Creativity and The Paris Review Interviews: A Discourse Analysis of Famous Writers' Composing Practices centers around a thematic discourse analysis of a 2000-page corpus of Paris Review interviews, focusing on the creative processes of some of the world's most famous fiction-writers and poets. The discourse analysis traces elements of the paradigmatic creative-process model—first insight, preparation, incubation, insight, verification—through the focal artists’ descriptions of their composing practices as embedded in the interview transcripts. That analysis also reveals multiple and significantemergent themes germane to fiction and poetry writing. The ultimate goal of this analysis is to identify patterns relevant to the aforementioned creative-process elements and themes that are suggestive of specific strategies writers can employ to facilitate their own composing acts—whether fictional, poetic, or expository. Such findings will also benefit teachers seeking to facilitate student success in the composition classroom. Such applications to expository writing are bolstered by a thorough treatment of scholarship on intersections between creativity theory and composition theory.
Table of Contents:
List of Illustrations; Preface; Acknowledgments; 1. Impetus, Contexts and Methods; 2. Composition through the Lens of Creativity Theory; 3. First Insight, or the Glimmer of Possibility; 4. Preparation, or Research Broadly Conceived; 5. Incubation, or Breaks from Conscious Attention; 6. Insight, or the Eureka Experience; 7. Verification, or Evaluation; 8. Emergent Patterns; 9. Implications for Writing Instruction; Appendix A: Coding Table; Appendix B: List of Cited Paris Review Interviewees; Appendix C: Diagram of Analytical Categories, Subcategories and Themes; References; Index.
About the Author :
Ronda Leathers Dively—retired Southern Illinois University Rhetoric and Composition Professor and writing program administrator—is the author of Preludes to Insight: Creativity, Incubation and Expository Writing (Hampton Press, 2006); Invention and Craft: A Guide to College Writing (McGraw-Hill, Inc., 2016); Invention and Craft 2E: Exercising Creativity in College Writing and Research (Anthem Press, 2024) and numerous articles on expository writing pedagogy and writing program administration.
Review :
“Using the respected Paris Review Interviews of well-known writers of fiction and nonfiction as a base, Ronda Dively has applied creativity theory to offer thoughtful, qualitative analyses of how writers write and think. The resulting look inside experts’ literate processes offers rich insights for the teaching and learning of writing.” — Alice Horning, Oakland University, US
“Writers of all kinds will surely dip repeatedly into the rich mix of practical insights offered here. Readers first benefit from being reminded that there is no ‘one right way’ to write, neither to find inspiration nor to reach the amazing state of flow when some of the best writing results. Delving deeply into the Paris Review interviews of 64 famous writers, author Dively focuses on the many strategies they used successfully. Her judicious mix of academic credibility and clear personal style offer us inspiring new ways to think about -- and how to teach -- being more creative.” — Susan K. Perry, author of Writing in Flow: Keys to Enhanced Creativity
“Ronda Dively provides a needed reminder that we should revere the creative impulse that drives all writers, whether imaginative or expository, student or celebrated literary author. This book is a great read for writing teachers committed to writing process pedagogy, reflection, experimentation, and the life of writing.” — Hannah J. Rule, University of South Carolina, US
“The Paris Review has always been paramount to the field of literary studies, and now the interviews from TPR are made accessible to a broader audience. I find the idea of performing a discourse analysis on the interviews engaging. In short, it is a thought-provoking way to study and highlight the creative process while offering a bridge between creativity theory and composition theory.” — Whitney Adams, Berry College, Georgia
