Telling Lies for Fun & Profit:

Characters refusing to talk? Plot plodding along? Where do good ideas come from anyway? In this wonderfully practical volume, two-time Edgar Award-winning novelist Lawrence Block takes an inside look at writing as a craft and as a career.

From studying the market, to mastering self-discipline and "creative procrastination," through coping with rejections, Telling Lies for Fun & Profit is an invaluable sourcebook of information. It is a must read for anyone serious about writing or understanding how the process works.

Block’s candid, indispensable advice covers every part of the fiction writer’s life, from process to profession:

• Plot and Story Structure: Turn a plodding plot into a page-turner by learning to distinguish ideas from structure and making things relentlessly difficult for your hero.
• Character Building: Breathe life into characters that refuse to talk by creating plausible, sympathetic, and original personalities drawn from your own unique experience.
• Dialogue and Voice: Master the art of "He Said She Said" with strong verbs and natural rhythms that let your characters speak for themselves.
• The Writing Life: Go from aspiring to professional by mastering self-discipline, handling rejection, and even using "creative procrastination" to your advantage.

Lawrence Block is one of the most widely recognized names in the mystery genre. He has been named a Grand Master of the Mystery Writers of America and is a four-time winner of the prestigious Edgar and Shamus Awards, as well as a recipient of prizes in France, Germany, and Japan. He received the Diamond Dagger from the British Crime Writers' Association—only the third American to be given this award. He is a prolific author, having written more than fifty books and numerous short stories, and is a devoted New Yorker and an enthusiastic global traveler.