Is Life Like This?: A Guide to Writing Your First Novel in Six Months

?Writing a novel,? says John Dufresne, ?is not as easy as you may have thought before you tried. But it?s also not as difficult as you imagined.? Dufresne?s smart, practical, hard-nosed guide is for the person who has always wanted to write a novel but has been daunted by the sometimes chaotic, always challenging writing process. A patient teacher and experienced writer, Dufresne focuses his expertise and good humor on helping aspiring novelists take their first tentative steps. His six-month program variously calls attention to the key elements of good fiction writing and offers exercises that are designed to sharpen writers? command of novel-length storytelling. After six months of guided writing, the users of this book will finish what might have once seemed impossible?a rich and compelling first draft of a novel. Is Life Like This? may well be the most important addition to the aspiring writer?s library.