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The Kite and the String: How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to
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The Kite and the String: How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale Hardback - 2016

by Alice Mattison

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Reader reviews for The Kite and the String: How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale

From the publisher

A targeted and insightful guide to the stages of writing fiction and memoir without falling into common traps, while wisely navigating the writing life, from an award-winning author and longtime teacher

"A book-length master class." --The Atlantic

Writing well does not result from following rules and instructions, but from a blend of spontaneity, judgment, and a wise attitude toward the work--neither despairing nor defensive, but clear-eyed, courageous, and discerning. Writers must learn to tolerate the early stages, the dreamlike and irrational states of mind, and then to move from jottings and ideas to a messy first draft, and onward into the work of revision. Understanding these stages is key.

The Kite and the String urges writers to let playfulness and spontaneity breathe life into the work--letting the kite move with the winds of feeling--while still holding on to the string that will keep it from flying away. Alice Mattison attends also to the difficulties of protecting writing time, preserving solitude, finding trusted readers, and setting the right goals for publication. The only writing guide that takes up both the stages of creative work and developing effective attitudes while progressing through them, plus strategies for learning more about the craft, The Kite and the String responds to a pressing need for writing guidance at all levels.

Details

  • Title The Kite and the String: How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale
  • Author Alice Mattison
  • Binding Hardback
  • Pages 256
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Viking
  • Publication date 2016-08
  • ISBN 9780525428541 / 0525428542
  • Weight 0.8 lbs (0.36 kg)
  • Dimensions 8.5 x 5.8 x 0.9 in (21.59 x 14.73 x 2.29 cm)
  • Category Language Arts / Linguistics / Literacy
  • Library of Congress subjects Fiction - Authorship, Fiction - Technique
  • Dewey Decimal Code 808.3

About the author

Alice Mattison is a widely acclaimed author and longtime writing teacher. She has published six novels--including The Book Borrower, Nothing Is Quite Forgotten in Brooklyn, and When We Argued All Night, a New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice--as well as four collections of short stories and a collection of poems. Twelve of her stories have appeared in The New Yorker, and other work has been published in The New York Times, Ploughshares, and Ecotone and anthologized in The Pushcart Prize, PEN/O. Henry Prize Stories, and Best American Short Stories. A frequent panelist at AWP and other writing conferences, she has held residencies at Yaddo and the MacDowell Colony. She has taught at Brooklyn College, Yale University, and, for the last twenty-one years, in the Bennington Writing Seminars, the MFA program at Bennington College.

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The Kite And The String: How to Write with Spontaneity and Control - and Live to Tell the Tale

The Kite And The String: How to Write with Spontaneity and Control - and Live to Tell the Tale

by Mattison, Alice

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The Kite and the String: How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--and Live to Tell the Tale
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The Kite and the String: How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--and Live to Tell the Tale

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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
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Viking. Used - Acceptable. PLEASE NOTE: FORMER LIBRARY COPY, MAY HAVE STICKERS AND INDENTIFYING STAMPS AND/OR MARKERS ON IT.. BOOK EDGES AND/OR PAGES ARE SHOWING COMMON YELLOWING DUE TO AGE WITH POS.FOXING Former Library book. hardcover 100% of proceeds go to charity! Acceptable reading copy with obvious signs of use, wear, and/or cosmetic issues. Item is complete and remains readable despite notable condition issues.
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The Kite and the String : How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale
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The Kite and the String : How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale

by Mattison, Alice

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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780525428541 / 0525428542
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Penguin Publishing Group. Used - Very Good. Former library copy. Pages intact with possible writing/highlighting. Binding strong with minor wear. Dust jackets/supplements may not be included. Includes library markings. Stock photo provided. Product includes identifying sticker. Better World Books: Buy Books. Do Good.
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The Kite and the String : How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale
Stock photo: cover may vary

The Kite and the String : How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale

by Mattison, Alice

  • Used
Condition
Used
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780525428541 / 0525428542
Quantity available
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Description:
Penguin Publishing Group. Used - Good. Pages intact with minimal writing/highlighting. The binding may be loose and creased. Dust jackets/supplements are not included. Stock photo provided. Product includes identifying sticker. Better World Books: Buy Books. Do Good.
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Item price
A$12.70
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The Kite and the String : How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale
Stock photo: cover may vary

The Kite and the String : How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale

by Mattison, Alice

  • Used
Condition
Used
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780525428541 / 0525428542
Quantity available
2
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Item price
A$12.70
Free Delivery to USA

Show details

Description:
Penguin Publishing Group. Used - Good. Former library copy. Pages intact with minimal writing/highlighting. The binding may be loose and creased. Dust jackets/supplements are not included. Includes library markings. Stock photo provided. Product includes identifying sticker. Better World Books: Buy Books. Do Good.
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Item price
A$12.70
Free Delivery to USA
Kite and the String: How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale
Stock photo: cover may vary

Kite and the String: How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale

by Alice Mattison

  • Used
  • Hardback
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Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780525428541 / 0525428542
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Viking, August 2016. Hardcover. Used - Like New.
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The Kite and the String : How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale

The Kite and the String : How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale

by Alice Mattison

  • Used
  • Very good
  • Hardback
Condition
Very good
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780525428541 / 0525428542
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Penguin Publishing Group, 2016. Hardcover. Very Good. May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less.Dust jacket quality is not guaranteed.
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A$14.94
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The Kite and the String : How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale

The Kite and the String : How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--And Live to Tell the Tale

by Alice Mattison

  • Used
  • Very good
  • Hardback
Condition
Very good
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780525428541 / 0525428542
Quantity available
4
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Item price
A$14.94
Free Delivery to USA

Show details

Description:
Penguin Publishing Group, 2016. Hardcover. Very Good. Former library book; May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less.Dust jacket quality is not guaranteed.
Add to wish list
Item price
A$14.94
Free Delivery to USA
The Kite and the String: How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--and Live to Tell the Tale

The Kite and the String: How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--and Live to Tell the Tale

by Alice Mattison

  • Used
  • Very good
  • Hardback
Condition
Very good
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780525428541 / 0525428542
Quantity available
1
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Item price
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A$8.81 Delivery to USA

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Description:
Writing well does not result from following rules and instructions, but from a blend of spontaneity, judgment, and a wise attitude toward the work neither despairing nor defensive, but clear-eyed, courageous, and discerning. Writers must learn to tolerate the early stages, the dreamlike and irrational states of mind, and then to move from jottings and ideas to a messy first draft, and onward into the work of revision. Understanding these stages is key.The Kite and the String urges writers to let playfulness and spontaneity breathe life into the work letting the kite move with the winds of feeling while still holding on to the string that will keep it from flying away. Alice Mattison attends also to the difficulties of protecting writing time, preserving solitude, finding trusted readers, and setting the right goals for publication. The only writing guide that takes up both the stages of creative work and developing effective attitudes while progressing through them, plus strategies for learning more… Read more
Add to wish list
Item price
A$18.35
A$8.81 Delivery to USA
The Kite and the String: How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--and Live to Tell the Tale
Stock photo: cover may vary

The Kite and the String: How to Write with Spontaneity and Control--and Live to Tell the Tale

by Mattison, Alice

  • Used
  • Hardback
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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780525428541 / 0525428542
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imusti, 2016-08-16. First Edition. hardcover. Used: Good. 2.00x10.00x8.00. Buy with confidence. Excellent Customer Service & Return policy.
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