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How to Write Like Tolstoy
- A Journey into the Minds of Our Greatest Writers
- Narrated by: Richard Cohen
- Length: 8 hrs and 12 mins
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Publisher's summary
Behind every acclaimed work of literature is a trove of heartfelt decisions. The best authors put painstaking - sometimes obsessive - effort into each element of their stories, from plot and character development to dialogue and point of view.
Veteran editor and teacher Richard Cohen draws on his vast reservoir of a lifetime's reading and his insight into what makes good prose soar. Here are Gabriel Garcia Márquez's thoughts on how to start a novel ("In the first paragraph you solve most of the problems with your book"); Virginia Woolf offering her definition of style ("It is all rhythm. Once you get that, you can't use the wrong words"); and Vladimir Nabokov on the nature of fiction ("All great novels are great fairy tales").
Cohen has researched the published works and private utterances of our greatest authors to discover the elements that made their prose memorable. The result is a unique exploration of the act and art of writing that enriches our experience of reading both the classics and the best modern fiction. Evoking the marvelous, the famous, and the irreverent, he reveals the challenges that even the greatest writers faced - and shows us how they surmounted them.
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By: Charles Johnson
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Writing Fiction, Tenth Edition
- A Guide to Narrative Craft
- By: Janet Burroway, Elizabeth Stuckey-French, Ned Stuckey-French
- Narrated by: Laural Merlington
- Length: 9 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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A creative writer's shelf should hold at least three essential books: a dictionary, a style guide, and Writing Fiction. Janet Burroway's best-selling classic is the most widely used creative writing text in America, and for more than three decades, it has helped hundreds of thousands of students learn the craft.
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Great content!
- By Noa on 09-20-19
By: Janet Burroway, and others
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The Business of Being a Writer
- By: Jane Friedman
- Narrated by: Tavia Gilbert
- Length: 11 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Writers talk about their work in many ways: as an art, as a calling, as a lifestyle. Too often missing from these conversations is the fact that writing is also a business. The reality is, those who want to make a full- or part-time job out of writing are going to have a more positive and productive career if they understand the basic business principles underlying the industry.
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Comprehensive, but not clear recommendation on a successful path.
- By Mary Sue Dahill on 06-04-23
By: Jane Friedman
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You've Got a Book in You
- A Stress-Free Guide to Writing the Book of Your Dreams
- By: Elizabeth Sims
- Narrated by: Gina Rogers
- Length: 9 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Writing a book is fun and easy - yes, fun and easy - but it may not always feel that way. How do you find the time to write? How do you keep momentum? How do you deal with the horror of showing anyone a single sentence of your work-in-progress? The answers remain fun and easy, and author Elizabeth Sims will take your hand, dispel your worries, and show you how it's done in this stress-free guide to accomplishing your dream of writing your book.
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Motivator to write the book...for real!
- By jdudley on 10-23-23
By: Elizabeth Sims
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Meander, Spiral, Explode
- Design and Pattern in Narrative
- By: Jane Alison
- Narrated by: Bernadette Dunne
- Length: 5 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Meander, Spiral, Explode is a singular and brilliant elucidation of literary strategies that also brings high spirits and wit to its original conclusions. It is a liberating manifesto that says, Let's leave the outdated modes behind and, in thinking of new modes, bring feeling back to experimentation. It will appeal to serious readers and writers alike.
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Maybe changed my writing life
- By Daniel A. Boyd on 12-27-20
By: Jane Alison
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A Creative Rebel's Guide to Writing Amazing Fiction
- A Creative Rebel's Guide Series, Book 2
- By: Meghan March
- Narrated by: Meghan March
- Length: 7 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Creative flow has blessed me with 39 novels that have collectively sold over 5 million copies, in sixteen languages, in under eight years, earning me over $10 million and over fifty spots on The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and foreign bestselling lists. All of my dreams came true because I learned to write amazing fiction. I wrote this book for the old me—the girl who had big dreams, but no real idea how to write the books she’d need to make those big dreams come true. I wanted to make it easier for her to get to where I am now by sharing what I learned along the way.
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Where's the Bread?
- By a a on 07-02-23
By: Meghan March
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20 Master Plots
- And How to Build Them
- By: Ronald B. Tobias
- Narrated by: Barry Abrams
- Length: 9 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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The best stories linger in the hearts and minds of readers for decades. These tales gain their power through plots that connect with the audience on both an emotional and intellectual level. Ronald B. Tobias details these 20 time-tested plots. Each is discussed and analyzed, illustrating how a successful plot integrates all the elements of a story. Tobias then reveals how to use these plots effectively in your own work.
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Some Good Ideas
- By Christine Amsden on 10-05-20
By: Ronald B. Tobias
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Storycraft
- The Complete Guide to Writing Narrative Nonfiction (Chicago Guides to Writing, Editing, and Publishing)
- By: Jack Hart
- Narrated by: Christopher Grove
- Length: 11 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Hart covers what writers in this genre need to know, from understanding story theory and structure, to mastering point of view and such basic elements as scene, action, and character, to drafting, revising, and editing work for publication. Revealing the stories behind the stories, Hart brings listeners into the process of developing nonfiction narratives by sharing tips, anecdotes, and recommendations he forged during his decades-long career in journalism.
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Christopher Grove must be Computer Generated
- By Camron on 07-10-19
By: Jack Hart
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The Mental Game of Writing: How to Overcome Obstacles, Stay Creative and Productive, and Free Your Mind for Success
- By: James Scott Bell
- Narrated by: Virtual Voice
- Length: 2 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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The keys to success as a writer are yours for the thinking! All success begins in the mind. For writers, the mind fuels the imagination and creates stories. But for authors who are productive and resilient, and see a good return on their efforts, there is another factor at work. They are winning the mental game of writing. Successful writers have the ability to inspire themselves to produce consistently, improve systematically, overcome obstacles and keep up a positive mental attitude. In this book, #1 bestselling writing teacher James Scott Bell takes you through the mental landscape of ...
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Virtual voice
- By Kindle Customer on 01-08-24
By: James Scott Bell
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Several Short Sentences About Writing
- By: Verlyn Klinkenborg
- Narrated by: Verlyn Klinkenborg
- Length: 4 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Most of what you think you know about writing is useless. It's the harmful debris of your education - a mixture of half-truths, myths, and false assumptions that prevents you from writing well. Drawing on years of experience as a writer and teacher of writing, Verlyn Klinkenborg offers an approach to writing that will change the way you work and think. There is no gospel, no orthodoxy, no dogma in this book. What you'll find here isn't the way to write. Instead, you'll find a way to clear your mind of illusions about writing and discover how you write.
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Go ahead. Download it.
- By Shawn Bailey on 12-01-20
Love Books? You'll Love Audible.
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What listeners say about How to Write Like Tolstoy
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Roberto Castillo
- 04-23-23
Excellent content
Richard Cohen’s book is magnificent. His reading however leaves a lot to be desired, and the actual quality of the recording is uneven. Recommended heartily.
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- william dowell
- 01-30-23
Excellent analysis of the tools of writing
A broad panorama of what makes effective literature work. Richard Cohen is the best. His commentary is on target.
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- Jay Quintana
- 04-19-22
Great book on writing, but the title is misleading
And I had issues with the narrator. First off, as a book on writing, this is informative. All the principles are covered and various examples from scores of writers are provided. So, I'm a bit confused by the tittle. We learn a bit more about Tolstoy and more examples of his work are provided compared to the other writers, but this is hardly a book about how to write like him. I assumed we'd get in depth analysis of his major works -- how he came up with the idea, how he developed the characters, etc. -- but we don't get that at all. Doubt your knowledge of Tolstoy will increase in any meaningful way. That said, if you're looking for a book on writing, this does the job. Before you think of buying it, definitely listen to the audio sample. To me, this is yet another example of why it's almost always better to go with a professional actor instead of the author. It's hard to describe, but Cohen's sad, singsong voice just wasn't to my liking. Felt like he'd be great voicing Eyeore in the Pooh stories, but other than that, I'd prefer to hear another narrator.
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5 people found this helpful