Tell It Slant ─ Creating, Refining, and Publishing Creative Nonfiction

Five stars for Tell It Slant ... An enlightening, comprehensive, and very satisfying text on writing and shaping creative nonfiction."
--Sheila Bender, editor and publisher of writingitreal.com and author of Writing and Publishing Personal Essays

When the poet Emily Dickinson wrote, "Tell all the Truth but tell it Slant," she provided today’s writers of creative nonfiction some sound advice: tell the truth but don’t become mere transcribers of day-to-day life. Whether you are writing a memoir or researched essay, the award-winning authors will guide you along the journey, using intensive instruction and an abundance of writing exercises. You will learn how to find a distinctive voice, use prompts to get started and keep writing, discover stories in impossible places, tackle (and enjoy) background research, and more.

This second edition includes a new chapter on publication--print, digital; an update on “The Particular Challenges of Creative Nonfiction” chapter to include references to James Frey and other controversies regarding nonfiction ethics; and an expanded resource section and bibliography.

Brenda Miller is a professor of English at Western Washington University and serves as editor in chief of the Bellingham Review. She is the author of Blessing of the Animals (EWU Press, 2009), which received the bronze medal in ForeWord Magazine’s Book of the Year Award. Her work has received five Pushcart Prizes.Suzanne Paola is a professor at Western Washington University. Awards for her books Body Toxic: An Environmental Memoir (2001) and A Mind Apart (2005), include a New York Times table Book, an American Book Award winner, a Library Journal Best Science book of the year, an Elle Reader''s Choice finalist, and many others.