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Roy Peter Clark

Writing Tools: 50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer Hardcover – September 1, 2006

by Roy Peter Clark (Author)

4.7 1,868 ratings

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A special 10th anniversary edition of Roy Peter Clark's bestselling guide to writing, featuring five bonus tools.

Ten years ago, Roy Peter Clark, America's most influential writing teacher, whittled down almost thirty years of experience in journalism, writing, and teaching into a series of fifty short essays on different aspects of writing. In the past decade, Writing Tools has become a classic guidebook for novices and experts alike and remains one of the best loved books on writing available.

Organized into four sections, "Nuts and Bolts," "Special Effects," "Blueprints for Stories," and "Useful Habits," Writing Tools is infused with more than 200 examples from journalism and literature. This new edition includes five brand new, never-before-shared tools.

Accessible, entertaining, inspiring, and above all, useful for every type of writer, from high school student to novelist, Writing Tools is essential reading.

Print length

272 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Little, Brown and Company
Publication date

September 1, 2006
Dimensions

5.75 x 1 x 8.5 inches
ISBN-10

0316014982
ISBN-13

978-0316014984
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Covering the writing waterfront-from basics on verb tense to the value of forming a "support group"-Poynter Institute vice president Clark offers tips, tricks and techniques for anyone putting fingers to keyboard. The best assets in Clark's book are in the "workshop" sections that conclude each chapter and list strategies for incorporating the material covered in each lesson (minimize adverbs, use active verbs, read your work aloud). Though some suggestions are classroom campy ("Listen to song lyrics to hear how the language moves on the ladder of abstraction" and "With some friends, take a big piece of chart paper and with colored markers draw a diagram of your writing process"), Clark's blend of instruction and exercise will prove especially useful for teachers. One exercise, for instance, suggests reading the newspaper and marking the location of subjects and verbs. Another provides a close reading of a passage from The Postman Always Rings Twice to look at the ways word placement and sentence structure can add punch to prose. Clark doesn't intend his guide to be a replacement for classic style guides like Elements of Style, but as a companion volume, it does the trick.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

The author, vice president of the Poynter Institute School of Journalism, wants you to understand that a tool isn't the same thing as a rule. A tool is something designed to help you, not constrict you. The 50 tools discussed here take writers through the process of storytelling in prose, from the basic (construct a sentence with a subject and a verb) to the advanced (make your characters archetypes, not stereotypes). Many of Clark's rules are technical, having to do with such matters as punctuation and tense, but some of them are more thematically oriented (for example, discussions of the proper uses of foreshadowing and suspense). Use the tools when you like, the author says, and throw them away when it suits you. Just know what it is you're throwing away and why. This is a useful tool for writers at all levels of experience, and it's entertainingly written, with plenty of helpful examples. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Little, Brown and Company; First Edition (September 1, 2006)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 272 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0316014982
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0316014984
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 13.6 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.75 x 1 x 8.5 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #856,224 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #769 in Words, Language & Grammar Reference
- #1,546 in Writing Skill Reference (Books)
- #2,524 in Fiction Writing Reference (Books)

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4.7 1,868 ratings

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Roy Peter Clark

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Roy Peter Clark has been called "America's writing coach" as his stated mission is to help create "a nation of writers." Since 1977 he has taught writing to small children and to Pulitzer winning authors from his mother ship, The Poynter Institute, a school for journalism and democracy in St. Petersburg, Florida. He is the author or editor of 17 books on writing, language, and journalism. The latest, all published by Little, Brown, are "Writing Tools," "The Glamour of Grammar," and "Help! for Writers," which is now also a mobile app. His work has been featured on the Today Show, NPR, and the Oprah Winfrey Show. More than a million of his writing podcasts have been downloaded on iTunesU. On five occasions he has served as a Pulitzer juror and twice has chaired the jury on nonfiction books. His honors include induction in the Features Hall of Fame, an honorary degree from Goucher College, and a stint at Vassar College as Starr Writer-in-Residence. His next book, due out in 2013, is "How to Write Short: Word Craft for Fast Times."

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DogsOnly

The book content is outstanding but Amazon is not

Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2023

Verified Purchase

This book is, in my opinion, one of the best resources available to the budding writer, or experienced writer for that matter. Amazon on the other hand does a terrible job or rating the books physical quality. Mine was rated used-very good. It arrived on terrible condition and very far from a “very good” condition. The content is what matters, so I’m giving it five stars. Just don’t trust Amazon to be honest about what they are shipping to you.

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helloandyhihi

Crucial tips. Bad anecdotes and examples.

Reviewed in the United States on May 1, 2022

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I'm a self-taught journalist (mostly) so I was hungry for these writing tools, and I wish I had discovered this book much earlier. But I am frustrated that so many of the book's vocabulary choices, anecdotes and examples are incomprehensible — and therefore, useless.

Many refer to journalists who were well known from the 1940s through the 1980s. I'm 47 and don't know who these people are. The book also relies on many examples of their work to exemplify each "writing tool." But I often found them written with such dated vocabulary and syntax that I didn't understand the passages even after re-reading them several times.

That's the opposite of good journalistic writing. It violates what I consider the most crucial writing tip: A curious 14-year-old should be able to understand what you write. I revisited this Amazon listing because I'd like to give the book as a high-school graduation gift. But I'm having reservations. Will she understand it or find it useful?

Here are examples from a few consecutive paragraphs in chapter one:

"As often happens, the editor knew that the lead paragraph could be improved, but not how. As he walked down the hallway, story in hand, he looked up to see the Brobdingnagian figure of Jimmy Breslin, who agreed to take a peek at the problem."

I had never come across the word Brobdingnagian before and Clark's use of it to refer to someone I had never heard of (Breslin's prime was from the 1940s through the 1970s), made it hard to infer that the word means "giant."

On the same page, Clark starts a sentence, "With apologies to Dusty Springfield ..." I assumed this was another journalist. It turns out she was a famous singer in the 1960s.

One paragraph later, Clark writes an unclear sentence with multiple dated references: "Add -ing to a verb, and it takes on progressive sense – a happening as in this 1935 description by Richard Wright of the wild celebration after a Joe Louis boxing victory ..."

Thanks for that, Mr. Clark. Of course, I'm not going to Google multiple dated references and weird vocabulary multiple times per page. I can't imagine my niece will, either.

16 people found this helpful

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John M. Ford

How Reading and Writing Work

Reviewed in the United States on October 15, 2010

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Roy Peter Clark lays out 50 of his writing tools and invites us to borrow them for our own writing toolboxes. Each writing tool is presented in a brief chapter that explains the strategy, offers examples, and ends with practice exercises. Clark reminds us that these are tools, not rules. We should work with a few of them at a time to improve our written work and our writing process. The 50 tools are grouped into four sections.

In "Nuts and Bolts," Clark covers writing basics. There are no tedious specifications for comma placement or hyphenation. Instead there are effective techniques for using language "at the word, sentence and paragraph levels." These ten tools include "Establish a pattern, then give it a twist," which shows how repetition can set the reader's expectations. And how occasionally breaking the pattern highlights information and maintains interest. Another chapter, "Cut big, then small" discusses the painful task of revising by removing. Snip and cry, but snip.

"Part Two: Special Effects" demonstrates techniques of "economy, clarity, originality, and persuasion." The thirteen tips in this section include "Set the pace with sentence length" which shows how to influence the psychological "speed" at which a reader moves through text. "Get the name of the dog" emphasizes collecting concrete details as we do research. They allow us to move down the ladder of abstraction and bring life to descriptive writing.

In Part Three: Blueprints," Clark advocates organizing our writing process as well as our documents. Two of the best tools among these sixteen show how to encourage--and manage --readers' progress. "To generate suspense, use internal cliffhangers" and whet the reading appetite with not-yet-complete information. "Place gold coins along the path" reminds to provide points of enjoyment and closure to satisfy readers. And reduce the tension created by all of those cliffhangers.

"Part Four: Useful Habits" closes the book with eleven long-term strategies for working writers. "Limit self-criticism in early drafts--then turn it loose during revision" balances creativity and critique. It is consistent with the two-part writing process described at length in Peter Elbow's Writing With Power . "Recruit your own support group" goes beyond standard advice about seeking feedback. Clark encourages writers to understand their own writing blind spots and needs for others' expertise. Then target helpers with matching knowledge and skills.

It does not surprise when a book from an experienced writer is well-written and entertaining--as this one is. It should not surprise that the advice is useful and can improve our writing if we follow it. This is a very good book and is highly recommended. It deserves a place on your bookshelf next to Strunk and White's The Elements of Style , William Zinsser's On Writing Well , Susan Bell's The Artful Edit , and Mark Kramer and Wendy Call's Telling True Stories .

Feed your shelf.

10 people found this helpful

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Paloma

Easy Reading and Easy to Use for enrichment classes

Reviewed in the United States on March 26, 2023

Verified Purchase

This book is a gem! I previewed it on Amazon based on a required text listed on a student's syllabus. I serve as an enrichment tutor/mentor/coach. I was also a journalist then on to dissertation and research. I wish I had this book (by the way- easy on the eyes and stays open) when I was just starting- I could have been writing novels... and still may - A section that stands out for use with creative writing students: Tool 25- The Difference Between Reports and Stories... and the comment- don't forget the dog's name in reporting....

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Barbara Bauer

Top!

Reviewed in Germany on June 3, 2023

Verified Purchase

There is a lot to learn for new writers - this is the perfect help!

sugarain

noted

Reviewed in Singapore on August 21, 2023

Verified Purchase

I am half way through the book and learning that which I do not know.

Lyle Nicholson

This book should be a staple for all writers!

Reviewed in Canada on July 29, 2023

Verified Purchase

An excellent resource for writers. This provides a basic template to work from in the craft. This is now on my desk, and I refer to it often!

Jacqx Melilli

A Must in a Writer's Tool Kit

Reviewed in Australia on June 27, 2023

Verified Purchase

Great tips and well laid out for quick referencing.

Cliente Kindle

Essencial pra qualquer escritor

Reviewed in Brazil on December 12, 2022

Verified Purchase

Esse livro é a verdadeira bíblia do escritor! Logo na primeira página, na introdução, o autor já te ensina coisas preciosíssimas. Pra mim é o livro de escrita mais direto, objetivo, prático e fácil de entender e aplicar. Recomendo mil vezes! Agora a impressão do livro em si é horrível, as páginas são como papel jornal, a capa é pouco mais grossa que um sulfite. A qualidade da edição é bem baixa, mas o conteúdo é tão bom que eu acho que vale a pena ter em casa e carregar pra todo lado de qualquer jeito.

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