Diogenes Ruiz asked Bill Mesce Jr.:

Not a ?: I just wanted to say thanks for a great article in the December issue of "The Writer's Chronicle." When I first learned of "Show, Don't Tell" I thought I'd discovered the golden nugget with which to improve my writing. Thanks for providing much needed clarity and balance on the subject. I'll have to back and watch the "Maltese Falcon." ~ Thanks again, Diogenes Ruiz

Bill Mesce Jr. Very nice of you to say, thank you. Very flattered to hear it. At the risk of being disgustingly self-promoting, that essay is included a book called "No Rule That Isn't a Dare" which included a number of interviews with published authors on how they pulled off certain strategies in specific books of theirs. You might find it of interest. The key, of course -- and this was the theme of "Show, Don't Tell" -- is that there are no rules, that all these rules are really arbitrary. Good luck with your writing and, again, thanks for the compliment.

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