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Pep Talks, Warnings, And Screeds: Indispensable Wisdom And Cautionary Advice For Writers

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PEP TALKS provides the reader with advice that is brutally honest, often humorous, and to-the-point. If you're the type who talks about writing, yet never (or seldom) writes, you MUST read this book. Singleton forces you to examine yourself, your writing habits, and your determination to be a success.

The question is: Once you put down this book, will you pick up a pen (or go to your computer) and write? Or will you simply TALK about writing? Will you continue to query and submit despite rejection after rejection? Through several blips of advice, the reader can easily perform a self-examination and honestly decide if writing IS something they can and WILL do.

A quick-read, PEP TALKS can be dog-eared, referred to, and read countless times, because the advice is timeless and direct. It's packed full of more wisdom than you'll receive in any creative writing course, at your weekly writers' group, or from the most philosophical friends you have. I highly recommend it to (1) Anyone who dreams of being published; (2) Anyone who is majoring in creative writing; (3) Anyone who writes; (4) Anyone who aspires to be a writer but also teaches, performs, paints, grooms dogs, etc. [See "Warning No. 11: Master of None" in which Singleton warns that people who claim to be writers (among a myriad of other avocations) are not very good at ANY of these things.]

If you write, you will see yourself on these pages and you will make a choice to write or to do something else. Buy this before signing up for that expensive MFA program or writers' workshop. Then decide.

[NOTE: This book will make an excellent gift for the writer in your life.]

Pep Talks, Warnings, and Screeds: Indispensable Wisdom and Cautionary Advice for Writers by George Singleton.

I don't like books on writing--as a rule. I try not to read them anymore. It's not because I'm out of new things to learn, but because I know learning about writing seems to occur best when writing and when reading good literature--not when reading endless tomes about writing. However, George Singleton is THE evil genius of Southern letters. I am inclined to listen up when he speaks. A week or two ago, I saw a review of Pep Talks. About five minutes later I ordered a copy.

Singleton's latest book offers aphorisms, rants, and a few brief Zig Ziglar-style motivational lessons, all good, all helpful, and most downright hilarious. The work is both philosophical and practical. Like Hegel (Hegel: The Essential Writings) meets Chef Paula Dean (Paula Deen: It Ain't All About the Cookin'). For example, "On Contests" (Warning #35), Singleton explains why writers should avoid fee-based writing contests. His logic is flawless (Dear writer, read it.) In "The Dangers of Lit Crit" (Warning No. 42), he tells us why studying Foucault and his French cousins will hurt your writing. Singleton even tells us why undergraduate creative writing majors are detrimental to the training of writers. He can't imagine the value of a B.A. in creative writing. Neither can I. Who could? (Screed No. 5). I enjoyed his defense of writing longhand (Screed No. 8). Shoot, that's how I do it--legal pads and ink pens.

Pep Talks includes two previously published pieces, "Daily Grind" and "How to Write Stories, Lose Weight, Clean Up the Environment, and Make $1,000,000," which appeared in the Oxford American. I read them in the OA magazine and read them again last night in this book. Both essays should be read aloud in every creative writing "workshop" in America, perhaps on the first day of the semester.

I was surprised by the layout and beauty of the book. Daniel Wallace, author of Big Fish (movie tie-in): A Novel of Mythic Proportions, is a first-rate writer and illustrator, and the volume is sprinkled with original--and relevant--illustrations. It makes the book even more humorous, more helpful, too.

In addition to Pep Talks, I recommend: Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life(Anne Lamott), Stephen King On Writing, a Memoir of the Craft(Stephen King), How to Write: Advice and Reflections(Richard Rhodes), and William Strunk and E. B. White's The Elements of Style: 50th Anniversary Edition. In deference to Singleton (Screed No. 9), I will add The Chicago Manual of Style, now in its 15th ed., though I hate it personally (a long year I spent as a graduate student in history many moons ago). These books are winners and worth the money. Most other books on writing are not worth the money or the time, I am afraid.

Singleton is at the top of his game as a story writer and teacher of writing, and this book is a testament to his abilities and insight. I think it's valuable to any writer just starting out, a writer trying to get published, or a writer wishing to pick up a few tips, as well as teachers wanting to make students laugh and learn. Five stars.

-----Reviewed by Dayne Sherman, author of Welcome to the Fallen Paradise

This book is remarkably good. It is both "easy to read" and highly informative. George Singleton's humor is in evidence on every page. You will just flat-out have fun reading "Pep Talks, Warnings & Screeds". This book belongs in your library if you seriously want to improve your writing.