Consciousness, Literature and the Arts
Archive
Volume 5 Number 1, April 2004
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Bloor,
Anthony, A Multidisciplinary Study of fiction Writing, Lewiston New York,
Edwin Mellen, 2003. 357 pages,
0-7734-6800-5, Hardback $119.95.
Reviewed by
Penn State Capital College
Anthony Bloor’s extensive study of the art of writing yields a model of fiction writing that springs from an understanding of the relationships between both the reader and the text, and the writer and the text. Bloor states his purpose in the introduction as “the construction of a model of fiction writing” in order to better understand the creative process (3). According to Bloor, this increased understanding can be used in teaching, in the preparation of computer software and in personal practice.
In the chapters that follow, in a clear and very organized fashion, he takes the reader through current models of fiction writing. He explores several types of existing models, such as the psychological and the linguistic, finding that the linguistic models address structure and the psychological models address the intellectual process of writing. Within these models, Bloor highlights the importance of the planning process, concluding that differences in strategy among writers often involve a difference in planning (69). The author sets forth a basic model which describes the process of fiction writing as “a cycle of thinking, writing and reading” (94).
The chapter on “Writing Behavior,” is a very interesting examination of the creative process in which Bloor confronts the “mystery” of creative writing, as many authors attribute their production to unaccountable forces. In the end, Bloor admits that approaches to writing are so varied and so personal that a model for fiction writing should aim to “model writing rather than writers [themselves]” (41).
Bloor’s discussion of narration and description analyzes the various text types in a fictional text. He hypothesizes that diverse text types require different planning processes for the writer, which he calls remembering, imagining and focusing the imagination (183). Interested in how these processes interact to form a written piece of fiction, the author investigates the notion of schemata and discusses the relationship between schemata and understanding a story, concluding that schemata guide the interpretation of a story (228) and form connections between remembering and imagining.
Reflecting on the means of retrieving schemata from memory, Bloor notes the importance of naming for the writer and in turn for the reader. The author considers various ways to read fictional texts and the ways that writers have created meaning for the readers. He also lists ways in which readers themselves connect with the text through naming. Bloor observes that problem solving is associated with naming and inherent in the development of a fictional text.
In the final chapter, Bloor sets forth his cognitive model of fiction writing, which includes thinking, writing and reading where thinking is broken down into several components, including remembering, reflecting, imagining, and problem solving. The model is represented by a diagram (Figure 20) on page 184. This diagram demonstrates a clear and fluid dynamic between thinking, writing and reading, a dynamic that creates interrelationships that do not exist in traditional models.
This highly theoretical book is written in an accessible and clear style. At each step the author is careful to explain his terms and to keep the reader informed of the progress of his argument. His method of providing an overview at the beginning of each chapter and a summary at the end charts the course of his argument in a very effective way. Overall, this book would be excellent for teachers of writing or anyone interested in the development of fiction writing. His history and overview of fiction writing models is very informative and clearly establishes the background for his own interpretation and modeling theory. Bloor’s command of the theoretical field applicable to his argument is impressive. He moves easily and smoothly between such areas as semiotics, psychology and literary theory. Overall, this is an significant study that expands the parameters of thought about fiction writing.