We Tell Stories (Booker), 109

The Seven Storey Mountain (Merton), 252Seven Years in Tibet (Harrer), 279sex, 173, 182, 277sex-and-shopping fiction, 174

shadow, 69Shakespeare, William

comedies, 110Hamlet, 25, 117, 132, 341influence of, 196King Lear, 25, 135sonnet structure, 223

Shaw, George Bernard (playwright), 196Shields, Carol (Happenstance), 128short short fiction, 155short story

classics, 159competitions, 162–164described, 155–156descriptive language, 157genres, 160–161history of, 158ideas, 161–162publishing options, 158, 164–166recommended reading, 339–340structure, 139, 156–159

A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush (Newby), 278shortlisted work, 162, 170sibilance, 226sight, sense of, 101signposting, 98, 123simile, 103, 104, 224Simpson, Helen (Hey Yeah Right Get a Life),

161Sliding Doors (Howitt), 135slush pile, 294Small Island (Levy), 80small publisher, 293, 295, 337smell, sense of, 101Smiley, Jane (A Thousand Acres), 25The Snow Leopard (Matthiessen), 278soap opera, 216Sobel, Dava

Galileo’s Daughter, 271Longitude, 270–271

The Soccer War (Kapuscinski), 271social conditioning, 67social conflict, 120social detail, 59social life, writer’s, 32soft science fiction, 179Soho Theatre, 205Solaris (Lem), 106sonnet, 227

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362 Creative Writing For Dummies

soundchildren’s books, 186poetry, 225–226radio plays, 203sense of, 101

Space Western fiction, 180spatial metaphor, 224specificity, 328spelling error, 144–145, 283Spender, Stephen (‘The Pylons’), 100spondee, 222spy novel, 178stage direction, 200Stalin’s Nose (MacLean), 279Stamboul Train (Greene), 66stanza, 129, 223–224‘The Star’ (Clarke), 159Steinbeck, John (East of Eden), 25stereotyping, 67–69Sterne, Laurence (A Sentimental Journey

through France and Italy), 278Stevenson, Robert Louis (Travels with a

Donkey in the Cévennes), 278stock character, 68story, within a story, 139–140storyboarding, 207, 209storytelling, 88, 155, 158stream of consciousness, 88–89, 92structure, of writing

autobiographies and biographies, 261commercial novels, 172editing process, 147–150first draft, 142importance of, 127narrative non-fiction, 268news writing, 234–235non-fiction, 131novels, 127, 129–139, 171plays, 127, 129–136, 195–198poetry, 127, 129screenplays, 208short story, 139, 156–159template, 128three-act, 129–136timeline, 137–140

style, writing, 24–26, 239, 241, 275subjectivity, 92sub-plot, 111–112subsidy publisher, 307–308

subtext, 78–79, 197superhero fiction, 181surname, 66surprise, sudden, 124–125, 135Surviving with Wolves (Defonseca), 270suspense, 107, 120, 122–125sword and sorcery novel, 181symbol, 98, 104–105, 171, 225synecdoche, 225synopsis, 208, 305

• T •talent, writing, 13Tales From Firozsha Baag (Mistry), 139talk show, 243taste, sense of, 102teacher, 16, 17technical description, 100–101techno thriller, 178teenage audience, 190–192‘A Telephone Call’ (Parker), 159television show

adaptations, 210classic plot, 111journalism, 244narrative non-fiction, 264structure, 129writing process, 208–209, 216–217

template, story, 128ten-minute play, 199tense, verb, 23, 235tercet, 223, 227tetrameter, 223texture, 149Thackeray, William (Vanity Fair), 125theatre, 196, 202theme

competition rules, 323literary novels, 171novellas, 167, 168poetry, 219–220short story structure, 158, 161teenage novels, 191use of characters, 118

therapy, 49, 79, 250Theroux, Paul (The Great Railway Bazaar),

279thesaurus, 31

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363363 Index

third-person voicebalance of viewpoints, 91benefits of, 83, 87defined, 86drawbacks of, 87emotional distance, 49examples of, 84–86techniques, 83, 89, 90–94

This Is Not a Novel (Markson), 172A Thousand Acres (Smiley), 25three-act structure, 129–136, 197thriller, 116, 177–178The Time Traveler’s Wife (Niffenegger), 110time, writing

blank page exercise, 35first draft, 143length of project, 39–41practice time, 14routines, 27–28slow versus fast completion, 20–21tips for success, 327–328

timeline, of eventsbiographies, 261coincidences, 118novel structure, 130, 137–140plot elements, 115three-act structure, 133writing exercise, 52

Time’s Arrow (Amis), 138Tinderbox Theatre Company, 205title

blogs, 282organised work, 39play, 200screenplays, 212short stories, 163title page, 212

ti-tum pattern, 222, 223To the Lighthouse (Woolf), 136Tolkien, J.R.R.

The Hobbit, 10The Lord of the Rings, 10, 106, 134, 136

Tolstoy, Leo (Anna Karenina), 100, 124, 210tool, writing, 30–32, 38–39Toole, John Kennedy (A Confederacy of

Dunces), 324topic. See idea, writingtouch, sense of, 102touring play, 202

trade discount, 299tragedy genre, 111tragic ending, 135Trainspotting (Welsh), 80transition, 213–214translation, 298travel

description of, 105, 106journalism genre, 271–280, 344

travelogue, 280Travels with a Donkey in the Cévennes

(Stevenson), 278treatment, 208trimester, 223triumph, tale of, 110trochee, 222Truss, Lynne (Eats, Shoots and Leaves), 31trust, of reader, 100–101The Turn of the Screw (James), 167Twain, Mark (Pudd’nhead Wilson), 80twist-in-the-tale story, 160typeface, 140, 200, 212, 216typesetting, 297, 301typing, 142

• U •Ulysses (Joyce), 25, 137unconscious plotter, 113–114Under Western Eyes (Conrad), 138unity, of drama, 196university course, 315–317The Unnamable (Beckett), 172unsolicited manuscript, 294, 295Unwin, Stanley (publisher), 10Usborne (publisher), 193

• V •Van der Post, Laurens (The Lost World of the

Kalahari), 278Vanity Fair (Thackeray), 125vanity publishing, 307–308verb, 22–23, 81, 146, 235verse, 129viewpoint character, 84villanelle, 227violent crime novel, 176Vitale, Serena (Pushkin’s Button), 271

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364 Creative Writing For Dummies

vocabularycharacter creation, 63children’s book, 184, 189expanded, 21–23journalism, 235, 236, 241point of view, 86

voicedialogue writing, 73–74, 75, 78literary novels, 171opening line, 131, 163short stories, 163travel writing, 275

voice-over, 214Vox (Baker), 182voyage, tale of, 110

• W •Wallace, Edgar (writer), 133war thriller, 178‘Ward No. Six’ (Checkhov), 159Waters, Sarah

Affinity, 81Fingersmith, 81

wealth, 10–11Welsh, Irvine (Trainspotting), 80Western novel, 178Wharton, William (Wrongful Deaths), 269‘What if’ question, 18what-if story, 160The White Guard (Bulgakov), 102Whodunnit novel, 175Wild Swans (Chang), 269Wilder, Thornton (The Bridge of San Luis

Rey), 139Wilkomirski, Binjamin (Fragments: Memories

of a Wartime Childhood), 270

will, 259Winesburg, Ohio (Anderson), 139The Wings of the Dove (James), 136wish-fulfilment fantasy, 53Wolfe, Tom

From Bauhaus to Our House, 270The Bonfire of the Vanities, 118The Right Stuff, 265

women, 68, 165, 176, 200Woolf, Virginia

To the Lighthouse, 136Mrs Dalloway, 89, 137stream of consciousness, 92

word play, 21–26Wordsworth, William (poet), 43workspace. See room, writingwrenched rhyme, 221Writernet (website), 204writer’s block, 36writer’s retreat, 318–319writing buddy, 36writing circle, 311–312writing process, 37–40. See also specific

stages of writingWrongful Deaths (Wharton), 269Wuthering Heights (Brontë), 140

• Y •A Year in Provence (Mayle), 279, 280youngest child, 60Your Blue-Eyed Boy (Dunmore), 138

• Z •Zahavi, Helen (Dirty Weekend), 182

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