Moving along to Chapter 3 inThe Art of Fiction. 

We go to war over the  Gardner's dichotomies that (he claims) make for great fiction, his vehement distaste for experimental fiction -- what he calls "intellectual toys," and his idiosyncratic choice of Helen of Troy to illuminate the steps to writing a novel. Let's just say there's a lot of sacking, burning, and pillaging--and not just on Gardner's part--in this episode. Don't worry, no heels or cities were harmed in the recording of this episode.
 
For our exercise, Kim plots a realistic short story, beginning with the climax and working backward. 

Remember, we have a Writers Process meetup every Wednesday. Check us out.