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“rules”

1518129740_54e6495fd1_bWere you hosed from Joyce Carol Oates’s Creative Writing class? Yeah, me too (signed in to an art history course second round…)

I guess I’ll apply again next year. In the meantime, we can all check out the CliffsNotes version of JCO’s seminar — her seven rules for writing fiction, as published in Saturday’s Guardian.

Here’re rules 6 and 7:

- Keep in mind Oscar Wilde: “A little sincerity is a dangerous thing, and a great deal of it is absolutely fatal.”

- Keep a light, hopeful heart. But expect the worst.

Write away!