Customer Reviews

Creative Wisdom for Writers

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I'm not a huge fan of slim books full of quotes - other people's writing. This one, however, was useful and entertaining. Perhaps because the subject is a relatively narrow one - writing - and that gives the collection a focus.

The author says you can open it up and read at randow, or go in order. He's right, if you go from beginning to end the quotes and snippets of inspiration do form a pattern, a path. I like to crack the book at random and see what I stumble across, however. That's what can keep the book fresh.

I picked this book up expecting it to be something different than it was - I hadn't realized it was only a book of quotations from famous writers. From the title, I expected more of a how-to book, perhaps with exercises - but that's my fault for not checking it out more thoroughly.

Once I got past the initial disappointment of the sort of book it was, I saw that it could indeed be useful; the layout is one quote per page, and on the opposite page is a nutshell version of what each quote means. For example, on pages 60 and 61: The nutshell version is "Writing and editing are separate tasks. Mix them at your peril," and the quote opposite it is "The habit of compulsive, premature editing doesn't just make writing hard. It also makes writing dead." ~ Peter Elbow. This format is useful, just in case one doesn't quite get the gist of the quote on one's own.

At the beginning of the book, there's a "how to use this book" blurb, which states that you can either open it at random to seek a little nudge, or read it cover to cover to see a pattern evolve. There is indeed a progression, but it involves only a few steps; Starting to Write, First Drafts are Supposed to be Messy, Take Risks, and Just Keep Writing. If a writer is experiencing writer's block, or is having a moment of self-doubt, then reading this book will surely be useful to bump him or her out of it. For the rest of the audience, though, it's more of a light read (taking less than an hour start to finish) with a few quotes that will likely stand out as "interesting," "helpful," or "memorable."

So, if you're looking for a book that will help teach you How to Write, this very likely isn't it. It's more of a book to keep handy during the writing process to turn to for a word of wisdom now and then, if you're stuck. It's not a *bad* little book, it's just not a jaw-dropping WOW kind of read.

As a writer, sometimes you need a little encouragement or just the knowledge that you're not alone in your struggle to create. This book, through its quotes and simple writing tips gave me that extra push I needed to get through bouts of writer's block. If you are a lover of words and quotes I think this is an excellent book to have in your library or to pass on to other writers.