Here are 100 books that The Art of Brevity fans have personally recommended if you like
The Art of Brevity.
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I teach and publish short stories, novels, and flash fiction. I’m also interested in the language people use to critique writing. Concepts (suspense, for example) can be helpful, but they often co-opt the imagination and become gold standards for what good fiction should be. In addition to the writer’s voice, I’m interested in the alchemy of the story, which is always greater than the sum of its parts. Right now, I’m writing a book called Accordion Fiction. It's about the shape and rhythm of stories—how they contract and expand like an accordion.
I admire the way this book jumps out of the box and debunks the emphasis on “pure craft”—a term that grew out of the hero’s journey. (Basically the “Horatio Alger” story about a character going from rags to riches.)
This model stifles the voices of writers from other cultures.
Salesses’ techniques help writers mine their cultural background and discover stories only they can tell. It also frees all writers from the model of the hero’s journey.
This national bestseller is "a significant contribution to discussions of the art of fiction and a necessary challenge to received views about whose stories are told, how they are told and for whom they are intended" (Laila Lalami, The New York Times Book Review).
The traditional writing workshop was established with white male writers in mind; what we call craft is informed by their cultural values. In this bold and original examination of elements of writing—including plot, character, conflict, structure, and believability—and aspects of workshop—including the silenced writer and the imagined reader—Matthew Salesses asks questions to invigorate these familiar concepts.…
It is April 1st, 2038. Day 60 of China's blockade of the rebel island of Taiwan.
The US government has agreed to provide Taiwan with a weapons system so advanced that it can disrupt the balance of power in the region. But what pilot would be crazy enough to run…
I teach and publish short stories, novels, and flash fiction. I’m also interested in the language people use to critique writing. Concepts (suspense, for example) can be helpful, but they often co-opt the imagination and become gold standards for what good fiction should be. In addition to the writer’s voice, I’m interested in the alchemy of the story, which is always greater than the sum of its parts. Right now, I’m writing a book called Accordion Fiction. It's about the shape and rhythm of stories—how they contract and expand like an accordion.
This book has a playful quality that engaged me immediately.
I was intrigued by Allison’s adventurous vision—one that sees patterns in nature as models for stories that don’t follow the traditional Aristotelian arc.
Alison analyzes many novels in terms of their shape (waves, spirals, tsunamis, and fractals)—stretching my imagination. She also makes it brilliantly clear that the shape of the hero’s journey is just one of many possible shapes for a fictional work.
"How lovely to discover a book on the craft of writing that is also fun to read . . . Alison asserts that the best stories follow patterns in nature, and by defining these new styles she offers writers the freedom to explore but with enough guidance to thrive." ―Maris Kreizman, Vulture
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2019 | A Poets & Writers Best Books for Writers
As Jane Alison writes in the introduction to her insightful and appealing book about the craft of writing: “For centuries there’s been one path through fiction we’re most likely to travel― one…
I teach and publish short stories, novels, and flash fiction. I’m also interested in the language people use to critique writing. Concepts (suspense, for example) can be helpful, but they often co-opt the imagination and become gold standards for what good fiction should be. In addition to the writer’s voice, I’m interested in the alchemy of the story, which is always greater than the sum of its parts. Right now, I’m writing a book called Accordion Fiction. It's about the shape and rhythm of stories—how they contract and expand like an accordion.
Brandt cuts through the mystique that “writing can’t be taught” and encourages writers to discover the creative and rational aspects of their consciousness—an approach that excites me as a writer and a teacher.
Brandt’s approach is useful for beginning writers and also for writers going through a dry period. I recommend it to all my students.
A reissue of a classic work published in 1934 on writing and the creative process, Becoming a Writer recaptures the excitement of Dorothea Brande's creative writing classroom of the 1920s. Decades before brain research "discovered" the role of the right and left brain in all human endeavor, Dorothea Brande was teaching students how to see again, how to hold their minds still, and how to call forth the inner writer.
A Duke with rigid opinions, a Lady whose beliefs conflict with his, a long disputed parcel of land, a conniving neighbour, a desperate collaboration, a failure of trust, a love found despite it all.
Alexander Cavendish, Duke of Ravensworth, returned from war to find that his father and brother had…
I teach and publish short stories, novels, and flash fiction. I’m also interested in the language people use to critique writing. Concepts (suspense, for example) can be helpful, but they often co-opt the imagination and become gold standards for what good fiction should be. In addition to the writer’s voice, I’m interested in the alchemy of the story, which is always greater than the sum of its parts. Right now, I’m writing a book called Accordion Fiction. It's about the shape and rhythm of stories—how they contract and expand like an accordion.
The poet Tony Hagland celebrates the colloquial voice—an approach that is liberating for poets—but also for fiction writers.
He describes voice as being “like a womb around an embryo” that does the crucial work of connecting the writer and the reader. I admired the way this book demystifies the notion that the voice occupies a cerebral realm. Hoagland uses slang and street talk—showing writers a rich and complex palette.
This book is useful for fiction writers as well as poets. It will liberate your adherence to “literary language” and push you right out into the street.
In this accessible and distilled craft guide, acclaimed poet Tony Hoagland approaches poetry through the frame of poetic voice, that mysterious connective element that binds the speaker and reader together. A poem strong in the dimension of voice is an animate thing of shifting balances, tones, and temperatures, by turns confiding, vulgar, bossy, or cunning-but above all, alive.
The twelve short chapters of The Art of Voice explore ways to create a distinctive poetic voice, including vernacular, authoritative statement, material imagination, speech register, tone-shifting, and using secondary voices as an enriching source of texture in the poem. A comprehensive appendix…
Early in my career I landed a job as a magazine editor. Shazam! I could publish my own articles! But I discovered that I actually had no idea how to write anything interesting, English major though I’d been. So I began to figure out what makes writing work. Over decades as a journalist, corporate communicator, and consultant, I did learn. I also saw colleagues miss their best opportunities, even screw up their lives, by writing badly—unpersuasively. And a mission was born: to share the tools and techniques of powerful communication. I’ve created dozens of workshops for businesspeople and professionals, taught graduate students, and now happily author books jammed with practical advice.
It’s one thing to advocate for simple, clear writing—and another to do it consistently. For the most inspiring demonstration of these principles look to Ernest Hemingway. Read even one of his short stories, or any of his novels or reportage, for in-action proof of how convincing we can be by using the most basic English: short everyday words derived from English’s early Anglo-Saxon history, and unadorned, straightforward sentences. Note how the most profound ideas, emotions, and subtle interactions can be communicated with spare language, nearly absent of descriptive words. How to generate this kind of impact with the writing most of us do every day is a central goal of my own book. TIP: a helpful online resource for simplifying copy is found at…Hemingway.com.
The fourth in the series of new annotated editions of Ernest Hemingway’s work, edited by the author’s grandson Seán and introduced by his son Patrick, this “illuminating” (The Washington Post) collection includes the best of the well-known classics as well as unpublished stories, early drafts, and notes that “offer insight into the mind and methods of one of the greatest practitioners of the story form” (Kirkus Reviews).
Ernest Hemingway is a cultural icon—an archetype of rugged masculinity, a romantic ideal of the intellectual in perpetual exile—but, to his countless readers, Hemingway remains a literary force much greater than his image.…
I have always been shy and overthink new experiences, so I typically just don’t do whatever it is. I hate that about myself, but I struggle to overcome it. That’s why the werewolf has always fascinated me. The wolf knows no fear, either of people or experiences. The wolf is freedom from all the constraints of human society, and to be able to call up the wolf, transform, and leave all the expectations of humanity behind and live free, relying on your instincts, is very appealing to someone who doesn’t like crowds or cities or answering to a boss at work.
Little Red Riding Hood may have been a prostitute who chose the wolf. I love how thorough Zipes is in his collection of (nearly) all things related to Red. The story is much older than the Brothers Grimm and as new as…well, this was published in 1993 and featured pretty new cartoons.
Unlike so many modern stories where the werewolf is simply a monster “out there” hunting and killing people, the story of Little Red Riding Hood is full of symbolism and metaphor and has been endlessly retold and reinterpreted across all mediums. Was she an innocent girl tricked and eaten by the wolf? Was she a curious young woman lured into the world of prostitution? Was she saved by a woodcutter? Did Grandma escape, or was she also a prostitute? The answer is almost always yes in some form of the story, and Zipes includes it here. This was…
Jack Zipes presents the many faces of Little Red Riding Hood. Bringing together 35 of the best versions of the tale, from the Brothers Grimm to Anne Sexton, Zipes uses the tales to explore questions of Western culture, sexism and politics.
The Duke's Christmas Redemption
by
Arietta Richmond,
A Duke who has rejected love, a Lady who dreams of a love match, an arranged marriage, a house full of secrets, a most unneighborly neighbor, a plot to destroy reputations, an unexpected love that redeems it all.
Lady Charlotte Wyndham, given in an arranged marriage to a man she…
How did I – as a scholar of German literature – turn to economic topics? That had a certain inevitability. When I left for Paris in the early nineties, reading traces of anthropological knowledge in literature and aesthetics of the 18th century, I came across economic ideas on almost every page, in natural history, in medicine, in philosophy, in encyclopedias, in the theories of signs and in the teachings of beauty. There was circulation, communication, flows of exchange all over the place, and the Robinsons were the model. This reinforced the impression that the human being was engaged in aligning himself with homo oeconomicus. The question of modern economics has therefore become unavoidable for me.
Focusing on the financial crisis of 2008 Adam Tooze’s book shows the transition from a geopolitical to a geo-economic world order in which the political destiny of old nation states is determined by the needs of international financial industry – including the rearrangement of global governance and the erosion of democracies.
I admire the way in which Adam Tooze demonstrates the entanglement between financial capitalism, crises, and the rise of populist and right-wing movements in Europe and the US.
WINNER OF THE LIONEL GELBER PRIZE A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF 2018 ONE OF THE ECONOMIST'S BOOKS OF THE YEAR A NEW YORK TIMES CRITICS' TOP BOOK
"An intelligent explanation of the mechanisms that produced the crisis and the response to it...One of the great strengths of Tooze's book is to demonstrate the deeply intertwined nature of the European and American financial systems."--The New York Times Book Review
From the prizewinning economic historian and author of Shutdown and The Deluge, an eye-opening reinterpretation of the 2008 economic crisis (and its ten-year aftermath) as a global event that directly…
I am the author of ten collections of microfiction and poetry. I came to microfiction after having written several novels and short story collections. I just felt that I was saying more than I wanted to say. Microfiction has allowed me to completely distill my stories to the essence of what makes them tick. Of the 26 books I have written, the microfiction collections are my favorites because every word and idea is carefully measured. I am presently working on my next collection of microfiction and have no immediate plans to return to writing at longer lengths. Oddly, writing small has freed me up so I can experiment with various genres, structures, and ideas. I honestly feel microfiction has made me a much better writer.
Prior to reading this book, I was unfamiliar with 100-word stories (or drabbles). Even more, I had never seen a book that consisted entirely of 100-word stories before. Each one was a distinct and thorough world unto itself. It was through this book that I began to understand the possibilities for the 100-word form. If it were not for this book, I might have never really pushed myself to understand, appreciate, and write microfiction.
In Fissures, a collection of one hundred 100-word stories, Grant Faulkner uses the hard borders of the 100-word story form to evocatively capture the drama of the lacunae we live in, whether it's the gulf between a loved one, the natural world, or God.
"I've always thought life is more about what is unsaid than what is said," he says. "We live in odd gaps of silence, irremediable interstices that sometimes last forever. A lingering glance averted. The lover who slams the door and runs away. Unsent letters."
Faulkner, the executive director of National Novel Writing Month and the co-founder…
I strongly believe that anyone who is willing to reflect thoughtfully on life can make progress toward inner peace and contentment. I have pursued my lifelong interest in human development first through a Ph.D. in applied linguistics (with a focus on individual differences in second language development) and then through the study of Stoic moral psychology and philosophy. These days I have ample opportunity to study human nature in the best laboratory of all: parenthood!
Maybe you’ve heard of minimalism. It’s a way of life that helps you shed all the stuff you don’t need in your life so you can focus on the people, activities, and priorities that bring you joy. But is it possible to be a minimalist with children at home? Absolutely! Zoë Kim shows you how in this relatable and easy-to-read guide to getting the whole family on board with minimalism. You’ll learn how to pare back your commitments, declutter your home, and take a more intentional approach to family life. From cleaning out the first drawer to developing lifelong minimalist habits, you will appreciate the newfound time, space, and sense of peace that minimalism brings.
Share the joys of minimalism with your whole family.
Make room for what really matters. Minimalism for Families shows you the real costs of the things you own and helps you discover that cutting non-essential items makes for a happier, more satisfying home and life.
Spend less time stressing about your stuff and more time together. Filled with practical advice to help you and your family clear out your house, Minimalism for Families helps you build stronger bonds, spend more time together, and start enjoying the benefits of living clutter-free.
This book follows the journey of a writer in search of wisdom as he narrates encounters with 12 distinguished American men over 80, including Paul Volcker, the former head of the Federal Reserve, and Denton Cooley, the world’s most famous heart surgeon.
In these and other intimate conversations, the book…
I have always been the ‘observing individual’ and deeply interested in knowing the connection between mind and soul. This always led me to the question what are the roots of happiness and content? Since materialism has a strong, complex, and intricate impact on our lifestyle and choices, my observation led me to conclude that despite unparalleled access to wealth, people still struggle with concepts of serenity, peace, happiness, and contentment. This disconnect prompted me to explore the various socio-psychological dimensions of materialism. While writing this book my objective was to highlight subtle yet profound materialistic omnipresence on our life choices, often at the expense of genuine well-being.
I found the book while searching online. Anything that has ‘simplicity’ in its title attracts me. I particularly feel that finding joy in simplicity is an art worth mastering in a world filled with never-ending distractions. This book does exactly the same by inviting you to embark on a journey of decluttering, both physically and mentally.
I love the concept of creating space for more with less, and the book helps me understand the principles that can help me do so.
