Master Class: Scenes from a Fiction Workshop

Paul West, prolific novelist and writer of renown, is also a beloved and famous writing teacher. In Master Class, West re-creates his last writing seminar, filled with wonderful conversation, deep insight into the creative spirit, and terrific tips for good writing.

Fifteen students-eager, talented, some new, and some old friends- come together twice a week to talk about great works, to discuss each others' writing, and to open their minds and hearts to the joy, peril, and discipline of striving to write good literature.

West, who is dedicated to both great writing and to his students, has class members sleep with a page of Proust under their pillows. Then they begin-writing, talking, analyzing, and critiquing. Each class and each chapter of Master Class offers a heady mix of detailed advice and creative philosophy.

Only a few fortunate students were accepted into this seminar. Now readers and writers all over the world can sit with master teacher Paul West, learning not only what makes a great opening sentence, but also how to expand their minds and imaginations.