Books : Becoming a Writer

Rating: - All that Writing Jazz
Books that teach you how to write fiction are almost a genre unto themselves. Some are literary (A Passion for Narrative) and some are trash (How to Write a Blockbuster), but most usually recommend the same things: create a daily writing routine, study other authors, persist, etc. This slim book is a classic in the genre, published before World War II. The language is very formal, the recommended reading is of authors no longer popular, and the reader is given plenty of suggestions of what to do with a typewriter.

What I found interesting: creative writing classes existed even back then, and they were for both men and women; the duality between consciousness and unconsciousness was already of interest for those studying creative writing; and the main belief of teachers like Brande was that everyone could succeed as a writer (as opposed to the more popular view today that only a few elect have talent.)

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Rating: - One of the best books on writing you'll ever read
I don't why you can't add this book other than through the Amazon Marketplace. Is the book out of print? If this is the case, then this is truly sad. Beg, borrow or buy this book second hand. It really is a marvellous read. It cuts through much of the waffle that surrounds writing and is written clearly and engagingly, the mark of a true writer. Not a single word is wasted. Anyone who is serious about "becoming a writer" should not be without this book.

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Rating: - in two minds
Dorothea Brande's 1934 classic best-seller is about how to harness 'flow' as this is the key to great writing. She suggests thinking of yourself in two forms as conscious and unconscious. Both aspects of the self have to be trained and made to work in harmony. She is very hard nosed about the touch feely bits. As a starter she recommends waking half an hour before normal and writing whatever comes into your head. Keep this up for a month and then use rational consciousness to analyse the outputs and see what themes are in your unconscious mind. Another early technique is to set a time each day when you will write and then write at that time - without fail. This helps rob the unconscious of its pretensions to having 'moods' and thus not being able to perform as the need demands. She suggests that if you cannot stick with these routines then you may as well give up the quest to be an author of note. Those who do stick with it, however, are likely to develop an endless source of effortless, imaginative and good quality prose.

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Rating: - If you want to be a writer, then you need to read "Becoming a Writer"
This book will not tell you how to write a great novel. Nor the secrets to plot and character development. What this book will do is help you make the most of those tendencies that impel you to want to write. Written in the 1920's and still popular now, this is a vital tool for those wanting to enhance whatever compulsion to write that they already possess. Buy this book and begin to write. You never know where it will get you. And never, ever, let technical quandries mire your creative spirit.

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Rating: - The classic first book for wannabe writers
There are so many how-to books for aspiring writers, but this is far and away the best for the beginner at the outset of the writing journey.

Her written style is excellent, worth studying for itself. It puts the pedestrian style of many other how-to-write writers to shame.

Ms Brande also strikes a refreshingly honest balance between encouragement (anyone can become a writer, with persistence and application) and realism (but it may not be the path for you).

It's very much a book of it's period: writing about the different weights of paper to use in your typewriter; and clearly influenced by the trendy new studies in psychology at that time.

I'm adding my review, because I'm very surprised it's not garnered more votes.

It's an inspiring book, an encouraging guide, a wise teacher, and an enjoyable read. An essential buy, in my view!

F31