HOW TO WRITE LIKE
CHEKHOV
Anton Chekhov
Edited a nd in troduced by Piero Brunello and Lena Lenĉek
ADVICE AND INSPIRATION, STRAIGHT FROM HIS OWN LETTERS AND WORK
HOW TO WRITE LIKE
CHEKHOV
ANTON CHEKHOV was born in i860 in Taganrog, a port on the Sea of Azov. His father, a shopkeeper, was the son of a peasant who bought himself and his family out of serfdom. Chekhov began to write short stories while studying at the University of Moscow, and after graduating from medical school he embraced both professions: medicine as his "lawful wife" and literature as his "mistress." While continuing to write short stories, Chekhov became interested in the theater and, early in his career, began to write plays. His first successful full-length play, The Sea Gull, was produced in 1896, followed by Uncle Vanya and The Three Sisters. The Cherry Orchard appeared in 1904, and in the same year Chekhov, who had long suffered from tuberculosis, died at the age of forty-four.
Co-editor PIERO BRUNELLO is a professor of social history at the University of Venice in Italy.
Co-editor and translator LENA LENCEK is professor of Russian and the humanities at Reed College in Portland, Oregon, and the author, editor, co-author, and co-editor of more than a dozen books, including Beach: Stories by the Sand and Sea. She has recently annotated a new edition of Tolstoy's War and Peace. She lives in Portland, Oregon.
Anton Chekhov
HOW TO WRITE LIKE
CHEKHOV
a member of the perseus books group
advice and inspiration, straight from his own letters and work
Edited and introduced by Piero Brunello and Lena Lencek
Translated from the Russian and Italian by Lena Lencek
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Part One © 2002 by Minimum Fax
Part Two © 2004 by Piero Brunello and Minimum Fax
Translation © 2008 by Perseus Books Group
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Set in 11.75-point Adobe Garamond by the Perseus Books Group Cataloging-in-Publication data for this book is available from the Library of Congress. First Da Capo Press edition 2008
This book is derived from two books previously published in Italy by Minimum Fax: Senza trame e senza finale: 99 consigli di scrittura, © 2002 by Minimum Fax, and Scarpe buone e un quaderno di appunti: Come fare un reportage, © 2004 by Piero Brunello and Minimum Fax. This edition is published by arrangement with Minimum Fax.
Chekhov, Anton Pavlovich, 1860-1904. [Selections. English. 2008]
How to write like Chekhov : advice and inspiration, straight from his own letters and work / edited and introduced by Piero Brunello and Lena Lencek ; translated from the Russian and Italian by Lena Lencek. — 1st Da Capo Press ed. p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 978-1-56924-259-9 (alk. paper)
1. Chekhov, Anton Pavlovich, 1860-1904--Translations into English. 2. Authorship. 3. Creation (Literary, artistic, etc.) I. Brunello, Piero, 1948- II. Lencek, Lena. III. Title. PG3456.A13B78 2008 808'.02—dc22
2008024843
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10 987654321
To my father, Rado L. Lencek and my sister Bibi — l. l.
"In writing, it is not the head but the seat that gets the job done."
rado l. lenĉek (1921-2005)
CONTENTS
Preface by Lena Lencek xvii Introduction by Piero Brunello xix Introduction by Lena Lencek xxv
PART ONE: THEORY No Plot, No Ending — 1 —
1 .GENERAL QUESTIONS
Why Write? Why I Write 3 • Neither for Fame nor Profit 3 • On Gaiety and Gloomy Tales 5 • The Laws of Nature 5 • The Desire to Write, the Desire to Live 5
For Whom Should One Write? Forget Yourself 6 • The Writer's Audience 7 • For My Contemporaries 7 • Know Your Own Readers 8 • Writing for Connoisseurs 9
What to Write, How to Write How Not to Write 10 • Without Plot or Ending 10 • The Banalities of Daily Life 10 • Reading, Watching, Listening 11 • All Kinds of Subjects 11 • Don't Polish 12 • It's Not What I Saw, but How I Saw 12 • Cut Mercilessly 12 • Literary Police 12 •
Brevity 13 • Witness, Don't Judge 13 • From Dream to Story 14 • Art Should Not Solve Problems 15 • Drawing Life Truthfully 16 • Socrates and the Cook 16
When and How Much to Write Wait a Year 17 • The Author's Warehouse 17 • Five or Six Days 18 • A Year and Six Months 19 • Deadlines 19 • Never Rush 20
2. SPECIFIC QUESTIONS
Truth Six Conditions 21 • Neither Cosmetician nor Entertainer 21 • Facts and Artistic Conventions 23 • An Example 23 • Do Not Invent Sufferings You Have Not Experienced Yourself 24 • No Lying in Art 25 • Do Not Lie to Yourself 25 • Rid Yourself of Violence and Falsehood 26