View a FREE sample

This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Gardner compares the first thrill of achievement of the writer to that of an oboist or what?
(a) Actor.
(b) Painter.
(c) Pianist.
(d) Gambler.

2. Gardner notes in Chapter 3 that all second-rate stories tend to do what?
(a) Get rejected.
(b) Get published.
(c) Sound alike.
(d) Get acclaim.

3. What experimental writer does Gardner mention having been moved and delighted by in Chapter 2?
(a) Tom Robbins.
(b) James Joyce.
(c) William Glass.
(d) Samuel Beckett.

4. Who recommended Gardner at New American Library?
(a) William Gass.
(b) Michael Harper.
(c) Harry Crews.
(d) James Segal.

5. What does Gardner say brings together groups of young writers who, even in the absence of superb teachers, can be of help to one another?
(a) Writers' workshops.
(b) Seminars.
(c) Graduate programs.
(d) Colleges.

6. Who wrote The World According to Garp?
(a) George Glass.
(b) John Irving.
(c) Michael James.
(d) Raymond Carver.

7. Gardner writes in Chapter 2 that in a bad workshop, the teacher allows or even encourages what?
(a) Bad spelling.
(b) Support.
(c) Bad grammar.
(d) Attack.

8. One of the favorite survival jobs of writers has in recent years been what?
(a) Office clerks.
(b) College teaching.
(c) Night auditing.
(d) High school teaching.

9. In Chapter 2, Gardner writes that the "true young novelist has the stamina, patience, and single-mindedness of a" what?
(a) Mother.
(b) Elephant.
(c) Draft horse.
(d) Mule.

10. Gardner writes in Chapter 2 that in the workshop he is teaching he encountered a story which he hopes to publish titled what?
(a) "Tomorrow."
(b) "Jason."
(c) "Thoughts."
(d) "Exit."

11. In the world of grants, Gardner writes in Chapter 2, who has a better chance than other artists?
(a) Musicians.
(b) Painters.
(c) Actors.
(d) Writers.

12. Who is cited as the head of the writing program at Johns Hopkins and favors new and strange styles?
(a) Max Apple.
(b) John Barth.
(c) William Glass.
(d) Kurt Vonnegut.

13. What is the title of Chapter 3?
(a) The Writer's Training and Education.
(b) The Writer's Nature.
(c) Publication and Survival.
(d) Faith.

14. Which magazine does Gardner refer to as elegant and rather timid, perfect for selling clothes and fine china?
(a) The Oxford Journal.
(b) The New Yorker.
(c) The Atlantic.
(d) The New York Times Book Review.

15. Gardner states in Chapter 2 that the first value of a writer's workshop is that it makes the young writer feel not abnormal but what?
(a) Enlightened.
(b) Smart.
(c) Accepted.
(d) Virtuous.

Short Answer Questions

1. If a writer agrees with the notes an editor sends, he should do what with his manuscript?

2. Gardner states in Chapter 3 that a writer has to go far out of his way to turn his what against him?

3. Which writer, although thought of as a solitary genius, spent time working in close community with Ford Maddox Ford?

4. Publishing houses tend to have what, according to Gardner in Chapter 3?

5. In Chapter 3, Gardner writes, "One hears the complaint that conferences lead to a kind of writer ____."

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 458 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample