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Book Title

The Art of Perspective

Subtitle
Who Tells the Story
Author 1
Christopher Castellani
Body
A writer may have a story to tell, a sense of plot, and strong characters, but for all of these to come together some key questions must be answered. What form should the narrator take? An omniscient, invisible force, or one—or more—of the characters? But in what voice, and from what vantage point? How to decide? Avoiding prescriptive instructions or arbitrary rules, Christopher Castellani brilliantly examines the various ways writers have solved the crucial point-of-view problem. By unpacking the narrative strategies at play in the work of writers as different as E. M. Forster, Grace Paley, and Tayeb Salih, among many others, he illustrates how the author’s careful manipulation of distance between narrator and character drives the story. An insightful work by an award-winning novelist and the artistic director of GrubStreet, The Art of Perspective is a fascinating discussion on a subject of perpetual interest to any writer.

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List Price
$15.00
ISBN
ISBN
978-1-55597-726-9
Format
Format
Paperback
Publication Date
Publication Date
Subject
Pages
Pages
160
Series
Series
Trim Size
Trim Size
5 x 7
Keynote
Finally, an Art of series volume on every fiction writer’s most urgent issue: point of view

About the Author

Christopher  Castellani
Credit: Michael Joseph
Christopher Castellani is the author of The Art of Perspective: Who Tells the Story and three novels. A recent Guggenheim fellow, he is the artistic director of GrubStreet and teaches at Warren Wilson College. He lives in Boston.

http://christophercastellani.com/


 
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Praise

  • The Art of Perspective is a wonderful book, full of good advice and smart close reading.”—Peter Turchi
  • “Remarkably perceptive and gracefully written. . . . Anyone with an interest in how good stories are constructed will find this book both enjoyable and useful.”Shelf Awareness, starred review
  • “Great for diving deeply into a single aspect of writing that can be applied to any number of goals, including fiction and non-fiction writing. . . . A handy reference guide.”Brooklyn Rail
     
  • “Castellani explains and provides examples of many narrative strategies. . . . A modest, gracefully written meditation on creativity and craft.”—Kirkus Reviews
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