The Lie That Tells a Truth: A Guide to Writing by John Dufresne. Hardcover

The Lie That Tells a Truth: A Guide to Writing Fiction by John Dufresne • Hardcover • W W Norton & Co Inc; 1st edition (August 1, 2003) • 320 Pages Condition: Very Good —————————————— A creative and funny guide to writing fiction shows readers where to go to find inspiration, stories, and characters, in a guide that demystifies the writing process while maintaining the author's comic voice. Like so many writers' guides, this one talks about creating a character, finding an idea, constructing a plot, and the rest of it. It does all of that quite well, too, but what makes it stand out in this popular genre is its tone and approach. Novelist Dufresne, the author of Deep in the Shade of Paradise (2002), lays out the storytelling process clearly and simply. "Fiction is telling the truth, not telling the facts." His tone is light, amiable, conversational: a professional storyteller talking to someone who wants to be a professional storyteller. ——————————————————— REVIEWS An engaging covers-all-the bases guide—sometimes moving, often funny, full of goodwill and good sense. -- Janet Burroway Dufresne makes it all good fun, from first to last, from guggle to zatch. See for yourself. -- George Garrett Frank and friendly talk about the approach to and the craft of fiction....a welcome companion. -- Ron Carlson I'll be directing people to this book for years to come. It's wonderful. -- Steve Yarbrough