The Emotional Craft of Fiction cover art

The Emotional Craft of Fiction

How to Write the Story Beneath the Surface

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 Months Free

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Get this deal
Offer ends on 15 July 2026 at 11:59 BST.
More purchase options

The Emotional Craft of Fiction

By: Donald Maass
Narrated by: Timothy Andrés Pabon
Get this deal

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.

Buy Now for £13.06

Buy Now for £13.06

Engage your readers with emotion.

While writers might disagree over showing versus telling or plotting versus pantsing, none would argue this: If you want to write strong fiction, you must make your readers feel. The reader's experience must be an emotional journey of its own, one as involving as your characters' struggles, discoveries, and triumphs are for you.

That's where The Emotional Craft of Fiction comes in. Veteran literary agent and expert fiction instructor Donald Maass shows you how to use story to provoke a visceral and emotional experience in readers. Topics covered include:

● Emotional modes of writing

● Beyond showing versus telling

● Connecting the inner and outer journeys and much more

Readers can simply read a novel...or they can experience it. The Emotional Craft of Fiction shows you how to make that happen.

©2016 Donald Maass (P)2020 Tantor Words, Language & Grammar Writing & Publishing Emotions Fiction Funny Emotional Craft
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1
All stars
Most relevant
Thank you for writing this book it is inspiring and gives helpfull and practical insight you have changed my way of writing novels

Amazing book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A fantastic exploration of what moves readers and why simply describing feels does not provoke them. Full of wonderful examples of well written prose and examination of why they work. Your writing cannot fail to improve after listening to this book. Read in a soothing and easy to listen voice.

Pearls of wisdom

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The tips were pretty good, but sometimes too many and too long examples were quoted.
A good chunk of the could have been cut in my oppinion.

Pretty good, but has some unnecessary weight

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Enriched me with few new (to me) facts about book writing. Examples might be boring and excerpts too long, but I guess that is the way of explanation.

Clear explanation

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I bought this as a paperback, then used the audiobook as a refresher. It seems to flow better as an audiobook although that may be just because I had already had the benefit of the written version.
Still, a good listen and let's face it, who wouldn't take the advice of such a respected agent as Donald Maass

better than the print version

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews