A Manual of the Art of Fiction: Prepared for the Use of Schools and Colleges

The complete classic course in the art of writing fiction. Drawing examples from the works of such masters as Poe, Hawthorne, and Robert Louis Stevenson, it offers a guided course through such vital topics as Realism, Plot, Characters, Setting, Point of View, The Epic, Structure of the Short Story, and much more. "Mr. Hamilton does not take to the blue empyrean; he remains strictly below, among the definite substrata. He burrows thoroughly and faithfully. He accomplishes a good amount of serviceable earthwork and helps ventilate and rearrange the general soil....Like that of the Victorians, 'which is our chief tradition in the novel' - a kind of continental welter...A cultivation of the sense of form and proportion ought to add to the reader's pleasure, and even to disciple him, in a measure, for the general conduct of life. A burden shared becomes less onerous." -Henry B. Fuller, The Dial, Volume 66, December, 1919 Prepared for the Use of Schools and Colleges This book is a complete course in writing fiction. Drawing examples from the works of such masters as Poe, Hawthorne, and Robert Louis Stevenson, it offers a guided course through such vital topics as Realism, Plot, Characters, Setting, Point of View, The Epic, Structure of the Short Story, and much more. CONTENTS FOREWORD INTRODUCTION I. THE PURPOSE OF FICTION II. REALISM AND ROMANCE III. THE NATURE OF NARRATIVE IV. PLOT V. CHARACTERS VI. SETTING VII. THE POINT OF VIEW IN NARRATIVE VIII. EMPHASIS IN NARRATIVE IX. THE EPIC, THE DRAMA, AND THE NOVEL X. THE NOVEL, THE NOVELETTE, AND THE SHORT-STORY XI. THE STRUCTURE OF THE SHORT-STORY XII. THE FACTOR OF STYLE