| Foreword | 11 |
| In Introduction | 19 |
1. | The Four Difficulties | 25 |
| The Difficulty of Writing at All | |
| The "One-Book Author" | |
| The Occasional Writer | |
| The Uneven Writer | |
| The Difficulties Not in Technical Equipment | |
2. | What Writers are Like | 35 |
| Cultivating a Writer's Temperament | |
| False and Real Artists | |
| The Two Sides of a Writer | |
| "Dissociation" Not Always Psychopathic | |
| Everyday Examples of Dual Personality | |
| The Slough of Despond | |
3. | The Advantages of Duplicity | 45 |
| The Process of Story Formation | |
| The "Born Writer" | |
| Unconscious and Conscious | |
| The Two Persons of the Writer | |
| The Transparent Barrier | |
| Keep Your Own Counsel | |
| Your "Best Friend and Severest Critic" | |
| The Right Recreation | |
| Friends and Books | |
| The Arrogant Intellect | |
| The Two Selves Not at War | |
| The First Exercise | |
4. | Interlude: On Taking Advice | 61 |
| Save Your Energy | |
| Imagination Versus Will in Changing Habits | |
| Displacing Old Habits | |
| A Demonstration | |
| The Right Frame of Mind | |
5. | Harnessing the Unconscious | 69 |
| Wordless Daydreams | |
| Toward Effortless Writing | |
| Double Your "Output" | |
6. | Writing on Schedule | 75 |
| Engaging to Write | |
| A Debt of Honor | |
| Extending the Exercise | |
| Succeed, or Stop Writing | |
7. | The First Survey | 81 |
| Reading Your Work Critically | |
| The Pitfalls of Imitation | |
| Discovering Your Strength | |
| A Footnote for Teachers | |
8. | The Critic at Work on Himself | 89 |
| A Critical Dialogue | |
| Be Specific in Suggestions | |
| Correction After Criticism | |
| The Conditions of Excellence | |
| Dictating a Daily Regime | |
9. | Readings as a Writer | 99 |
| Read Twice | |
| Summary Judgment and Detailed Analysis | |
| The Second Reading | |
| Points of Importance | |
10. | On Imitation | 105 |
| Imitating Technical Excellences | |
| How to Spend Words | |
| Counteracting Monotony | |
| Pick Up Fresh Words | |
11. | Learning to See Again | 111 |
| The Blinders of Habit | |
| Causes of Repetitiousness | |
| Recapturing Innocence of Eye | |
| A Stranger in the Streets | |
| The Rewards of Virtue | |
12. | The Source of Originality | 119 |
| The Elusive Quality | |
| Originality Not Imitation | |
| The "Surprise Ending" | |
| Honesty, the Source of Originality | |
| Trust Yourself | |
| "Your Anger and My Anger" | |
| One Story, Many Versions | |
| Your Inalienable Uniqueness | |
| A Questionnaire | |
13. | The Writer's Recreation | 131 |
| Busmen's Holidays | |
| Wordless Recreation | |
| Find Your Own Stimulus | |
| A Variety of Time-Fillers | |
14. | The Practice Story | 137 |
| A Recapitulation | |
| The Contagiousness of Style | |
| Find Your Own Style | |
| The Story in Embryo | |
| The Preparatory Period | |
| Writing Confidently | |
| A Finished Experiment | |
| Time for Detachment | |
| The Critical Reading | |
15. | The Great Discovery | 147 |
| The Five-Finger Exercises of Writing | |
| The Root of Genius | |
| Unconscious, Not Subconscious | |
| The Higher Imagination | |
| Come to Terms with the Unconscious | |
| The Artistic Coma and the Writer's Magic | |
16. | The Third Person, Genius | 155 |
| The Writer Not Dual But Triple | |
| The Mysterious Faculty | |
| Releasing Genius | |
| Rhythm, Monotony, Silence | |
| A Floor to Scrub | |
17. | The Writer's Magic | 163 |
| X Is to Mind as Mind to Body | |
| Hold Your Mind Still | |
| Practice in Control | |
| The Story Idea as the Object | |
| The Magic in Operation | |
| Inducing the "Artistic Coma" | |
| Valedictory | |
| In Conclusion: Some Prosaic Pointers | 171 |
| Typewriting | |
| Have Two Typewriters | |
| Stationery | |
| At the Typewriter: WRITE! | |
| For Coffee Addicts | |
| Coffee Versus Mate | |
| Reading | |
| Book and Magazine Buying | |
| Bibliography | 177 |
| Index | 181 |