Egri's treatise was first published in 1946 and remains today one of the best creative writing "how to" books ever written. It is a concise guide to all forms of creative writing, from premise to characters to plot, with special attention to the heart of any drama which are its characters and their inner natures and inter-relationships that move a story and give it life. Few books attempt to analyze play-construction as well as this book, and its principles and methods are so valid that they apply equally well to the short story, novel, and screenplay.