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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Anne say must first happen before we can recognize others for who they are?

2. What was Vonnegut's comment on writing?

3. At what age did Anne start writing?

4. What is Anne's first useful concept about?

5. What do we want out of important characters, such as a narrator?

Short Essay Questions

1. Alice Adams suggests the ABDCE formula for writing a short story. How can formulas be a great way to get us started?

2. Where does Anne find out something about false starts?

3. Another of Anne's stories stems from the movie Stripes. The line is "Hey, lighten up Francis." How is this story helpful to her students?

4. How does the one-inch picture frame on Anne's desk put her in the mind to write a short assignment?

5. When Anne's students tell her they do not know where to start, she tells them to start with their childhood. How is this helpful?

6. What was Natalie Goldberg's response when asked for the best possible writing advice she had to offer? How true is this advice?

7. What does Anne suggest can help when you sit down to write dialogue?

8. Readers need a sense that an important character, such as a narrator, is reliable. How does Anne suggest that writers accomplish this?

9. How does Anne say perfectionism affects writing?

10. At some point you may need to design a set for your characters that you know nothing about. What avenues does Anne suggest taking to gain the knowledge you need?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

A feeling Anne suffers from throughout the book is paranoia. In Part 1 Writing, Section 1 Getting Started, what does Anne tell her students about paranoia and the other painful feelings? She goes on to read a poem by Phillip Lopate about paranoia. What are the reactions of the students?

Essay Topic 2

What is the moral point of view? Why should you put yourself at the center of your writing? Why should the truth be unfolded layer after layer, instead of like a one-liner on a bumper sticker?

Essay Topic 3

Anne starts off the last chapter by again encouraging her students to write about their childhood. Why does she place so much emphasis on writing about your childhood? How did we look at the world when we were children? What do you have to gain emotionally from writing about your childhood? What do you have to gain for your future work?

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