Monday, November 1, 2010

Hooked



Welcome to Day Four of my Back from Hiatus Contest. We're down to the last two days, and I've saved my two favorites for last. Today's favorite writing book is:

Hooked.

Author: Les Edgerton, accomplished author of short stories, articles, essays, novels, and screenplays.

Amazom.com price: $10.19

Why I Like It: I think the back of the book says it best: "Agents and editors agree: Improper story beginnings are the single biggest barrier to publication. Why? If a novel or short story has a bad beginning, then no one will keep reading." A strong beginning is an absolute must, and Edgerton explains how in an extremely readable style. This is one book I'll be reading again and again.

My Favorite Section: Chapter Eight is entitled Great Opening Lines. It gives a wide variety of opening lines along with an explanation of what makes them great. I learn best by example, and I found this section an amazing learning experience.

You can visit Les's blog by clicking here. And don't forget to enter my Back from Hiatus Contest by commenting on this original post.

Happy Monday, Everyone!

26 comments:

S.A. Larsenッ said...

I completely agree. I actually have this one. I love it. It's concise and gives a great view of what truly snags a reader.

Old Kitty said...

I love the book cover and title!!

I'm glad of this bit of infor - I think I spent near enough four months on my first paragraph edit!!! LOL!!! But it's so true - you gotta hook the reader asap or they'll never read on! Take care
x

Christine Danek said...

I have this one, too. It is fantastic. Les Edgerton is awesome.

Stina said...

I also have this one. It's a great book. :D

Joanne said...

What a great concept for a book, and I love that cover too!

Ann said...

I love this book. It is like my writing bible.

Brian's Home Blog said...

Oh, I thought maybe it was about fishing!

Lola Sharp said...

I have this one too...and I too LOVE it. Les is terrific at giving examples and begin concise.

Another great choice. :)

Love,
Lola

Bish Denham said...

That fits right in with this quote from Euripides. "A bad beginnings makes a bad ending."

Bossy Betty said...

Thanks for this review! You make me want to read, woman!

Talli Roland said...

I MUST get this one! I keep hearing such good things about it.

Sharon K. Mayhew said...

I don't have this one...It sounds great!

MTeacress said...

One more book added to my goodreads tbr list. Thanks, Susan! :)

Susan R. Mills said...

Great book! I don't own it because I borrowed it, but it's my list to buy. It would be nice to have on hand to refer back to.

Kimberly Franklin said...

I've hear nothing but good about this book! I really need to buy it. :)

Crystal Cook said...

I have got to get this book! I've been hearing some awesome things about it. :) Welcome back by the way!

Jai Joshi said...

This does sound good. Thanks for the review, Susan!

Jai

Shannon O'Donnell said...

This is one of my very favorites, Susan! Les Edgerton is brilliant! :-)

Emy Shin said...

Oh. This sounds brilliant. I definitely must get a copy of it. :)

Les Edgerton said...

Susan, I just happened on your blog and I'm blown away! Thanks so much for the really nice shout-out of my little blue book, Hooked. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it. We writers have the neatest fraternity/sorority in the world--almost all of us are willing to help each other. And, I was humbled by the nice things your readers had to say. You guys rock! I'm listing your blog on my own and hope you get a chance to visit it at: www.lesedgertononwiting.blogspot.com/

If you get a chance, you might be interested in my other writing book, Finding Your Voice. And, I'm in the process of selling a new writer's how-to, titled A Fiction Writer's Workshop at the Bijou (some info on my blog at a post a couple back) where I'll use movies to inform fiction techniques.

Again, I'm in your debt--thank you so much!

Blue skies,
Les

lotusgirl said...

This sounds like a great book. I'll have to give it a read. Cool that the author commented.

Jemi Fraser said...

I haven't seen this one yet. Sounds like a terrific book. It's so true - if the opening stinks, I'm not wasting any more time on it!

AND you got an author comment - you ROCK!!!

Anonymous said...

Great title. Everyone wnats that hook to reel in the reader from the start. Why not use the word Hooked in the title? Makes sense to me.

Lenny Lee said...

hi miss susan! wow this is a really cool sounding book. for me being a beginner writer it could be a really big help. thanks for talking about it.
...hugs from lenny

Unknown said...

I've heard amazing things about this book! I know all of us strive to have the reader hooked by page one but some of us never make it that far!

Kudos to the author for whipping up some much needed guide and inspiration!

Myrna Foster said...

I haven't read this one either. Thanks, Susan!