Writing for Story: Craft Secrets of Dramatic Nonfiction

This beyond a doubt the best book on the basic structure of Story available. I deeply sympathize with those who did not like it, structuring is by far the hardest part of writing. I also agree that having two of the author's feature stories appear twice (once in plain text, once annotated) is bordering on overkill. But this is more than made up for by having the number one tool for readability and retention at your fingertips. I would warn potential readers that this book will seem deceptively simple. Structuring a story at the Outline level, especially when one considers the number of words produced, is EXTREMELY difficult at times. But it is worth every second of effort. When a story is structured properly, the piece dovetails and flows beautifully.

I bought this book for me, and I bought a copy for a friend. I like books that can actually demonstrate the lessons they profess, and the lessons here are clear. Jon Franklin includes two stories he won Pulitzer prizes for, and theyre excellent examples of what he's teaching the rest of us to do.

The book wont teach you everything you need to learn about writing. It wont teach you a lot about writing. But it will teach you how to make your stories interesting...or as interesting as they can be. And if a story is compelling, readers will gladly endure grammatical errors, and spelling errors, and punctuation glitches. There are other books that cover the grammar and spelling and punctuation. Few books address how to make what you write interesting. This one does. This book isnt Business Writing 101.

Mr. Franklin starts with two short nonfiction stories that he uses as canvases for painting his techniques. He describes the essential elements of a salable story and provides a fundamental structure for building and supporting the story. After teaching you how to transpose your story idea into rough copy, he shows you how to "polish" your rough copy until it shines.

After several tries with other well-reputed books, this is the first that has truly conveyed to me a clear understanding of how to write for story. Indeed, when I read this for the first time, I found it difficult at times to focus on Franklin's words, finding myself pulled away by story ideas crystalizing for me as never before.

It may be that my technical background renders his methodical approach, liberally sprinkled with engaging anecdote and warm humor, particularly transparent and memorable, when the words of others yielded little real insight.

If you seek understanding of - a solid 'feel' to - an approach to storytelling that facilitates the construction of engaging and memorable tales, then this book might work as well for you as it does for me. If, though, you view organized thought as antithetical to creativity, then you might not find this work so appealing.

This is an atypical book on writing, which focuses on something that man has been doing since language was invented -- telling engaging stories. The concepts are simple and powerful, but the application of them is not! I found that this book has helped me to improve my writing and appreciate other people's writing. Jon Franklin is a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner who honed his skills in the writing trenches rather than in a classroom. At times, what he has to say is bitter medicine, but reading your finished product will be worth the effort.

I at times found Jon Franklin's tone a bit offensive. Sometimes, he came across as a "know it all" or that his way was the only way. In other words, he seemed a bit rigid and perhaps even arrogant. However, the advice is sound and I must admit that after trying the techniques, I can see why he encourages (pushes!) so hard for the writing principles he obviously believes in and that have made him very successful.