Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life 1st Edition

by Anne Lamott (Author)

1,284 customer reviews

in Speech

ISBN-13: 978-0385480017

ISBN-10: 0385480016

Why is ISBN important?

Have one to sell? Sell on Amazon

Added to

Unable to add item to List. Please try again.

Share <Embed>

Condition: Used - Very Good

In Stock. Sold by Jenson Books Inc, Fulfilled by Amazon

Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.

307 Used from $3.99

FREE Shipping on orders over $25.

Deliver to

Turn on 1-Click ordering

In Stock.

Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.

This item ships to France. Want it Thursday, Sept. 13? Order within and choose AmazonGlobal Priority Shipping at checkout. Learn more

List Price: $16.00
Save: $5.13 (32%)

122 New from $10.79

Deliver to

Turn on 1-Click ordering

More Buying Choices

122 New from $10.79 307 Used from $3.99 7 Collectible from $9.00

436 used & new from $3.99

See All Buying Options

Free%20Two-Day%20Shipping%20for%20College%20Students%20with%20Amazon%20Student

"A warm, generous and hilarious guide through the writer's world and its treacherous swamps." --Los Angeles Times

Advice on writing and on life from an acclaimed bestselling author:
"Thirty years ago my older brother, who was ten years old at the time, was trying to get a report on birds written that he'd had three months to write. It was due the next day. We were out at our family cabin in Bolinas, and he was at the kitchen table close to tears, surrounded by binder paper and pencils and unopened books on birds, immobilized by the hugeness of the task ahead. Then my father sat down beside him, put his arm around my brother's shoulder, and said, 'Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird.'"

Frequently bought together

Total price: $27.81

One of these items ships sooner than the other. Show details

Buy the selected items together

This item:Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott Paperback $10.87
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
FREE Shipping on orders over $25. Details
On Writing: 10th Anniversary Edition: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King Paperback $6.07
Available to ship in 1-2 days.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
FREE Shipping on orders over $25. Details
On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction by William Zinsser Paperback $10.87
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
FREE Shipping on orders over $25. Details

Customers who bought this item also bought

Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1

This shopping feature will continue to load items. In order to navigate out of this carousel please use your heading shortcut key to navigate to the next or previous heading.

Stephen King

3,212

Paperback
$6.07
Natalie Goldberg

601

Paperback
$13.46
William Zinsser

795

in Business Encyclopedias
Paperback
$10.87
Annie Dillard

175

Paperback
$12.12
Ted Kooser

121

Paperback
$9.29
Penny Kittle

32

Paperback
$34.95

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Think you've got a book inside of you? Anne Lamott isn't afraid to help you let it out. She'll help you find your passion and your voice, beginning from the first really crummy draft to the peculiar letdown of publication. Readers will be reminded of the energizing books of writer Natalie Goldberg and will be seduced by Lamott's witty take on the reality of a writer's life, which has little to do with literary parties and a lot to do with jealousy, writer's block and going for broke with each paragraph. Marvelously wise and best of all, great reading.

Review

"Superb writing advice... hilarious, helpful and  provocative." -- New York Times Book  Review.

"A warm, generous and  hilarious guide through the writer's world and its  treacherous swamps." -- Los Angeles  Times.

"A gift to all of  us mortals who write or ever wanted to write...  sidesplittingly funny, patiently wise and alternately  cranky and kind -- a reveille to get off our duffs  and start writing now, while we  still can." -- Seattle  Times.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product details

Paperback: 272 pages
Publisher: Anchor; 1 edition (September 1, 1995)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0385480016
ISBN-13: 978-0385480017
Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.6 x 8 inches
Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 1,284 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,025 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1 in Books > Reference > Words, Language & Grammar > Speech
- #3 in Books > Reference > Writing, Research & Publishing Guides > Writing > Journalism & Nonfiction
- #3 in Books > Textbooks > Communication & Journalism > Journalism

Would you like to tell us about a lower price?
If you are a seller for this product, would you like to suggest updates through seller support?

Be the first video

Your name here

Important information

Ingredients

Example Ingredients

Directions

Example Directions

Customer reviews

Write a customer review

See all 1,284 customer reviews

Top customer reviews

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Dario Dallalasta

and a treasure trove of good advice. I learned to get started with short ...

April 18, 2018

Verified Purchase

Wry writing tips from a true master, filled with hilarious patter, poignant moments, and a treasure trove of good advice. I learned to get started with short assignments, write "shitty first drafts," and denounce perfectionism (one of my major hindrances). She writes, "Perfectionism is a mean, frozen form of idealism, while messes are the artist's true friend."

Ms. Lamott touches upon all kinds of subjects that writers find intriguing, such as writer's block (and writer's jealousy), the benefits of writing groups and conferences, the ups and downs of publishing, and finding your voice. I loved her writing voice - it was honest and clear-headed and self-deprecating and touching. There's one very short story she includes that literally brought stinging tears to my eyes. I still to this day find such a feat to be a miraculous gift from a writer. I also loved this little instruction on writing and life: "There's no point in writing hopeless novels. We all know we're going to die; what's important is the kind of men and women we are in the face of this." Wise words, Ms. Lamott.

As writers, we tend to be navel-gazers, but the following tidbit really hit home with the selfishness of some of my writing: "Some of us tend to think that what we do and say and decide and write are cosmically important things. But they're not." After which she states, "If you don't know which way to go, keep it simple." Such good advice!

Finally, she advises that writing can bring you great pleasure in the midst of undeniable pain. And maybe, just maybe, you can write something that actually makes a difference: "Against all odds, you have put it down on paper, so that it won't be lost. And who knows? Maybe what you've written will help others, will be a small part of the solution. You don't even have to know how or in what way, but if you are writing the clearest, truest words you can find and doing the best you can to understand and communicate, this will shine on paper like its own little lighthouse." I think it's safe to say that now I want to be her best friend.

9 people found this helpful

Helpful

Not Helpful

Comment

Indra

it's all the other reviews say it is

March 29, 2017

Verified Purchase

I have never wanted to take advice from anyone about writing. I have never read other books about this, and I have actively avoided workshops or classes. Behind this there is vanity and pride, and the idea that writing must come natural to me and it is an intimate process, secret and sacred and mysterious. But I have a problem. I have been in a rut for three years now. I haven’t written anything worthwhile, and it hurts so much. I chose this book because I liked the reviews. I liked it a lot. I think it’s the best way in which you can help other people write. As expected, there are no magic formulas (anyone who claims so is a charlatan), only a couple of simple, yet helpful exercises, but mostly just comments about writing and an introspection on a writer’s mind and life. What I take away from the book are the ideas about honesty, humility, and constant and passionate effort. It helped a lot. Anne Lamott is funny and sincere, the kind of voice that you can trust and makes you say “you know what, I’m gonna listen to you”. I also admired her warmth. I have been thinking a lot about feelings and ideas mentioned in the book, and I’ve been repeating myself some stuff, mantra-like. I feel I know what to do to become a better writer, and also a better person. Right now, the most valuable lesson was that vanity is useless and persistence is the key. It might sound simple, but it means a lot to me.

7 people found this helpful

Comment

May 17, 2017

Verified Purchase

If you are a writer, or think you might be, or even afraid you might be, this is a good book to sit down with, have a beer or three, and get to know yourself a little better. Anne Lamott doesn't cut corners or pull punches, but she is gentle with your soul. Lamott isn't going to hit you over the head with a lot of rules or grammar Nazi stuff, but she's going to remind you this isn't going to be easy and it isn't going to be bestowed upon you through anything but hard work and a lot of rewriting. It's philosophy wrapped in difficult experiences with a lot of humor. I recommend this book over most of those I've read simply because Lamott is very honest about what it takes and how long it takes to be a writer. Read it once, put it down, come back after you've thought about what you're doing to do about it, and then come back and read it again. It will be different the second time around. Good luck and write well.

12 people found this helpful

Comment

April 9, 2017

Verified Purchase

I received Anne Lamott’s bird by bird as a gift for Christmas last year. I had read her essay on S----- First Drafts, so I was pretty excited to get the book that it was excerpted from. Since I write extremely s----- first drafts, the essay had struck a note with me. I expected that to continue with the book, but that didn’t happen.

Lamott did hold my attention for the first third of bird by bird. She gets very personal about how she got started as a writer and talks about her thoughts on character, plot, and dialogue. However, things got muddy after that, and I often had a hard time finding much of value. The book is subtitled Some Instructions on Writing and Life, so I expected her to get personal. However, the entire work was so full of depressing and sarcastic ramblings that I failed to find many “instructions on writing,” and I didn’t find much on “and life” that was useful either.

I had to fight through the last two-thirds of the book. There was still the occasional humorous anecdote that caused me to laugh, but overall it wasn’t for me. A lot of people really liked bird by bird. According to Amazon, over 85% of readers gave it 4 or 5 stars. I guess I’m one of the weirdos in the minority here. I’m sure Anne Lamott is a great literary writer, but for me this book was full of the incessant ramblings of someone who thinks being sarcastic and angry, passes as being clever. I rate bird by bird three stars.

42 people found this helpful

Helpful

Not Helpful

Comment

Set up an Amazon Giveaway

Amazon Giveaway allows you to run promotional giveaways in order to create buzz, reward your audience, and attract new followers and customers. Learn more about Amazon Giveaway

This item: Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life

Set up a giveaway

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1

This shopping feature will continue to load items. In order to navigate out of this carousel please use your heading shortcut key to navigate to the next or previous heading.

Stephen King

3,212

Paperback
$6.07
William Zinsser

795

in Business Encyclopedias
Paperback
$10.87
Natalie Goldberg

601

Paperback
$13.46
Anne Lamott

560

Paperback
$12.23
Anne Lamott

1,024

Hardcover
$11.99
Ray Bradbury

244

Paperback
$9.87

Pages with related products. See and discover other items: fiction writing, composition in art, san diego ca, arts education, teaching art, writing prompts for kids

Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life 1st Edition

Turn on 1-Click ordering

Turn on 1-Click ordering

Frequently bought together

Customers who bought this item also bought

Sponsored products related to this item (What's this?)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Review

Product details

Related Video Shorts (0)

Be the first video

Important information

Ingredients

Directions

Sponsored products related to this item (What's this?)

Customer reviews

Top customer reviews

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Set up an Amazon Giveaway

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life 1st Edition

Sorry, there was a problem.

Sorry, there was a problem.

Buy used On clicking this link, a new layer will be open $9.98 On clicking this link, a new layer will be open

Turn on 1-Click ordering

Buy new On clicking this link, a new layer will be open $10.87 On clicking this link, a new layer will be open

Turn on 1-Click ordering

Frequently bought together

Customers who bought this item also bought

Sponsored products related to this item (What's this?)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Review

Product details

Related Video Shorts (0)

Be the first video

Important information

Ingredients

Directions

Sponsored products related to this item (What's this?)

Customer reviews

Top customer reviews

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Set up an Amazon Giveaway

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

Buy used On clicking this link, a new layer will be open

$9.98 On clicking this link, a new layer will be open

Buy new On clicking this link, a new layer will be open

$10.87 On clicking this link, a new layer will be open