I first encountered John Gardner's "The Art of Fiction: Notes on Craft for Young Writers" in a creative writing course in college. This little book is single-handedly responsible for helping me appreciate the amount of work and skill that goes into fiction, and for expanding what I thought of as art. When I first signed up for the creative writing class, I thought that writing was easy. But my arrogant naivety was quickly dispelled by this book.
Anybody can pick up a pen, a still or video camera, or a basketball. But that doesn't automatically make you an Earnest Hemmingway, an Ansel Adams, a Steven Spielberg, or a Michael Jordan. If only! Any human endeavor with richness and variety will have its master artists. And it will always take ability and lots of practice to reach that level.
The tone of Gardner's book was firmly in the back of my mind as I wrote my own The Art of Listening. I wanted my writing to be as authoritative and full of useful advice as his. I even stole his title! For anyone who is interested in writing or arts, I strongly recommend you check out his book:
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