Customer Reviews

The Successful Novelist: A Lifetime of Lessons about Writing and Publishing

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This is a great book on the craft of writing. I believe it is, however, a previously published book under the title "Lessons of a Lifetime of Writing" by David Morrell. For those who have read that book, this is a duplication.

For those who have not already read this book, do yourself a favor and buy it. The reviews under the previous title are excellent and informative.

http://www.amazon.com/Lessons-Lifetime-Writing-Novelist-Looks/dp/1582971439/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1204579021&sr=1-1

David is a unique person to share his experience. A former college professor, he knows how to teach. As a brilliant novelist, he knows how to tell stories that entertain. This book accomplishes both of those goals.

I've read many books on writing and, in my opinion, this one ranks up there with Stephen King's "On Writing and the books by Noah Lukeman. This book will certainly compliment any writer's collection of informative books. More than that, the stories that David shares are extremely interesting and entertaining. As I read them, I could vividly imagine myself going through them with my works and one day, aided by David's sage advice, I'm sure I shall.

If you've not already purchased this book under the previous title. Buy it now!

An instructional writing book...by an actual successful novelist. While David Morrell may be best-known for writing "First Blood" and the subsequent Rambo novelizations, "The Successful Novelist" puts him on the map as a world-class professor of writing as he turns the edict "Those who can't do, teach" on its head. He used to teach in the University of Iowa English Department that was located below the Iowa Writer's Workshop offices. However, his instruction here is contrary to that of most college creative writing workshops, in that he adresses writers of all genres (not just "literary" writers). For that reason, this book will be of particular interest to thriller, science fiction, horror, and other genre writers looking for instruction outside of the university structure.

"The Successful Novelist" is an update edition of Morrell's first writing book, Lessons from a Lifetime of Writing: A Novelist Looks at His Craft with an added chapter on marketing. If you enjoy "The Successful Novelist," you should also check out Stephen King's On Writing and Strunk and White's The Elements of Style to round out your writing "home study" course.

I purchased the "Successful Novelist". In short: a great book. I also purchased another book from the same author David Morrell. This book is "Lessons From a Lifetime of Writing" and guess what: it is exactly the same book as "Successful Novelist", but for the title.
Amazon has decided to provide a full refund including the shipment costs. Thank you Amazon.

Beautifully written. Almost reads like one of Mr. Morrell's terrific action novels.
Read First Blood way back in l978 and couldn't put the damn book down--and I don't really care for most action novels, by that I mean James M. Cain's Double Indemnity and Postman... are masterpieces...but how many of those are there out there? Not many.

The only quibble I have is this: the advice to hit the reader hard from the get go. I don't need to be "bludgeoned" by the writer from the very beginning.
Interesting openings are just fine, so long as they are plausible, but when
there is something like a killing or knifing, you name it, some disaster, I get the feeling that the scribe is not only insecure, but a certified hack.

Westlake comes to mind, Steele comes to mind--and so many others.
To see what I'm talking about pick up a paperback next time you visit your supermarket, open it to the first page...the scene may be about someone trapped in a plane that's about to crash, or someone getting blasted, or someone in a car rolling down a mountain... This is the kind of idiocy that I do my best to avoid.

Great novels don't open with a tricked-up action sequence; they don't have to--and the great writers know this.
just take a look at the first page of A Confederacy of Dunces or Knut Hamsun's Hunger, Celine's Journey to the End of the Night, or even Bukowski's Ham On Rye. Better still, pick up Edward Bunker's No Beast So fierce, one of the great crime novels, and see how it begins. The guy is in his cell, about to be released, shining his shoes. Get it?
I hate fast openings. Always have.

Don't insult your reader's intelligence with a moronic action sequence.
Drama need not always have "action" in it.

Other than that, David Morrell's book on writing is truly one of the finest.

David Morrell is a writer's writer - a master of fiction who is avidly read and admired by fellow bestselling authors such as Dean Koontz and Stephen King. When I interviewed Stephen King for a writing magazine a while back he told me that David Morrell's First Blood was one of only two novels he used when teaching creative writing at the beginning of his career. 'David's a great writer,' he enthused. 'That's a wonderful book.'

Picking up a secondhand copy of The Fraternity of the Stone on impulse a few years ago was my own introduction to David Morrell; little did I know then that he would become one of my biggest influences in fiction. Reading David Morrell made me want to become a writer, and I've been a fan ever since. I not only read his novels and short stories for enjoyment, but to learn. Now he shows you how he does it - how you can do it too.

The Successful Novelist is an essential guide book for learning the craft of fiction, and David Morrell is a fantastic teacher. It's a bit like Stephen King On Writing, and just as good (see my review of this book as well).

The former Professor of American Literature (and expert on the work of Ernest Hemingway) painstakingly explains in careful detail everything you need to know about dialogue and characterization, plotting and structure, pinpointing the pitfalls to watch out for that will spoil your chances of success. His advice on all aspects of writing (including the business side) is excellent.

The Successful Novelist is not only inspirational ... it's indispensable. Don't just read David Morrell's book ... keep it on your desk for reference.

David Morrell opens The Successful Novelist with the most important question a writer will ever answer. "Why Do You Want to be a Writer?" He pushes the reader to go deep into his/her emotional state to answer the question. The rest of the book is filled with examples from Morrell's life that illustrate the importance of knowing the emotional reason a writer writes. Interweaved is practical writing advice and look inside the mind of the man who created Rambo. The Successful Novelist also delves into the writing world, the publishing industry, and the movie industry. Whether you've just written your first novel or your thirtieth novel, you're likely to find something inspiring, informative, and entertaining in the pages of The Successful Novelist.

My favorite 'stories from the trenches' book has always been Simon Callow's BEING AN ACTOR...this is a very close second and far surpasses other writing books like Mamet's, Bradbury's and King's. Told honestly and rather generously, this is a truly wonderful book for anyone who has ever considered becoming a writer.

No matter if you are an aspiring writer or an avid reader, this is a peek into how one author creates his stories.
Although I have no aspirations to be a writer, I am an avid reader and often wonder how one of my favorite authors creates the stories I love.
Mr. Morrell provides a end to end view of both the creative and business aspects of writing.
If you are an aspiring writer Mr. Morrell will help you avoid the pitfalls of your chosen profession.