The trick is to stay on point while delivering an emotional impact and suggesting a cultural context. Sound hard? It is. But it’s very rewarding to get it right.

Anne Bernays’ tenth novel, “The Man on the Third Floor,” was published in November 2016. She is co-author of “What If? Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers” and, with Justin Kaplan, “Back Then,” a memoir. She teaches at Harvard’s Nieman Foundation. She has published scores of essays, book reviews, and travel pieces. She is the Fiction Editor of the new on-line magazine, "Pangyrus."