The Art of Subtext
Beyond Plot

Nonfiction for the writer and intended to help develop a deeper, more interesting plot. My Take This was too subtle for me. I picked up a few useful bits here and there, but for the most part, I was just confused. The first chapter was good, and I got all excited with the promise of what I thought was......more

Self-Consciously Literate This book is the opposite of Linda Seger's book on subtext. Where Seger's book is practical in focus and useful writers who want to enhance their skill at weaving subtext into their stories, Baxter's book is theoretical and more an exercise in analyzing subtext in literary f......more

I read this one eagerly because Baxter's Burning Down the House is one of my favorite books on the craft of fiction. Have to say, though, that after the first read I was disappointed. Perhaps it was just the high expectations, but it may also be that this book is more a "why you should" as opposed t......more

I read this book in two sittings, and found it absorbing and thoughtful. I had hoped it would make me gasp with recognition a little more, that it would give me some new ways of thinking about fiction, but instead it articulated nicely my own thoughts on fiction writing. I'm teaching excerpts to my......more

Baxter's slender, ruminative book explores how writers can use staging and "micro-detailing" to shed light on the inner-lives of characters and create scenes that will resonate in a reader's imagination. "What if wishes and fantasies turn out in some cases to be more powerful than their real life sat......more