Customer Reviews

How I Write: The Secret Lives of Authors

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The creative process is a mystery to all of us. Scientists study it, creative writing classes try to bring it out, and when artists are asked about creativity they often say something akin to "The idea just came to me." My few creative ideas certainly just came to me, a kind of insight that popped into my head. What Editor Dan Crowe has done with more than 65 writers is ask what helps their imagination while they are creating. The title, "How I write" is a bit misleading because I thought this well designed volume would be about how plots are laid out and "formulae" that are followed. It is not.

Rather than a book on how to write, it is a series of curious vignettes about the behavior of writers, perhaps better stated as the superstitious behavior of writers: what objects and sensations they surround themselves with as they work. For example Amy Holmes requires natural light and music by Jimi Hendrix or Glenn Gould, Janine Di Giovanni recalls how she keeps a Maglite found in the midst of Serbo-Croatian war, Jane Smiley seeks inspiration in a hot shower, while the very honest Tibor Fischer hits the nail on the head with "money." These dozens of short tales give less of an insight into how to write than they do into the writer. What the editor might have done is tell the reader how he came up with such creative idea for a book. What talisman did he use? The layout and design alone should make it a highly desirable coffee table book, but not one that will lay unopened. It is a book that makes you want to open it, peruse a bit, and ultimately read.

This book seems to have polarized reviewers. I tend to agree with the reduced star folk because it really appears more of a marketing project rather than a title with lots of meaningful content. To get round the fact that all the text for the sixty-seven writers would have made a really slim book the publishers have let lose an Australian design group to fill out the pages with a visual extravaganza of photos, graphics and expressive typography.

The problem is the look of the pages totally overpowers the text but this maybe is what was wanted anyway as there is so little readable content. So, a book about the thoughts of some writers becomes an exercise in design but I think it fails because good design is presenting information with clarity and style which the reader should not notice. Design in How I Write is anything but unnoticeable, for example: the page numbers don't exist, instead each left-hand page has, near the spine and turned sideways: How (I) Write ++++++++ ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTEEN etc, the back of the book bibliographies are set in one solid block of run-on type with the writer's names in red (and not even bold face) over nine pages, throughtout the book various letters of the alphabet, seemingly chosen at random, are so enlarged that they run of the edge of the pages.

I must admit that as a publication designer (thankfully retired) had I seen this book some decades ago I probably would have been mightily impressed with its flash look but now it seems so obviously a triumph of style over substance. Really not much more than designers having fun with a software graphics package and on that basis I'll keep it as a flamboyant example of that. If I was interested in learning a bit about writing style I would stick to David Lodge's `The Art of Fiction' (ISBN 978 0140174922) a Penguin paperback that really delivers and without a graphic in sight.

***SEE SOME INSIDE PAGES by clicking 'customer images' under the cover.

How I write is a stunning example of top notch writers whose work looks all the better thanks to the beautiful design. The submissions come from a wide variety of writers from the semi-obscure to the household names. The design was done by Vince Frost, one of the world's most famous art directors. The objects the writers selected gives a unique insight into their characters and the mystical process of writing. A perfect gift for anyone who likes writing or reading. It's the ultimate coffee-table book for the literary set.

I expected this book to be ordinary, and was very pleasantly surprised at the way it held my interest. The writers' contributions varied from the stimulus of a particular environment or a quirky habit, to an unusual state of mind. After reading several selections, I realized that I, too, have a preferred mode for writing of which I had been unaware. The surprise, therefore, was not only in the enjoyment I experienced while reading, but also in the knowledge I gained about my own behavior. Bravo!

First and foremost this is an immensely attractive book in design. In fact it seems a bit overdesigned. Typography and graphics vary throughout. The occasional page numbers are to be found near the crease, where they are not useful and hardly decorative. (On verso pages they are printed correctly, but the recto ones are printed with letters reversed. Why?)

Consequently you pick the book up hoping to discover within its lusciously designed pages a few delectable secrets of how writers manage their magic. You get some charming comments (A.S. Byatt, Joyce Carol Oates, and Ian Rankin were ones I enjoyed) but you don't get enough for your money. Tibor Fischer's one word submission (money) seems hardly worth spreading out over two pages--even as a joke or refreshing example of honesty.

The book compares poorly with Jill Kremenz's book, The Writer's Desk, of a few years back. She had better authors, they talked more about writing, and you got a black and white photo of the author in his scriptorium. (Joyce Carol Oates is the only overlap I found between the two.)

All the design effort seems a bit wasted. There is even a bookmark ribbon to mark your place, but you won't need it--there's nothing to remember here.

As a writer, I love to read about other writers' lives: the way they write, where they write, how they live their writing life. This book is one of those that takes me into their personal, very private space: what inspires them (driving in the dark helped David Guterson "see the light" on his novel-in-progress), keeps them going (for Douglas Coupland, chocolate is the drug of choice)and what they need (in the case of Michel Faber, it's music).
If you are fascinated by writers, read this book. If you are a writer and want to know that your creative process isn't any crazier than that of other writers,
read the book. Just read the book.

At first glance, I didn't like this book: it looked like a coffee-table book -- cool design, but no substance, I thought. I was wrong.

It's an anthology of very short statements from over sixty authors on how they write -- specifically on the wierd habits or objects that have become an essential part of their process. Johathan Lethem's list of names, Jay McInerney's axe artifact, Lionel Shriver's toy Clippity, A.S. Byatt's "Antonia Writing Time!" notice, Jonathan Franzen's old and ugly office chair, Claire Messud's graph paper pad and fine .005 felt-tip pens ...

I came away with a fuller understanding that the process of writing is magical, that for many writers, it requires some sort of incantation, totem or ritual. I recommend this book to any writer.

This book is clearly a labor of love by the editors, the publisher, and the contributing authors. The graphics are wonderful and enhance the written essays. I know of no other way to become acquaited with the personal styles of so many authors in one place. The experience of perusing the book is one of delight and hidden surprises. Anyone interested in literature, design, or the creative process should like this book. It makes an excellent gift since almost any recipient will find much to enjoy in it's beautiful and thoughtful pages.

I purchased this book for my daughter who is just beginning her career in writing. She says that this book is now her favorite...

It's exciting to have a glimpse into the personal world of so many amazing writers. The editor, obviously completeing a labor of love, put together a beautiful book.