
Howdunit
A Masterclass in Crime Writing by Members of the Detection Club
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Narrated by:
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Malk Williams
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Joan Walker
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By:
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Martin Edwards
About this listen
Ninety crime writers from the world’s oldest and most famous crime writing network give tips and insights into successful crime and thriller fiction.
Howdunit offers a fresh perspective on the craft of crime writing from leading exponents of the genre, past and present. The book offers invaluable advice to people interested in writing crime fiction, but it also provides a fascinating picture of the way that the best crime writers have honed their skills over the years. Its unique construction and content mean that it will appeal not only to would-be writers but also to a very wide readership of crime fans.
The principal contributors are current members of the legendary Detection Club, including Ian Rankin, Val McDermid, Peter James, Peter Robinson, Ann Cleeves, Andrew Taylor, Elly Griffiths, Sophie Hannah, Stella Duffy, Alexander McCall Smith, John Le Carré and many more.
Interwoven with their contributions are shorter pieces by past Detection Club members ranging from G.K. Chesterton, Dorothy L. Sayers, Agatha Christie and John Dickson Carr to Desmond Bagley and H.R.F. Keating.
The book is dedicated to Len Deighton, who is celebrating 50 years as a Detection Club member and has also penned an essay for the book.
The contributions are linked by short sections written by Martin Edwards, the current President of the Club and author of the award-winning The Golden Age of Murder.
©2020 Martin Edwards (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers LimitedListeners also enjoyed...
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"There can be few people in the country who know more about crime fiction than Martin Edwards." (On Magazine)
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Story
There are three kinds of feelings when reading a story: boredom, interest, and wow! To become a successful writer, you must create the wow feeling on as many pages as possible, and this requires writing that engages the reader emotionally. In his best-selling book, screenwriter Karl Iglesias explored the working habits of A-list Hollywood scribes. Now, he breaks new ground by focusing on the psychology of the reader.
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Best audiobook by far for writing screenplays
- By FilmmakerSuperNova on 07-04-20
By: Karl Iglesias
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Story Genius
- How to Use Brain Science to Go Beyond Outlining and Write a Riveting Novel (Before You Waste Three Years Writing 327 Pages That Go Nowhere)
- By: Lisa Cron
- Narrated by: Brittany Pressley
- Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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It's every novelist's greatest fear: pouring their blood, sweat, and tears into writing hundreds of pages only to realize that their story has no sense of urgency, no internal logic, and so is a page-one rewrite. The prevailing wisdom in the writing community is that there are just two ways around this problem: pantsing (winging it) and plotting (focusing on the external plot).
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As a fantasy writer, this book was not for me.
- By Wendy on 01-10-21
By: Lisa Cron
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The Golden Age of Murder
- By: Martin Edwards
- Narrated by: Leighton Pugh
- Length: 16 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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A real-life detective story, investigating how Agatha Christie and colleagues in a mysterious literary club transformed crime fiction, writing books casting new light on unsolved murders whilst hiding clues to their authors' darkest secrets. This is the first book about the Detection Club, the world's most famous and most mysterious social network of crime writers. Drawing on years of in-depth research, it reveals the astonishing story of how members such as Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers reinvented detective fiction.
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Doesn't work as an audiobook
- By Pat on 08-02-15
By: Martin Edwards
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Story
- Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting
- By: Robert McKee
- Narrated by: Robert McKee
- Length: 6 hrs and 12 mins
- Abridged
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Robert McKee's screenwriting workshops have earned him an international reputation for inspiring novices, refining works in progress, and putting major screenwriting careers back on track. Quincy Jones, Diane Keaton, Gloria Steinem, Julia Roberts, John Cleese, and David Bowie are just a few of his celebrity alumni. Writers, producers, development executives, and agents all flock to his lecture series, praising it as a mesmerizing and intense learning experience.
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Only 5 Chapters
- By Stephen Buck on 02-15-11
By: Robert McKee
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Bird by Bird
- Some Instructions on Writing and Life
- By: Anne Lamott
- Narrated by: Anne Lamott
- Length: 6 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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For a quarter century, more than a million readers and listeners—scribes and scribblers of all ages and abilities—have been inspired by Anne Lamott’s hilarious, big-hearted, homespun advice. Advice that begins with the simple words of wisdom passed down from Anne’s father—also a writer—in the iconic passage that gives the book its title.
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Why oh why did she narrate this?!
- By Amor Fati on 01-02-23
By: Anne Lamott
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The Science of Storytelling
- By: Will Storr
- Narrated by: James Clamp
- Length: 6 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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How do master storytellers compel us? There have been many attempts to understand what makes a good story, but few have used a scientific approach. In The Science of Storytelling, Will Storr applies dazzling psychological research and cutting-edge neuroscience to our myths and archetypes to show how we can tell better stories, revealing, among other things, how storytellers - and also our brains - create worlds by being attuned to moments of unexpected change.
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A great portal into human psychology
- By Stephanie Romer on 02-13-21
By: Will Storr
Do I want to be a writer?
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Loved it. Learned a lot
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Enjoyable
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Helpful and thought provoking
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As a quick example - there's chapters on "research" which basically says do research. Ask around. Duh. Then oneon point of view. The author who wrote that chapter touted pov as being some big new idea. That's when I knew I made a mistake in my purchase. Maybe some can get good info out of this work, but most wont.
Basic info that any beginning writer already knows
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