Preface.
I: A METHOD FOR MAKING FICTION. 1. Introduction.
The Love of Books, Gloria Naylor.
How to Keep and Feed a Muse, Ray Bradbury. 2. First Things.
Diary Entries from Journal of a Solitude, May Sarton
Hellish Speed..., Hunter S. Thompson
My Turn, Sara Paretsky. 3.Making Stories.
Cockroach Miracles, Solvent Dreams, Michael Petracca.
from The Temple of My Familiar, Alice Walker.
Descent of Man, T. Coraghessan Boyle.
The Unluckiest Consumer in the World, Michael Petracca. 4. Plot Components.
The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber, Ernest Hemingway.
Selway, Pam Houston. 5. Storyfolk.
Scar, Amy Tan.
The Chrysanthemums, John Steinbeck. 6. Ways of Showing.
from Justine, Lawrence Durrell.
Buddah, Susan Straight. 7. Perfection and Print.
A Conversation with My Father, Grace Paley.
Restrospect on My Fictions, Richard Kostelanetz.
II. AN INTRODUCTION TO THE FICTIONAL GENRES. 8. Prose Poetry.
Prose poems, Gary Young.
Prose poems, Killarney Clary. 9. Creative Nonfiction.
A History of My Hair, Christopher Buckley.
Living Like Weasels, Annie Dillard.
Catholics, Gary Soto. 10. Young Adult Fiction.
Opening section of Fade Far Away, Francess Lantz.
50% Chance of Lightning, Cristina Salat. 11. Mystery Fiction.
M is for Malice, Chapter 1, and process journal, Sue Grafton.
Karen Makes Out, Elmore Leonard. 12. Historical Fiction.
The Hangman's Apprentice, Leonard Tourney.
Every Night for a Thousand Years, Chris Adrian. 13. Science Fiction.
First, There Was the Title, Tell-tale Ties and Tremors, and How Do We Get Into This Mess?, Harlan Ellison.
Conditioning, John M. Landsberg. 14. Literary Fiction.
Baby and Jimbo, Rat Tango, Only the Desperate Serve God, and opening chapter of Baby Cat-Face, Barry Gifford.
Vasiliy Shishkov, Vladimir Nabokov.